Dear Colleague,

I have taken the liberty of forwarding to you (see below)today's issue of
Primary Source, the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services monthly
e-mail newsletter.  Every month Primary Source publishes three stories--one
about a library, another about a museum, and the third about a museum and
library partnership.  Each story includes links to full-color photographs,
statistics, and press contact information.  I encourage you to reprint our
stories in your publications, or link them to your website, or, write your
own versions if you like.  You will find the three stories indexed under "A
Closer Look at Best Practices" (item #2.

Any comments or feedback you may have for me is greatly appreciated.  You
can reach me by phone at 202-606-8339 or email at [log in to unmask]

Sincerely yours,

Eileen Maxwell
Public Affairs Specialist
Institute of Museum and Library Services


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                 P r i m a r y   S o u r c e
          IMLS Monthly E-mail Newsletter
                       September 2000
                  Volume 1, Number 8

***You can also read a Web version of the newsletter at
      http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/current/pscurrent.htm ****

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I N   T H I S   I S S U E :

1.      Welcome to "Primary Source"
2.      A Closer Look at Best Practices
3.      Back to School Means After-School at Museums and Libraries
4.      First IMLS Deputy Director for Library Services Resigns
5.      A Focus on the Office of Research and Technology
6.      IMLS to Announce New Grants on September 19
7.      IMLS On The Road
8.      Upcoming Grant Deadlines
9.      How to Subscribe/Unsubscribe

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1.  W E L C O M E   T O  P R I M A R Y   S O U R C E

Thank you for subscribing to "Primary Source," the electronic newsletter of
the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

Each issue of "Primary Source" is linked to the IMLS Web site at
http://www.imls.gov. Brief articles will alert you to new information about
our grants, monthly highlights of best practices, and important agency news
with hotlinks to more detailed information on the Web site.   You can read
past and current issues of the newsletter, and subscribe, at
http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/new_imls.htm#ps.

We hope you enjoy the publication and invite your suggestions and comments.
E-mail them to us at mailto:[log in to unmask]

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2.  T A K E   A   C L O S E R   L O O K   AT   B E S T
     P R A C T I C E S

IMLS funds are at work in libraries and museums in every state and territory
of the country. Take a "closer look" at how these institutions serve their
communities.

*  The Past Still Flowers at the Lewis and Clark Herbarium - One of the
treasures of the Lewis and Clark Expedition is the herbarium, a collection
of 226 dried plant specimens kept at the Academy of Natural Sciences in
Pennsylvania. The 200-year-old collection, one of America's oldest, provides
a tangible link to the historic event.  A Save America's Treasures grant,
coordinated by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and other
federal agencies, will be used to conserve the collection, helping to ensure
its survival for another 200 years. http://www.imls.gov/closer/hlt_m0900.htm


* A New Way of Playing Old Songs - The Johns Hopkins University maintains
one of the country's largest online collections of sheet music, with images
of more than 29,000 pages of popular American music from 1780 to 1960. In an
ambitious project funded by a National Leadership Grant, the collection will
be enhanced allowing users to see the sheet music images, play the scores,
and search the lyrics with pinpoint accuracy. The collection will also serve
as a testbed for a workflow management system that can help other large
collection holders streamline the process of creating digital library
repositories.  http://www.imls.gov/closer/hlt_l0900.htm

* Digital Collections:  Museums and Libraries Find Common Ground - Museums
and Libraries in every corner of the country have been affected by the World
Wide Web. What issues face these institutions as they consider the best ways
to use the Web to expand access to their collections? This was the subject
of a unique gathering of 30 library, archive, and museum policymakers
sponsored by the Council on Library and Information Resources and the
Chicago Historical Society. Funded by a National Leadership Grant, the
meeting proved that museums and libraries share acres of common ground in
the new digital world. http://www.imls.gov/closer/hlt_c0900.htm


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3.  A F T E R - S C H O O L   P R O G R A M S   A T
    M U S E U M S   A N D   L I B R A R I E S

Families overwhelmingly favor providing after-school programs for all
children. But it is difficult for families to find high quality after-school
programs.  Libraries and museums across the nation are helping, with IMLS
grants and technical assistance, to meet the needs of America's school-age
children by providing supervised, educational, and enriching after-school
programs.  Read more at:  http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/current/090500-1.htm

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4.  F I R S T   I M L S   D E P U T Y   D I R E C T O R
    F O R   L I B R A R Y   S E R V I C E S   R E S I G N S

Elizabeth Sywetz, IMLS' first Deputy Director for Library Services, resigned
her appointment on August 24, 2000.  She will continue her association with
IMLS by leading selected special projects.
See: http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/current/082600.htm

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5.   A   F O C U S   O N   T H E   O F F I C E   O F
     R E S E A R C H   A N D   T E C H N O L O G Y

"The goal of the IMLS Office of Research and Technology," says Director
Rebecca Danvers, "is to provide tools for museums and libraries that will
strengthen their capacity to communicate persuasively about the important
role they play in 21st century life."  Read more about the office and the
professionals that run it at:
http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/current/090500-2.htm

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6.   I M L S   T O   A N N O U N C E   N E W
     G R A N T S   O N   S E P T E M B E R   1 9

On Tuesday, September 19, 2000 IMLS will announce new FY 2000 grant
recipients in eight grant categories:

National Leadership Grants for Libraries for:
     Research and Demonstration
     Preservation or Digitization
National Leadership Grants for Museums for:
     Museums Online
     Professional Practices Awards
National Leadership Grants for Library-Museum Collaboration
Native American Library Services Enhancement Grants
General Operating Support
Museum Assessment Program, second round

Visit the following link on September 19 to find out the results of these
competitions.
 http://www.imls.gov/whatsnew/new_imls.htm#grants

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7. I M L S   O N   T H E   R O A D

IMLS staff often travels around the country to meet with museum and library
professionals and encourage participation in IMLS programs.  The following
activities are on the calendar:

* Museum Computer Network Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV, September 6-9 -
Mary Estelle Kennelly, Director, Office of Museum Services (OMS), and
Barbara Smith, Technology Officer, will be presenters at the "Washington
Update" session. Christine Henry, Program Officer (OMS), will attend and
meet with the Nevada Association of Museums' incoming President.  Dr. Joyce
Ray, Director of the Office of Library Services, will attend.

* 79th Meeting of the National Museum Services Board (NMSB), Washington, DC,
September 14 - NMSB, the advisory body to the IMLS on general policy
regarding museum services, will meet from 3 - 5:00 p.m. at the Madison
Hotel, 15th and M Streets, NW, Washington, DC.  The meeting is open to the
public.

* 4th Annual Joint Meeting of the NMSB and the National Commission on
Libraries and Information Sciences (NCLIS), Washington, DC, September 15 -
NMSB and NCLIS will meet from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and the Madison Hotel.
Liz Bishoff, Project Director Colorado Digitization Project, and Dr. Deanna
Marcum, President, Council on Library Information Resources, will present
"Emerging Issues in Digitization."  The meeting is open to the public.

* School for Scanning, Seattle, WA, Sept. 18 - 20 - Barbara Smith,
Technology Officer, will participate in the workshop, then represent IMLS at
"Swimming Upstream:  Preserving Collections in the Pacific Northwest" at the
University of Washington.

* American Association of State and Local History Annual Meeting, New
Orleans, LA, September 21 -  Jeanne McConnell, Program Officer, National
Leadership Grants, will co-present the panel, "Trusting Collaboration:
Museums and Libraries Working Together," from 10:45 - 12:15.  September 22 -
Karen Motylewski, Research Officer, Office of Research and Technology, will
provide a mini-workshop on outcome-based evaluation for museums and
libraries from 8:30-10:00.

* Electronic Book 2000, Washington DC, September 25-27 - Barbara Smith,
Technology Officer, will participate in the 3rd annual e-book conference
sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

* New England Library Association Conference, Worcester, MA, October 1 -3 -
Michele Farrell, Program Officer, Office of Library Services (OLS), and
Barbara Holton, Information Coordinator (OLS), will present a grant-writing
workshop and distribute IMLS literature at a table in the exhibit hall.

* Great American Bookmobile and Outreach Services Conference VII, Columbus,
OH, October 5-7 - Jane C. Heiser, Director, State Library Programs, will
make three presentations on IMLS and federal funding for library services.
In addition, she will visit the State Library of Ohio.

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8.  U P C O M I N G   G R A N T   D E A D L I N E S

Please note the following upcoming deadlines for the FY2001 grant cycle.
(REMINDER: These are postmark deadlines.)

* Conservation Project Support - October 15, 2000

* Museum Assessment Program - November 1, 2000

For a list of all deadlines for IMLS programs, please visit
http://www.imls.gov/grants/dedln/index.htm

Applications and guidelines for all programs are available at
http://www.imls.gov/grants/appl/index.htm

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9.  H O W   T O    S U B S C R I B E / U N S U B S C R I B E

To subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, "Primary Source," just send an e-mail
message
to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message, put the
keyword "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" on a line by itself.

Here is an example:
FROM: [log in to unmask]
TO: [log in to unmask]
SUBJECT: (leave blank)
BODY: subscribe

When you subscribe, our automated subscription service will set up your
subscription using the e-mail address that sent the request.  In the example
above, "[log in to unmask]" would be subscribed.  Once you unsubscribe, your
e-mail address will be removed from the mailing list, and you will not
receive any further issues of "Primary Source."

If you have any technical problems or comments about the automatic IMLS
Subscription Service, please contact our Webmaster at
mailto:[log in to unmask]

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