This Week at ULC
Newsletter | June 16, 2021
ULC LIBRARIES HONOR AND CELEBRATE JUNETEENTH
Taking place on June 19, Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States and is a time of celebration and one of education. ULC libraries are joining the celebration this year through a wide range of events and resource collections designed to inform and engage local residents. Below are just a few highlights. Do you have stories to share from your library? Continue the conversation on social media with the hashtag #Juneteenth or share info directly to media@urbanlibraries.org.
DCPL Juneteenth
DC Public Library
DC Public Library is hosting a walking tour of the Smithsonian exhibit Men of Change: Power. Triumph. Truth., where the installation explores men, women and communities affirming the African American experience. Learn More >
Detroit Public Library
Detroit Public Library
On June 19, Detroit Public Library will present Pulitzer Prize winner Annette Gordon-Reed and historian Jamon Jordan to discuss her new book On Juneteenth and the importance of Juneteenth to U.S. history. Learn More >
LAPL Juneteenth
Los Angeles Public Library
Los Angeles Public Library’s Teen’Scape department, Black Being and DJ pastelShade will host a virtual celebration to enjoy music as a communal experience, movement through dancing and remembrance through ritual. Learn More >
Newport News Juneteenth
Newport News Public Library
Newport News Public Library will debut an exhibit called Until Freedom Comes: The African American Experience in Newport News, which will provide histories on slavery, the Civil War, Jim Crow, Reconstruction and contemporary events in African American history. Learn More >
NYPL Juneteenth
New York Public Library
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts will collaborate with online radio station The Lot to celebrate Juneteenth with DJs spinning from the Music & Recorded Sound Division’s expansive collection of music and spoken word recordings. Learn More >
ULC LIBRARIES CELEBRATING PRIDE
Happy Pride Month! Libraries provide safe spaces, initiate important conversations and reach out to people from all backgrounds to help create a more diverse, understanding and welcoming world.

ULC will be collecting images and stories all month long to create and share a "Community Wall." If you have photos showcasing your events/programming and would like to be included, please be sure to send them to media@urbanlibraries.org.

Below are just a few of the ways our member libraries are celebrating and honoring LGBTQ+ individuals:
Anchorage Pride
Anchorage Public Library
Anchorage Public Library staff are celebrating Pride by recommending a curated list of books to patrons that recognizes the dignity, equality and increased visibility of the LGBTQ+ community. Learn More >
CALS Pride
Central Arkansas Library System
CALS is hosting a virtual watch party of “Pay It No Mind: The Life & Times of Marsha P. Johnson,” the feature-length documentary focused on the revolutionary Black trans activist. Learn More >
Edmonton Pride
Edmonton Public Library
EPL collaborated with HIV Edmonton to offer a YouTube video series highlighting the vibrant LGBTQ2 history and community in Edmonton. Learn More >
Harris County Pride
Harris County Public Library
HCPL released a special episode of their podcast, Using our Library Voices, highlighting Houston Pride history with an interview of local archivists Vince Lee and Marus Jenkins about their work with the U of H Special Collections LGBTQ research collection. Learn More >
Las Vegas Pride
Las Vegas-Clark County Library District
LVCCLD is hosting a talk with Tom Fitzgerald and Lorenzo Marques, creators of the influential pop culture blog "Tom + Lorenzo Fabulous & Opinionated,” about their book Legendary Children: The First Decade of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the Last Century of Queer Life, queer history and culture. Learn More >
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT RESOURCES
ULC continues to follow the developments around the American Rescue Plan Act and potential funding opportunities for ULC member libraries and the communities we serve. 

ECF Application Filing Window Opens June 29
The FCC and USAC will open the first Emergency Connectivity Fund Program application filing window on Tuesday, June 29, 2021 at noon ET, which will fund equipment and services for the upcoming 2021-22 school year. The first application filing window will be open for 45 days, during which applicants will be able to submit requests for funding for purchases to be made between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022. Learn More.

IMLS Announces $15 Million Available in ARPA Grants
The Institute of Museum and Library Services recently announced a new funding opportunity for libraries that will provide direct support to address community needs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposals to this grant program may continue, enhance or expand existing programs and services, or launch new programs to address emergent needs and unexpected hardships. Applications for pandemic response funding are due June 28, 2021, with award announcements anticipated in October 2021. Learn more.

SBA Launches Community Navigator Program
The $100 million competitive grant program, enacted through the American Rescue Plan Act and offered by the U.S. Small Business Administration, will strengthen outreach to businesses in under-resourced communities. Learn more.

Stay tuned to ULC communications for regular updates and please review the latest resources on ULC’s American Rescue Plan Act Resources web page.
TOMORROW: ANNUAL MEMBER BUSINESS MEETING
You are invited to the ULC Annual Member Business Meeting tomorrow — Thursday, June 17!
 
This meeting is the time we come together as members to:
 
  • Hear a ‘State of the ULC Union’ from our current ULC Executive Board Chair Richard Reyes-Gavilan.
  • Recognize the contributions of retiring ULC board members.
  • Vote on the 2021-2022 ULC Executive Board slate with a message from the newly elected Chair.

All members are encouraged to participate. Please register in advance.
MEMBER NEWS ROUNDUP
ULC Libraries Debut New Locations
Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library

In its spectacular 35,000 square foot debut, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library’s new Riverview Public Library offers communal spaces such as a recording studio, an outdoor garden, a screened-in reading porch and makerspaces for adults and children. Bright, airy and sustainable, the new branch provides limitless imagination and knowledge, serving as a community hub to all residents.
St. Louis County Library

As part of the grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony of the new Eureka Hills Branch with Library Director Kristen Sorth and St. Louis County Executive Dr. Sam Page, the St. Louis County Public Health Department also held a vaccine event. With areas including a children’s area sponsored by McBride & Son Homes, private study rooms, community meeting rooms, business centers and outdoor reading patios, the Eureka Hills Branch’s 15,000+ square foot space became the first full service library for Eureka residents.
Providing Global Readers with Access to Theater History
Hamilton Public Library

Readers around the world can dive in and learn about theater history from the 18th and 19th centuries thanks to HPL. The library donated nearly 1,000 books of a collection given to HPL in 1984 by a local university drama professor who was interested in the cultural history of the theater to the Internet Archive for digitization. “Through our partnership, we are just so appreciative that the Internet Archive is able to make the collection available to the world 24/7,” said Lisa Weaver, director of collections and program development at HPL.
Kicking Off Summer Reading with Outdoor Concert Series
Wichita Public Library

Wichita Public Library kicked off their Summer Reading program with the first of five outdoor “Live! in the Park” summer concerts at two of their city parks, featuring Jim “Mr. Stinky Feet” Cosgrove. The library is planning a whole schedule of outdoor in-person programs, virtual storytimes, pre-recorded programs from presenters and performers and live Zoom programs for families and children.
NEW ON THE ULC BLOG
Creating 2SLGBTQIA+ Library Spaces During the Pandemic
Kitchener Public Library
Discover how Kitchener Public Library developed an initiative that provides 2SLGBTQIA+ specific programming, collections and resources throughout the whole year in our latest blog post, written by KPL’s Senior Library Assistant Ellie Anglin and Librarian Jarvis Sparks.
ULC PARTNERSHIP HIGHLIGHTS MEMBER SUMMER LEARNING PROGRAMS
National Summer Learning Association, InPlay

The National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) and InPlay have launched a new national program search engine and resource portal for families in the U.S. Thanks to the data supplied by our ULC member libraries, this new online tool will help low-income families across the U.S. locate and access summer learning opportunities at local libraries.
 
With the new summer search feature, families can discover what summer programs are available, both in-person and virtual, right in their community.
 
Access the search engine here: www.DiscoverSummer.org
CONDUCTING DIVERSITY AUDITS OF YOUR LIBRARY'S COLLECTIONS
Take Advantage of iCurate inClusive
Ingram Library Services

Building an inClusive collection that allows readers to see both themselves and others can be empowering yet overwhelming. Save staff time and tedious effort with iCurate inClusive, a one-time diversity audit of your library's collections to help identify gaps and underrepresented voices. 

The comprehensive assessment provides actionable resources, data-driven reports, and detailed lists that compare your library holdings to top-selling public library titles by subject, inClusive category and rank, all within two weeks.
SPOTLIGHT ON INNOVATION
Promoting Bicycle Accessibility and Equity
Anythink Libraries
In an effort to address what is known as the first mile/last mile (FMLM) transit issue, where a traveler’s first and last commuting miles can create a barrier to using public transit, Anythink debuted a new bike-lending program earlier this month at its Commerce City location. Community members ages 16 and up can check out these bikes for free with their Anythink library cards for a duration of up to three weeks. 

To encourage bike use and offer community members tips on urban bicycle commuting, Anythink Commerce City will host a special upcoming workshop with partner Bicycle Colorado. All 30 bikes in the fleet are stored on-site at the library in a new storage space. 
NEW ON ULC'S MEMBER KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE
Rochester Public Library
Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library
UPCOMING MEMBER EVENTS
ULC Annual Member Business Meeting
Virtual Member Convening
June 17 | 4-5 p.m. ET
ULC Development Professionals
Member Group Conference Call
June 23 | 3-4 p.m. ET
ULC Communications and Marketing Leaders
Member Group Conference Call
July 14 | Noon-1 p.m. ET
SOCIAL MEDIA SPOTLIGHT
Shreve Memorial Library

In a new partnership with LaunchNetworkLA, Shreve Memorial Library is working hard to strengthen the role public libraries play in nurturing entrepreneurship in their community by adding permanent entrepreneur centers at their main branch!