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G2S Project Code: 2018-NV-82140
State: Nevada
Fiscal Year: 2018

Grantee
Nevada State Library, Archives and Public Records

Project Director
Director Name: Sulin Jones
Director Phone: 775-684-3340
Director Email: sulinjones@admin.nv.gov

General Information
Title: Micro Grants
State Project Code: 18-20
Start Date: 07/01/2018
End Date: 09/30/2019
Abstract: LSTA subgrant funds help Nevada libraries put new ideas into practice, enhance/expand existing services, and solidify their roles as community educational centers, though planning, assessment, training, partnerships, building capacity, and identifying user access needs. However, not all Nevada libraries participate in the LSTA subgrant program. Our 5 year plan evaluation findings revealed that libraries were concerned with application and project timelines, and the ability to meet match requirements. Evaluation recommendations were to determine areas/populations of highest need and consider priority funding or a separate pool of funding for those areas/populations. In previous years, smaller, non-competitive grants were offered, but only to public libraries and only for Lifelong Learning projects.To address the findings and increase participation, we piloted non-competitive microgrants for Federal Year 2018. Micro Grants, for projects up to $3,000, have expanded focal areas (Lifelong Learning, Technology/Edge, Institutional Improvement, and Continuing Education), were made available to all types of libraries, and have rolling application deadlines, flexible funding periods, and a match waiver option. Staff outreach and consultation to the smaller libraries was also increased to encourage LSTA subgrant participation. As a Summer Reading microgrants were particularly popular, this project also provided Summer Reading supporting materials to Nevada public libraries.
State Goal: Goal 4: Build capacity of libraries to meet evolving information access needs.

Budget Information

LSTA

MATCH-State

MATCH-Other

Total

$76,855.93

$0.00

$17,388.34

$94,244.27

Intent(s)
Improve library operations.
Library Infrastructure & Capacity

Activities
Activity Details
Title: Continuing Education Micro Grants
Narrative: Professional Development scholarships were offered to Nevada library staff and trustees to attend training events that are appropriate to the participant's job duties. Travel, per diem, lodging, and registration support was provided to 33 members of the Nevada Library workforce for the following:
14: Nevada Library Association (NLA) Conference
3: Association of Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) Conference
3: ACRL
2: American Library Association (ALA) Conferences (annual & midwinter)
1: LOEX
8: NASA Summer Reading Program Workshop
1: LSTA All States Convening Conference
1: regional NCLab Trainings

We determined that 194 in-person/hour long CE opportunities were made available to the library workforce for this project. For conferences, numbers were calculated as follows: An average number of CE opportunities/workshops that a Travel to Training participant could be expected to attend during a given event was estimated (a 2 day NLA conference, 3 workshops per day=6). Workshops were estimated to be 60 minutes in length. See table below:

Event	Days	Participants	# sessions/ workshops	Total workshops available	Avg minutes	Total minutes
NLA	2	14	6	84	60	5040
ARSL	3	3	9	27	60	1620
ACRL	4	3	12	36	60	2160
ALA	4	2	12	24	60	1440
LOEX	2	1	6	6	60	360
NASA SRP	2	8	6	8	60	480
LSTA	2	1	6	6	60	360
NCLab	1	1	3	3	60	180
Totals		33		194	60	11640

All participating staff were asked to complete a survey and list one practical and one aspirational takeaway from their trainings. A prevalent learning outcome was hearing about best practices and practical frontline applications; 100% of staff either agreed or strongly agreed that they had learned something that would help improve services to the public and that they were confident about using and applying what they had learned. However, nearly all of them confirmed that the most beneficial aspect of participating in in-person CE workshops and conferences was relationship building, the opportunity to have one-to-one interactions and group conversations and shared experiences.

Intent: Improve library operations.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Program
Format: In-person

Quantity
Session length (minutes): 60
Number of sessions in program: 194
Average number in attendance per session: 1
Number of times program administered: 1

Partner Information

Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No

Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: Yes
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: Amargosa Valley Library District
Address: 829 East Farm Rd.
City: Amargosa
State: NV
Zip: 89020
Name: Boulder City Library District
Address: 701 Adams Blvd.
City: Boulder City
State: NV
Zip: 89005
Name: Carson City Library
Address: 900 North Roop St.
City: Carson City
State: NV
Zip: 89701
Name: College of Southern Nevada
Address: 6375 W. Charleston Blvd.
City: Las Vegas
State: NV
Zip: 89146-1164
Name: Elko-Lander-Eureka County Library System
Address: 720 Court St.
City: Elko
State: NV
Zip: 89801
Name: Henderson District Public Libraries
Address: 280 S. Green Valley Pkwy
City: Henderson
State: NV
Zip: 89012
Name: Humboldt County Library
Address: 85 East 5th St.
City: Winnemucca
State: NV
Zip: 89445
Name: Lyon County Library
Address: 20 Nevin Way
City: Yerington
State: NV
Zip: 89447
Name: White Pine County Library
Address: 950 Campton St.
City: Ely
State: NV
Zip: 89301
Question 1: I learned something by participating in this library activity.
Strongly Agree: 22
Agree: 10
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 2: I feel more confident about what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 18
Agree: 14
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 3: I intend to apply what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 19
Agree: 13
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 4: Applying what I learned will help improve library services to the public.
Strongly Agree: 10
Agree: 22
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0

Activity Details
Title: Lifelong Learning Micro Grants
Narrative: This Micro Grant category is projects that encouraged people to participate in their Library’s communal efforts towards literacy and education and/or connect people with each other to support an enriched, engaged, and inclusive community. Libraries were strongly encouraged to include a collection development component in to support learning activities.

15 Lifelong Learning projects were funded, serving over 23,000 people. Projects were split evenly between being aimed at all ages and children and focussed on supporting community enrichment and summer and seasonal reading programs.
Projects included: Summer/Winter Reading programs, art classes, theatre performances, Star Wars day, a travelling planetarium, coding camps, family literacy, diversity and inclusion, virtual reality, personal skills building, and language learning.

Project activity summary:
516 programs, 50 presentations, 41 consultations, 316 print materials, 60 digital materials; over 11,800 people attended prograns or presentations
Intent: Improve library operations.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Program
Format: In-person

Quantity
Session length (minutes): 60
Number of sessions in program: 516
Average number in attendance per session: 23
Number of times program administered: 1

Partner Information

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: Beatty Library District
Address: 400 N. 4th St.
City: Beatty
State: NV
Zip: 89003
Name: Boulder City Library District
Address: 701 Adams Blvd.
City: Boulder City
State: NV
Zip: 89005
Name: Carson City Library
Address: 900 North Roop St.
City: Carson City
State: NV
Zip: 89701
Name: Churchill County Library
Address: 553 S. Maine St.
City: Fallon
State: NV
Zip: 89406
Name: Elko County School District
Address: 850 Elm St.
City: Elko
State: NV
Zip: 89801
Name: Henderson District Public Libraries
Address: 280 S. Green Valley Pkwy
City: Henderson
State: NV
Zip: 89012
Name: North Las Vegas Library District
Address: 2250 Las Vegas Blvd. North
City: North Las Vegas
State: NV
Zip: 89030
Name: Pahrump Community Library
Address: 701 East Street
City: Pahrump
State: NV
Zip: 89048
Name: White Pine County Library
Address: 950 Campton St.
City: Ely
State: NV
Zip: 89301
Question 1: I learned something by participating in this library activity.
Strongly Agree: 412
Agree: 377
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 71
Disagree: 18
Strongly Disagree: 6
Non-Response: 2
Question 2: I feel more confident about what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 398
Agree: 379
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 79
Disagree: 20
Strongly Disagree: 9
Non-Response: 1
Question 3: I intend to apply what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 566
Agree: 262
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 29
Disagree: 12
Strongly Disagree: 13
Non-Response: 4
Question 4: I am more aware of resources and services provided by the library.
Strongly Agree: 538
Agree: 114
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 28
Disagree: 17
Strongly Disagree: 8
Non-Response: 181
Question 5: I am more likely to use other library resources and services.
Strongly Agree: 481
Agree: 339
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 41
Disagree: 14
Strongly Disagree: 9
Non-Response: 2

Activity Details
Title: Technology Micro Grants
Narrative: Technology Micro Grants were for projects that focus on improving technology to meet the needs of library users and staff and/or provide accessibility through assistive technology. Two technology projects were funded: a subscription to the EDGE Initiative to help assess current technology resources and plan for future needs and Chromebooks for Coding, where 13 chromebooks were acquired to create a mobile coding lab and run NCLab coding camps.

Intent: Improve library operations.

Activity: Content
Mode: Acquisition
Format: Combined physical & digital

Quantity
Number of hardware acquired: 13
Number of software acquired: 1
Number of licensed databases acquired: 0
Number of print materials (books & government documents) acquired: 0
Number of electronic materials acquired: 0
Number of audio/visual units (audio discs, talking books, other recordings) acquired: 0

Partner Information

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: Henderson District Public Libraries
Address: 280 S. Green Valley Pkwy
City: Henderson
State: NV
Zip: 89012
Name: Humboldt County Library
Address: 85 East 5th St.
City: Winnemucca
State: NV
Zip: 89445

Activity Details
Title: Institutional Capacity Micro Grants
Narrative: Institutional Improvement Micro Grants were for projects that serve to improve library operations and services but fall outside of the scope of the Lifelong Learning and Technology categories. Three Institutional Improvement microgrant projects were funded: eBooks (60) to support collection development, eBooks (105) and Chromebooks (18) to support school library instruction, and compact newspaper/book display racks (5) to maximize space.

Intent: Improve library operations.

Activity: Content
Mode: Acquisition
Format: Combined physical & digital

Quantity
Number of hardware acquired: 18
Number of software acquired: 18
Number of licensed databases acquired: 0
Number of print materials (books & government documents) acquired: 0
Number of electronic materials acquired: 165
Number of audio/visual units (audio discs, talking books, other recordings) acquired: 0

Partner Information

Project Outcomes
Project Outcomes
List any important outcomes or findings not previously reported:
These microgrant projects all have in common the theme of “Library as Social Connector.” There seems to be a great yearning for a sense of community; these small scale, all-ages projects, which brought families and neighbors together in a shared space to participate in shared activities, addressed this, solidifying the library’s role as a community center/community living room. Quotes from the Micro Grant final reports: “Some community members received the opportunity to experience something for the very first time (ex: Virtual Reality). By trying something new and having a positive learning experience, they were encouraged to return to the library to participate in the program again and became more aware of other programs being offered.” “By offering programs targeting family audiences, participants provided positive responses of ways their own family members engaged with each other during the program and how they continued the learning process outside of the library.” “The activities offered, engaged attendees and encouraged learning in a new and exciting way.” “More people signed up for the SRP than ever before-929. Over 250 adults signed up. Entire families signed up “Our findings show that there is a high demand for fun, educational programming in our city. We will investigate how to accommodate more families and children in the future.” “Due to the success ... (we) will continue to provide programming opportunities focused on the promotion of diverse cultures, STEAM concepts, and literacy” “The programs provided did attract families into the library. Our preschool parties averaged just over 100 attendees (including parents)” “The greatest value was getting children and families into the library to discover the materials and programs available to them, leading them to build their own reading experience.”
Please briefly describe the importance of these outcomes and findings for future program planning:
However, behind every wonderful outward facing program, libraries heroically and invisibly deal with the mechanics of project and people management, promotion/publicity, and collecting meaningful data: "The outcomes of this program illustrated that library users have different expectations of library events during the school year than during the summer." "...(we) are hoping that by getting the teachers more involved and getting them to bring their classes as a field trip, we might be able to have a higher number of attendees learning from the events." "For future events, we will be focusing on a way to make our entertaining events more educational." "Approximately one third of the children registered this year completed the program. This is lower than previous years. Perhaps for future programs we may not register visiting children but still encourage them to participate." "The library has been struggling to see an increase in participation in years past, so there was an increased outreach effort this summer. This resulted in the participation rate increasing from 6.3% in 2017 to 7.8% in 2018. Unfortunately, the increase in participation was not reflected in the completion rate which decreased from 17% in 2017 to 14% in 2018." "Based on verbal feedback, we realized we need to spread things out more physically. Families are more apt to engage with the activities and the performers more positively if everyone is not on top of each other." "Have books and other materials displayed and available for checkout before and after each performance for easy access." it is important to continue to provide free well designed programming that is easily available for patrons from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds "Teen programs are seeing a decline in popularity due to the amount of community activities offered to teens and the fact that many have summer jobs." "Due to the high demand of our summer camps we will offer each camp twice." "Individuals need to learn to unplug. Cell phones provide a lot of distraction to the point the child nor the parent are getting the full benefit of the program." "Older residents in the community want to participate in the programs. Don't forget to include them when reaching out for participants."
Explain one or two of the most significant lessons learned for others wanting to adopt any facets of this project:
Participation in Micro Grants was less than expected from the public libraries; however, we did recruit three new libraries who had never before applied for an LSTA subgrant and re-engaged three more who hadn’t applied for a subgrant within the last 5 years. Libraries verbally expressed that they appreciated the flexibility, yet then did not submit applications. Anecdotal feedback was that the paperwork for these small grants was just as onerous as for larger grants, thereby making them less applealing, and that without hard application deadlines and email reminders, the micro grants took on an "out-of-site/out-of mind" aspect.
Do you anticipate continuing this project after the current reporting period ends:
Yes
Do you anticipate any change in level of effort in managing this project:
Yes
Explain:
For 2019, Micro Grants will be repositioned as Mini Grants, the award amount will increase to up to $10,000, and there will be two set subgrant cycles with specific deadlines; CE Micro Grants will become CE Scholarships, so as to lessen grant-specific paperwork often required by local governments.
Do you anticipate changing the types of activities and objectives addressed by the project:
No
Explain:

Was an evaluation conducted for this project:
Yes
Was a final written evaluation report produced:
No
Can the final written evaluation report be shared publicly on the IMLS website:
No
Was the evaluation conducted by project staff (either SLAA or local library) or by a third-party evaluator:
Third-Party
What data collection tools were used for any report outcomes and outputs:
Did you collect any media for the data:
What types of methods were used to analyze collected data:
Other:
How were participants (or items) selected:
What type of research design did you use to compare the value for any reported output or outcome:

Exemplary: No
Exemplary Narrative

Project Tags: