4-11-2025
It’s a little late to mention, but this is National Library
Week. That always catches me by surprise. First because I want it to be later
in the month and second because libraries organizing their NLW celebrations
seem a bit like throwing your own birthday party, which I would never do.
This year is full of changes that make this a good time to
bring them up. On March 14th, President Trump signed an Executive
Order that effects the Institute for Museum and Library Services. The IMLS is a
government agency that flies under most people’s radar, including mine, even
when they reap the benefits. Their purpose is to support learning through
access to museums and libraries which provide “trusted information, ideas, and
stories they contain about our diverse natural and cultural heritage.” They do
that primarily by providing grant money to libraries and museums. In 2024
Wisconsin received $3.2 million of those grant monies in addition to any grants
awarded to individual libraries.
The ETLPL is primarily funded by the Village of East Troy.
Our next largest funding source is Walworth County. Next is state funding
passed on from DPI to the library systems such as Prairie Lakes. Those sources
appear as budget items seen locally. The IMLS funds trickle down to us
indirectly in the form of services that are simply there, which is why it is
easy to overlook. Those funds support BadgerLink, interlibrary loans,
technology upgrades, and staff training.
BadgerLink is Wisconsin’s online library. The databases it
provides are available to every Wisconsin resident. It is very helpful for
student research in public schools from elementary onwards. Public library
patrons may use it for research as well; however, the convenience of pulling up
ChiltonLibrary at home mid-repair or looking up an item in Consumer Reports
before making a major purchase can’t be beat.
Interlibrary loan allows libraries across the state to share
resources and offer patrons more for a lower cost. While the materials are paid
for, the computer program that facilitates the loans and the delivery system
that moves them around the state are not.
As of March 31, 2025, the entire staff of the IMLS, around
70 people, was placed on administrative leave and their email accounts were
disabled. Ironically, the institute also funds workforce development programs.
On a happier note, you can tell the age of a whale by its
circles of ear wax. They are lighter in summer and darker in winter. Now you
know thanks to Lynn Brunelle’s Life After Whale.
Reading Now: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Listening to Now: Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
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