eBooks for All Collection Development Grant Opportunity

Purpose: The California State Library’s LSTA grant opportunities: Support improvement, innovation, and experimentation in library services; Build capacity among the California library community in grant-writing and grant management; and Help California’s local libraries develop services that effectively respond to community needs and align with community aspirations. The California State Library invites public libraries to apply for funding to build our shared statewide collection of eBooks and eAudiobooks, accessible to every library in the state. The collection, currently consisting of over 150,000 copies of over 90,000 titles, is designed to meet the recreational and informational reading needs of California’s diverse communities. Many titles are licensed for simultaneous use. The collection is available to all public libraries to provide for free to readers of all ages. Libraries wishing to have access to this collection must be on the Palace App, an eReader aggregator that can browse and display materials from Overdrive, CloudLibrary, and other similar services. The eBooks for All California project not only includes materials inside the app, it also includes a geolocated collection of materials that are all licensed for simultaneous use to anyone inside of California, with or without a library card. If your library or organization is interested in purchasing materials for inclusion in this growing statewide collection, the California State Library would welcome your participation. The eBooks for All Collection Development Grants 2024-2025 LSTA-funded projects meet Goal 4 of the California Library Services and Technology Act Investment Plan 2023–2027: Strengthen equitable resource-sharing and access to information, services, and opportunity with an emphasis on local community strengths and challenges. In order to participate in this opportunity, libraries must join the eBooks for All project and offer access to Palace to their patrons. If your library has not yet joined and you are interested in participating, please email ebooksforall@library.ca.gov to get started. Libraries will need to set up a purchasing account with the Palace Project to procure materials. When grants are awarded, the State Library will work with the grantees to complete that process. Eligible Applicants: This opportunity is open to Public Libraries and Library Consortiums in the State of California. Eligible Geographies: This opportunity is open to Public Libraries and Library Consortiums in the State of California Matching Funding: A cash match is required for these grants. The match for all grants will be 25 percent. All proposed expenditures, including those purchased with matching funds, must comply with federal restrictions on the use of LSTA grant funds. Project funds can only be provided to and accepted by agencies that submit a successful application. Grant recipients may not “re- grant” or distribute LSTA funds to another agency.

• PSCHealth & Human Services, Libraries and Arts

• Grant guidelines

  Not yet available

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  lstagrants@library.ca.gov