Library wins national grant for small and rural libraries

The Albert Wisner Public Library has been selected as one of 310 libraries to participate in round two of Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities. This initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) helps fund community engagement and accessibility resources to small and rural libraries to help them better serve people with disabilities.

The competitive award comes with a $10,000 grant that will help the library provide out-bound library service to patrons with disabilities or other physical limitations that make it challenging to visit the library in person.

“We are so proud to be chosen for this opportunity,” said Library Director Lisa Laico. “This grant will allow us to get to know and serve our homebound patrons better. It will help us improve our services to ensure that everyone feels welcome and comfortable to take advantage of the library’s resources, even if they cannot physically get here.”

Honoring the grant’s stipulations, Outreach Librarian Billie Gallo will participate in a course about community conversations, a skill vital to library work today. She will then host a conversation with residents about this program and will then use the grant funds to launch the initiative.

If you are interested in getting involved or in taking part in the conversation, please call the Help Desk at 845-986-1047, ext. 4. The Albert Wisner Public Library is located at 1 McFarland Drive, Warwick.

Since 2014, ALA’s Libraries Transforming Communities initiative helped libraries of all types gain free dialogue and deliberation training and resources to lead community and campus forums; take part in anti-violence activities; provide a space for residents to come together and discuss challenging topics; and have productive conversations with civic leaders, library trustees and staff.

Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities is an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) in collaboration with the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL).