FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2008
IMLS Press Contacts
202-653-4632
Jeannine Mjoseth, jmjoseth@imls.gov
Mamie Bittner, mbittner@imls.gov
IMLS Convenes Task
Force to Define 21st Century Skills
for Museums and Libraries
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Ken Kay, CEO
of e-Luminate, facilitates discussion among task
force members on the role museums and libraries
play in helping communities develop 21st century
skills. Click for larger view. |
Washington, DC—Library
and museum leaders met September 4 to brainstorm on the
skills that contemporary and future learners need to thrive
in the 21st century and how museums and libraries can
support development of those skills. The Institute of
Museum and Library Services (IMLS), which hosted the meeting,
is conducting the year-long initiative with help from
the e-Luminate Group, an education consulting firm.
“This is the first national effort
to advance the role of libraries and museums in the development
of such 21st century skills as information, communications,
and technology literacy, creativity and problem solving,
civic literacy, and global awareness,” said Anne-Imelda
M. Radice, IMLS Director. “After assessing where
they are today, museums and libraries can begin to modify
programs, services, and activities to emphasize the techniques
that are needed for an engaged citizenry and competitive
workforce.”
Through a series of meetings and outreach,
IMLS is developing a report that will provide leaders
in museums and libraries, schools, and government information
on the role of cultural institutions in promoting 21st
century skills to various audiences. The report will provide
suggestions, guidelines, case studies, and resources to
help libraries and museums identify and integrate 21st
century skills into their programs. The report will be
accompanied by an online assessment tool that will help
institutions determine where they are today and the steps
they must take to promote 21st century skills for lifelong
learners, including K-12. The report and assessment tool
will be available in late spring 2009.
Task force members are experienced leaders
representing a broad range of museum and library types
who have addressed the need for 21st century skills in
their own institutions. They are charged with defining
critical elements of the 21st century skills as they relate
to museums and libraries, identifying elements that museums
and libraries now deliver that can be leveraged to deliver
the 21st century skills, and articulating key opportunities
that libraries and museums can use to promote 21st century
skills. The taskforce, which met July 29 and will meet
again in January, includes the following members:
John W. Berry
Executive Director
Network of Illinois Learning Resources in Community
Colleges
Chicago, IL
Bronwyn Bevan
Director for the Center of Informal Learning and
Schools
The Exploratorium
San Francisco, CA
Norma Blake
New Jersey State Librarian
New Jersey State Library
Trenton, NJ
Anne B. Craig
Director
Illinois State Library
Springfield, IL
Christian Greer
Senior Director of Education
Shedd Aquarium
Chicago, IL
Tracie Hall
Principal and Founder
Goodseed Consulting Group
River Forest, IL
Priscilla Hancock Cooper
Vice President of Institutional Programs
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
Birmingham, AL
Melanie Huggins
Director
St. Paul Public Library
St. Paul, MN
Julie Johnson
Distinguished Chair, Museum Leadership
Science Museum of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN
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Tammie Kahn
Executive Director
Children’s Museum of Houston
Houston, TX
R. David Lankes
Associate Professor, School of Information Studies
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
George Needham
Vice President, Member Services
OCLC Marketing & Library Services
Dublin, OH
Raymond Santiago
Director
Miami Dade Public Library System
Miami, FL
Deborah F. Schwartz
President
Brooklyn Historical Society
Brooklyn, NY
Nina K. Simon
Museum 2.0
Santa Cruz, CA
Sonnet Takahisa
Director of Education
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum
New York, NY
Carlos Tortolero
Founder and President
National Museum of Mexican Art
Chicago, IL
Gary Vikan
Director
The Walters Art Museum
Baltimore, MD |
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About the Institute of Museum
and Library Services
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary
source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000
libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute's mission
is to create strong libraries and museums that connect
people to information and ideas. The Institute works at
the national level and in coordination with state and
local organizations to sustain heritage, culture, and
knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support
professional development. To learn more about the Institute,
please visit www.imls.gov.
About e-Luminate Group
e-Luminate Group is an education consulting firm specializing
in marketing communications, marketing and 21st century
skills services. Based in Washington, D.C. and Tucson,
Arizona, our expertise builds on over ten years of success
in helping companies and organizations gain visibility
and market leadership. From K-12 to higher education to
workforce development and beyond, our services deliver
the best possible results for our clients. Representative
clients include: Apex Learning, Blackboard, Dell, LeapFrog
School, LearningStation, NEA Member Benefits, and the
Partnership for 21st Century Skills. To learn more about
e-Luminate Group, please visit www.e-luminategroup.com.
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