Scranton Memorial Library has been selected as one of just 200 libraries nationwide for the American Library Association’s American Rescue Plan: Humanities Grants for Libraries. According to Scranton Director Sunnie Scarpa, this program is an emergency relief program designed to assist libraries that have been adversely affected by the pandemic.

According to the American Library Association (ALA), in conjunction with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the library will use this funding to anchor itself in the community as a strong humanities institution.

“Libraries have faced significant hardships throughout the pandemic, from budget cuts to staff furloughs to building closures , especially in our communities of the greatest need,” said ALA President Patty Wong. “This crucial support from NEH will enable our beloved institutions, and the dedicated people who run them, to rebuild and emerge from the pandemic stronger than ever.”

The competitive award comes with a $10,000 grant that will help the library continue to deliver its programs and services related to culture, history, literature, and other humanities subjects, said Scarpa.

“We are so proud to be chosen for this amazing opportunity and to partner with two other shoreline libraries to share excellent storytelling experiences with our communities” said Scarpa. “This grant will allow our library to better serve our patrons with strong, enriching humanities programming as we come out of the pandemic.”

The participating libraries, selected through a competitive, peer-reviewed application process, include public libraries, academic/college libraries, K-12 libraries, and tribal, special, and prison libraries, according to the ALA. The recipients represent 45 states and Puerto Rico and serve communities ranging in size from 642 residents in Weir, Kansas, to the City of Los Angeles.

“We are so pleased to have been awarded this competitive national grant. This is a big accomplishment for a small library like ours, without any dedicated grant writers on staff,” said Scarpa. “Thanks to our small but mighty team of talented staff members working on this project, we’ll be able to present an amazing series of storytelling events that would have otherwise been outside of our normal operating budget.”

The grant will allow the Scranton to present a number of new and innovative programs, according to Scarpa. The library has just announced one of those new programs: a spring lecture series featuring diverse voices from across the shoreline.

“The Ubuntu Storytellers are an amazing group of talented Black, brown, and multiracial story artists, including Madison’s own Denise Manning Keyes. We are so proud to host their story concerts here at the library because they believe, as we do, that stories build bridges, increase empathy, and connect us with one another in important ways,” Scarpa said. “We hope many in our community will take advantage of this incredible opportunity to share space with them and explore stories that will strengthen and unite us all.”

Find a feature “Extraordinary Stories About Ordinary People” with complete details on the storytelling series on page 29. To learn more about Scranton Library’s plans for the grant, visit scrantonlibrary.org.