Director’s Message
I am pleased to announce that the FY 2005 appropriations for the Institute of Museum and Library Services provides an increase of 4.8 percent for IMLS programs, for a total of $240,675,000. This is a great vote of confidence for the work of libraries and museums in the United States.

IMLS library programs will receive $205,951,000, an increase of $7,709,000. This amount builds upon a proposal announced by Laura Bush in 2003 to increase funding “to recruit and train a new generation of librarians.” 21st Century Librarian grants are helping to offset a predicted national shortage of librarians. Grants support scholarships for graduate students in library and information science, support distance learning technology that brings training to underserved areas, and recruit librarians with diverse language skills. Library Grants to States also received an increase. A total of $160,704,000, up from $157,628,000 in FY 2004, will be dispersed to every state and territory in the nation to enhance library services in public, school, academic, and research libraries and archives. Grants help libraries use technology and bring library services to underserved populations.

IMLS museum programs will receive $34,724,000, an increase of $3,321,000 from the FY 2004 level. This sum includes $843,000 for IMLS’s new Native American Museum Services as authorized by the Museum and Library Services Act of 2003. The act provided new authority for IMLS to support museum services for Indian tribes and organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians. The museum program funds also help museums of all types, from art to zoo, to sustain cultural heritage, build public access, and expand educational service. Grants also help museums use new technology to improve operations and expand service. IMLS will continue to administer the 21st Century Museum Professionals program, which supports a range of activities, including professional training, leadership development, and strategic planning. In FY 2005, $992,000 will be devoted to this program.

The budget also includes an additional $39,889,000 for congressionally directed grants. A detailed table is available on the IMLS Web site.

A Closer Look
Drayton Hall Sets Its Archives in Order Continuous family ownership from 1738 to 1974 of the Drayton Hall plantation in South Carolina's low country enabled curators to obtain a wealth of information for historical interpretation. Drayton family members and local families descended from slaves also offered valuable sources of oral histories. Yet the greatest cache of information, the museum's 3,000-page document collection, has been largely inaccessible until now. Learn how a 2003 IMLS Learning Opportunities Grant is helping Drayton Hall digitize, transcribe, and index its paper and historic photograph collection to open a window for scholars, students, and teachers into the world of a working plantation from pre-Federal times to the Civil War era. Read all about it in this month's Highlight.

Call for Native American Library Grant Applications
The deadline for the noncompetitive categories of the IMLS Native American Library Services Grants is approaching. The postmark deadline for the Basic Grant with Education/Assessment Option is March 1, 2005. Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages or corporations recognized by the Department of the Interior are eligible to apply.

Basic Grants are available to support existing library operations and to maintain core library services. The 2005 Basic Grant will be $5,000, and the new Education/Assessment Option will be $1,000. The purpose of the Education/Assessment Option is to provide funding for library staff to attend continuing education courses and/or training workshops on- or offsite; for library staff to attend or give presentations at conferences related to library services; and/or to hire a consultant for an onsite professional library assessment.

In 2004 IMLS made Basic Grants to 222 tribes and Alaska Native villages. Fifty-nine of these applicants also requested consulting services through Professional Assistance Grants. In 2005, the Education/Assessment Option replaces the Professional Assistance Grant.

See the IMLS Web site for program details and application guidelines.

Call for 21st Century Museum Professionals Grant Applications
21st Century Museum Professional Grants are designed to address preparation of museum professionals by updating and expanding their knowledge and skills in all areas of museum operations. Projects should reach broad groups of museum professionals in multiple institutions or from diverse audiences. Activities eligible for funding include professional training and leadership development, as well as collection and dissemination of information to museum professionals. Guidelines for this new program will be available on the IMLS Web site later this month. Grants range from $15,000 to $500,000. Deadline for applications is March 15, 2005.

**New** Call for Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services Grant Applications
This new program provides support for museum activities to (1) Native American Indian tribes; (2) Alaska native villages, regional corporations, and village corporations; and (3) organizations that primarily serve Native Hawaiians. Funding will be provided for three areas of activities:

Programming - services and activities that support the educational mission of the museum, including exhibits, research and interpretation, and educational resources, demonstrations, and performances

Professional development - education or training that builds skills, knowledge, and other professional capacity for individuals who provide museum services, including enrollment in courses, attendance at professional conferences, and hiring of consultants or technical assistance; and

Enhancement of museum services – support for activities that enable and improve museum services, including planning, policy development, technology equipment purchase, security, collections care and management, and hiring of staff to support museum services.

Guidelines for the program will be available on the IMLS Web site later this month. Grants range from $5,000 to $20,000. Deadline for applications is April 15, 2005.

Deadline Nears for National Awards for Museum and Library Services Applications
The National Awards for Museums and Library Service are the nation's highest honors for the extraordinary public service these institutions provide. The postmark deadline for receipt of all 2005 nomination and application materials is February 15, 2005. Read how the 2004 winners are making a difference in their neighborhoods.

Web Wise 2005 Conference Registration Full-Waiting List Available
Registration for the 2005 Web Wise Conference: Libraries and Museums in the Digital World, February 16-18 in Washington, D.C., is at capacity. If you would like to add your name to a waiting list, please access the conference Web page and click on "registration." The organizers will contact you immediately if space becomes available.

Digital Resources for Cultural Heritage Report and Recommendations
IMLS is pleased to announce that the Digital Resources for Cultural Heritage Report and Recommendations is now available in PDF format and hard copy. The report and recommendations stem from a workshop of 63 specialists from 26 states representing libraries, museums, archives, higher education institutions, public broadcasting, research consortia, public and private funding organizations, and service providers, to assess progress on, and plan for, the development and use of digital cultural resources. For hard copies, e-mail your request to imlsinfo@imls.gov.

IMLS on the Road
"IMLS Funding to Recruit and Educate New Librarians," Dr. Joyce Ray, Associate Deputy Director for Library Services, sponsored by American Library Association Education Assembly, Boston, Massachusetts, 1/17.

"National Cowboy Poetry Gathering," Dr. Schroeder Cherry, Deputy Director, Office of Museum Services, Annual Festival sponsored by Western Folklife Center, Elko, Nevada, 1/26-27.

"Preliminary Draft Convention on the Protection of the Diversity of Cultural Contents and Artistic Expressions," Dr. Robert Martin, IMLS Director, Nancy Weiss, IMLS General Counsel, Sponsored by UNESCO's Second Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting of Experts, UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, France, 1/31-2/12.

"IMLS Grants Workshops for Museums and Libraries," Dr. Schroeder Cherry, Deputy Director for Museums; Mary Chute, Deputy Director for Libraries; Mary Estelle Kennelly, Associate Deputy Director for Museum Services; and Joyce Ray, Associate Deputy Director for Library Services, Museo De Arte, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1/31-2/1.

"Roles of Museums and Libraries in Building Health Communities," Mamie Bittner, Director Public and Legislative Affairs, Region IX Federal Forum, sponsored by the U.S. General Services Administration, Region IX and The Federal Regional Council LasVegas, Nevada 2/4.

"Planning for Digitization of Local Materials," Dr. Joyce Ray, Associate Deputy Director for Library Services, sponsored by the Council on Library and Information Resources Conference on Managing Digital Assets, Charleston, South Carolina, 2/5.

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