MLA Access & Innovation Fund 2023-2024

Summary of Awards

To enhance, support, and develop library technologies and innovation that improve patrons’ access to library services. http://molib.org/awards/mla-access-and-innovation-fund/ 

LDRL: Health Services from US to You

Award Amount: $2500

Institution: Little Dixie Regional Libraries

Project Summary: Little Dixie Regional Libraries serves the counties of Randolph and Monroe in north central Missouri. LDRL proposes purchasing a variety of healthcare technologies to checkout to patrons to ensure a better quality of life, reduce stress, and work closely with area healthcare organizations to help educate and ensure better health for residents within the area.

These items will be available at all four branches of the regional library and be available to patrons 16 years and older. The area hospital and health departments have agreed to help promote these new items with area healthcare workers and doctors as a way for people to monitor themselves as needed according to a physicians instructions. These healthcare items also may be used to evaluate for future issues if concerns have arisen.

Connection for All in Richmond Heights

Award Amount: $4,085.62

Institution: Richmond Heights Memorial Library

Project Summary: In 2021 RHML acquired a circulating collection of Chromebooks, which have proven extremely popular with the community. The goals of Connection for All are to maximize the value of these Chromebooks and those we hope to soon acquire, and to close the connection gap in broadband internet access demonstrated by the census data. They intend to purchase twenty-two Franklin T10 hotspots. Twenty devices will be combined with the Library’s existing collection of Chromebooks, currently numbering fifteen. The remaining five will be circulated with additional Chromebooks that we plan to purchase with LSTA funds from the 2024 Tech Mini grant offered through the Missouri State Library. The additional two hotspots and cases will be used by library staff in support of our ever expanding outreach efforts both at community events and senior residential facilities.

Circulating Tonies

Award Amount: $4,904

Institution: Scenic Regional Library

Project Summary: We will create at least 19 unique kits including a Tonie box, charger, and 8 Tonie characters in a padded case. These kits will be evenly distributed among our 9 branches but all patrons in our district will have access to all kits. A Tonie box is a padded speaker that is simple enough for very young children to use with minimal assistance. It is an imagination-building, screen-free digital listening experience. Each Tonie character has from 30 minutes to an hour of content that includes books, stories, songs, and informational content. Tonies are designed to foster imagination and active play for children ages 3 and up.

Public WiFi Broadband Improvements

Award Amount: $3,000

Award: Fully Fund

Institution: Joplin Public Library

Project Summary: This project will see five Wifi 6e Access points deployed in central common areas for best distribution as determined by a heatmap of existing usage. These devices will be capable of accommodating the volume of patrons in those areas with ease at speed over 100mbs down. Each location was carefully considered for the amount of coverage area capable vs number of patrons loitering/likely to need services in those areas.

New Patron Printer Funding

Award Amount: $500

Institution: Dade County Library

Project Summary: The goal of the project is to provide a new, more reliable printer in our computer lab.

Large Format, Large Impact

Award Amount: $5,000

Institution: Cameron Public Library

Project Summary: In 2018 we created a Makerspace room in our library using a variety of low-tech materials as well as introductory coding tools. We would like to build off of these successes with additional “high tech” Making tools. After speaking with community members as well as consulting with other small libraries, we believe that the best way to serve our community would be through the addition of a large format printer. We will have the printer available for orders to be sent in and printed for a small fee as well as featured during making events. We feel that the new printer will allow us to print more appealing promotional materials as well.

EagleTech Rural Expansion Pilot

Award Amount: $4,985.40

Institution: Ozarks Technical Community College

Project Summary: Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC) serves approximately 15,000 students annually in a 12-county region in southwest Missouri. At the main campus in Springfield, OTC’s library operates the EagleTech technology lending program, loaning laptops, hotspots, and iPads out to students. Hotspot lending has the highest rate of use, leading to waitlists of dozens of students. The popularity of EagleTech hotspot lending and awareness of the urgent need for internet access in the rural counties OTC serves leads us to seek ways to expand this program to where students need it most.

We propose to pilot a program at OTC’s most rural campus, lending hotspots to OTC students at the Table Rock campus. With a small pilot program of 4 hotspot devices, and building on the existing policies and procedures that have been so successful at the Springfield campus, we hope to demonstrate the need and viability of a permanent program at this location. Devices will be available for a 21-day loan period to currently registered students at the OTC Table Rock campus.

Early Literacy Digital Inclusion

Award Amount: $5,000

Institution: Livingston County Library

Project Summary: The Lillian DesMarias Youth Library serves Livingston County and surrounding areas youth ages 0 – 18 years. As a branch location of the Livingston County Library dedicated to serving the county’s community youth, we have introduced gaming for teens, cubelet clubs for elementary students, and now we are looking to include technology for our earliest readers those family units who include preschool and primary school aged children.

The project involves purchasing and installing AWE Early Literacy Station in the Youth Library specifically designed for ages 2-8 without internet accessibility. Additionally, the project involves the purchase of Tonieboxes, their characters and carrying cases to enable ages 3 and up to experience digital storytelling with their imagination without screens. Toniebox is an audio system with predownloaded content with stories and music that offers tactile play or self-directed play. The Tonieboxes would be available for patron checkout, much like hotspots or laptops, are through the library’s lending programs.