The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute's mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. Learn more about the Institute

Press Contacts:
Jeannine Mjoseth, 202-653-4632, jmjoseth@imls.gov
Mamie Bittner, 202-653-4630, mbittner@imls.gov

The public library systems in New York City were surprised when their award-winning HomeworkNYC.org site was not popular with students. Using an IMLS planning grant to conduct focus groups with students, the libraries discovered that, in the era of social networking, students don’t want another Web site to go to—but they will use a homework help app on a social networking site. Read more

When the Monterey Bay Aquarium sought to expand its environmental education efforts, it found a good match in the Watsonville area near the northeast coast of Monterey Bay. The new Pajaro Valley High School was located in what has become a rarity in coastal California: A wetlands area called a slough. Read more

In this age of instantly accessible information, librarians from all nations find they need to be able to navigate varied resources around the globe. Opportunities to learn how to work with foreign libraries, however, are scarce. Read more

Health information is a broad category covering many complex topics. When creating a consumer health Web site, it’s more effective to build a directory of trustworthy resources than to point people straight to the most comprehensive source. Librarians at the Health Sciences Library of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill learned this during the evolution of their NC Health Info site. Read more