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LEWISTON — The Lewiston Public Library has been selected as one of six Maine cultural organizations to receive a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to retain employees and help pay for essential operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The grant came through the federal CARES Act. The library applied for the grant on May 11, following City Council approval on May 5 to do so.
The highly competitive grant program got more than 2,300 eapplications from cultural organizations requesting more than $370 million for projects between June and December. Approximately 14 percent of the applicants were funded. The 317 grants will allow cultural organizations to retain staff to preserve and curate humanities collections, advance humanities research, and maintain buildings and core operations.
The Lewiston Public Library will receive $121,846. Funding will go toward the Youth Library Where You Are program, as well as salaries for two full-time children’s staff and four part-time children’s staff through the end of December.
The Youth Library Where You Are program will expand library digital offerings, increase virtual programming by staff and presenters and convert the BookReach program to a virtual format. The Summer Reading Program will be offered in app form and through to-go program kits and book giveaways. Programming will also extend beyond virtual, including StoryWalks installed throughout the community, craft and activity kits mailed to families along with print newsletters supporting humanities learning. This program will also address the digital divide in literacy opportunities by purchasing a number of digital learning devices to circulate to families. The program will be managed by Library Director Marcela Peres and Children’s Librarian Sara Groves. Program details will be announced at lplonline.org and on the Library’s social media sites as they are developed.
“We are excited and honored to receive this funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities,” said Library Director Marcela Peres. “For over a century, the Lewiston Public Library has worked to foster a love of reading, learning, and community both in and out of our building. This grant will allow us to bring the library to Lewiston’s families and ensures that we can continue this important work by helping local youth through these challenging times.”
A total of $731,189 will be distributed in Maine. Other recpienents are the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, in Boothbay; Bowdoin College, in Brunswick; The Monhegan Museum, on Monhegan Island; Northeast Historic Film, in Bucksport; and the Penobscot Marine Museum, in Searsport.
In-person youth programming at the Lewiston Public Library will likely be one of the last services to return, given challenges of ensuring safe social distancing among children. Staff continues to adapt programming to remote models, many virtual. Others, recognizing the barriers to technology access in Lewiston as well as screen fatigue, will support literacy education by low-tech methods.
