LATAH COUNTY LIBRARY DISTRICT RECEIVES NATIONAL GRANT FOR SMALL AND RURAL LIBRARIES

The $10,000 Grant Will Help the Library Work with Residents with Disabilities to Provide Handicap Accessible Doors at the New Kendrick Branch  

MOSCOW— The Latah County Library District (LCLD) has been selected as one of 240 libraries to participate in Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities, an American Library Association (ALA) initiative that provides community engagement and accessibility resources to small and rural libraries to help them better serve people with disabilities.

The competitive award comes with a $10,000 grant that will help fund ADA-compliant automatic doors at our new branch in Kendrick, Idaho – coming soon.

“LCLD is excited for the opportunity to bring more accessible library service to the Juliaetta/Kendrick area,” said LCLD Director April Hernandez. “This grant helps us achieve that by partially paying for an ADA automatic door opener at the entrance to the new Kendrick branch.”

As part of the grant, LCLD staff will take an online course on how to lead conversations, a skill vital to library work today. Staff will then host a conversation with residents about desired library services as well as accessibility issues and use the grant funds to help build handicap-accessible doors at our new branch in Kendrick.

The LCLD is looking for community feedback to learn what community members want to see from their local library, including any accessibility issues at the branches that the LCLD can resolve. If you are interested in getting involved or taking part in the conversation, please contact April Hernandez at director@latahlibrary.org, or visit https://www.latahlibrary.org/ for more information.

Since 2014, ALA’s Libraries Transforming Communities initiative has re-imagined the role libraries play in supporting communities. Libraries of all types have utilized free dialogue and deliberation training and resources to lead community and campus forums; take part in anti-violence activities; provide a space for residents to come together and discuss challenging topics; and have productive conversations with civic leaders, library trustees and staff.

“Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities is an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) in collaboration with the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL).”