Thursday, June 06, 2019

UNCW’s Randall Library has been awarded a Library Services and Technology Act grant for “Taking the Digital Makerspace to the Classroom,” a project designed to address the needs of faculty seeking to integrate digital makerspace technologies, such as virtual reality and 3D printing and scanning, into their classrooms and curricula. The grant, totaling $41,715, will help fund the creation of a “mobile” makerspace with equipment that can be used outside the library in classrooms and workshops.
 
“This funding will primarily enable us to move beyond the physical space of the library and consult with faculty on developing classroom activities and provide them with the equipment needed to then conduct those activities,” said Lucy Holman, university librarian. “Grants like this are so integral to what we are doing in the library. Each grant we receive allows us to do more than we are normally able to do.”
 
The LSTA grant will also help bridge the gap between existing skills and resources, support the hiring of a Makerspace coordinator, create four fellowship opportunities, and provide funding for the purchase of additional technology.
 
The Digital Makerspace at Randall Library provides access to new and emerging technologies to all students and faculty members regardless of major, discipline or department affiliation. Innovation, with a commitment to continuous improvement and breakthrough advances, is a key priority of the university’s Strategic Plan. 
 
The 2019-20 LSTA grant recipients were announced at Randall Library by NC Secretary of Cultural Resources Susi H. Hamilton on June 6. UNCW’s Randall Library was one of 47 institutions to receive funding statewide. In 2018, UNCW also received a LSTA grant ($25,065) to digitize primary source materials on NC Civil Rights to be used in public schools.

This project was supported by grant funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (IMLS grant number LS-00-19-0034-19).

-- Christina Schechtman

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