How to Write an LSTA Grant Applications for 2011 April 15, 2010 Pennsylvania School Librarians Association Presented by Debra E. Kachel, Mansfield University and Nancy L. Henry, Ephrata Middle School

Workshop Objectives  Eligibility  Grant Requirements  The Application & Criteria  Collection Analysis Primer  Outcomes and Evaluation  Electronic submission Q & As

Library Services & Technology Act Federal funds administered by Commonwealth Libraries Available for all types of libraries Competitive; one-year Specific criteria outlined for each type of grant & library Due Sept. 10, 2010 Awarded in Feb. 2011

Pennsylvania LSTA Funding History K-12 Grants

The LSTA Collection Development Grant for K-12 $5,000 per library for print and AV materials to support one of these areas: Science Social studies Career education You can also develop special collections for English language learners and physically disabled students, but must be in the subject areas above.

Collection Development Application May apply to multiple schools in a district Each library must submit a separate grant application Cannot supplant budget Project supports the achievement of the PA Academic Standards Primarily a print grant but not for classroom sets of books or textbooks

Conditions for Special Collections Address science, social studies or career education May include AV, software and or equipment, but majority of funds must be for print resources ($2500+) Equipment may not exceed $600 per item Equipment must be needed to use the other resources purchased with grant All resources & equipment must become part of the library & supervised by the librarian Resources purchased for ELLs and the physically disabled:

Priorities for the CD Grant Librarian-teacher instructional collaboration (20 pts) Collection assessment, weeding, & collection age (15 pts) Evaluation/outcomes (10 pts) Others: public library cooperation (5 pts) & abstract (3 pts) 53 pts total What you can control:What you may not be able to control:  State Aid Ratio (14 pts)  Staffing (14 pts)  Library’s Budget (13 pts)  Extended library hours (4 pts)  Inclusion on school improvement team (2pts) 47 pts total Based on 100 points

Required Attachment Superintendent’s Letter Signed by Superintendent, Principal and Librarian School librarian must be involved in the preparation of the grant Grant money may not supplant local funds Agree to work with a PDE liaison prior to ordering Will file required reports Signed CIPA/Internet Use Policy Any recipient of LSTA funds must comply with the CIPA/ Acceptable Internet Use Policy The letter and policy must be scanned as one uploaded doc’t.

Application must include: Background info State aid ratio, budget, books per student, collection age, school improvement team membership Staffing & Hours FTE at applying school If 4 days out of a 6-day cycle=.67 Or, total hours worked in that school in a week divided by the hours in the workweek Ratio of LMS: students (.5 LMS to 500 equals 1:1,000 ratio or.5:500) Go to p of Guidelines

Application must also include: Collaboration ACCESS PA & POWER Library usage Librarian inclusion in curriculum work Librarian & teacher collaboration - % Tie to info literacy & national standards Communication with special education teachers Public Library cooperation Evaluation plan Measures effectiveness Effect on student achievement Improves collaboration Go to p of Guidelines

Collection Development Plan 1. Identify one of the targeted areas 2. Analyze collection fitting that subject (age, size, strengths, weaknesses) 3. Predict resources and types needed  Science  Will show a sample later  Teacher and/or student survey (shows collaboration) For Example: Go to p.14 of the Guidelines

Collection Development Plan 4. Involve teachers in selection 5. Plan to evaluate effectiveness of new resources 6. Weeding  Plan book review day on a staff development time  Survey & circulation data  Must show evidence that 5% of book collection was weeded in For Example:

Kachel’s Collection Analysis Primer A methodology that can be used to:  Collect data about your library’s print collection  Decide which subject area to address  Include teachers in the selection process  Decide what resources will be added to improve teaching & learning within the selected subject  Evaluate the process and use of new resources Refer to Handout

Project Evaluation Things you can evaluate in a Collection Development grant: 1.Increased # of collaborative units taught 2.Increased class use 3.Increase in use/circ of X00s compared to previous year 4.Use/circ of new materials 5.Improved average collection age of the section targeted in the grant 6.Grades of student projects involving the purchased resources 7.Teacher survey of how new resources impact their teaching

Outcomes Based Evaluation Goal (must be measurable) Data Source Applied to?Who does it? When? 90% of the students will earn a B or better on the science project designed by the science teacher and librarian Completed science projects 7 th & 8 th grade students Science teacher collaborating with the librarian End of the unit for each class SMARTSMART SMART – Specific Measurable Acceptable Realistic Time-based

Commitments if Awarded 1. Must supply a collection development policy that: Includes a weeding policy Includes procedures for handling a challenge Is officially approved by the Board or other similar agent within past 10 years 2. File quarterly reports- one narrative, one financial

Additional Requirement for the Collection Development Grant 3. Submit a collaboratively developed Resource Guide that relates to subject or resources purchased Identifies both print and electronic sources Aligns to the PA Academic Standards Go to & click on “Materials & Resources”

Submitting the Grant PDE Website PDE Website To get into eGrants: 1.PDE website 2.Access Services 3.eGrants 4.Library Development (LSTA)

Electronic Filing of Grant Applications Create a login and password Refer to “How to Apply” section of each grant application packet. Save frequently as there is a time-out period Help at or

Issues with Electronic Filing No spell check No special formatting Fill-in blocks or limited text (no. of characters stated) No multiple copies needed 2 attachments total allowed Letter must be scanned and also sent US Mail Save-Save-Save while working Refer to e_Grants Handout

Practical Advice on Grantwriting Begin with concise description (abstract) Explain needs, use third person Show documentation of collaboration/ integration Discuss Info Literacy curriculum Document use & instruction of ACCESS PA & POWER Library databases Evaluation must be student- centered; project must show student benefit

Questions &Answers