SHREWSBURY – On Sept. 19, the Shrewsbury Public Library announced that it was recently awarded a federal Library Services and Technology Act grant for $30,000 from the Creative Communities from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.
The Shrewsbury Public Library plans to use it to supplement its existing makerspace technology and offer several instructive programs and workshops run by local experts teaching patrons how to use various pieces of newly acquired equipment.
The library will offer more STEAM programs for children and teens. The library is partnering with several local colleges and universities, including Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the College of the Holy Cross, Tufts University, the UMass Chan Medical School, the Discovery Museum, and Technocopia. Mike Zeller, the assistant library director, will be managing the grant.
Twenty libraries received funding from the Direct Grants for Libraries program, totaling $360,949. Federal grant opportunities from the Massachusetts board include financial and health literacy programs, STEM and STEAM projects, programs that help people learn English and become citizens, programs that serve teen needs and projects that preserve valuable historical documents. Grants are also available to help communities highlight local history, increase access to library services for people with disabilities, and support small business development and entrepreneurs. The act is administered on the federal level by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in the Commonwealth by the board of library commissioners.
