A 2016 Master of Library and Information Science graduate of the San José State University School of Information attributes a course on grant writing as the key to being awarded a $1,600 grant that will benefit her community.

Katy Philby said after becoming familiar with various types of funding resources for libraries and program development while a grad student at the iSchool, she was able to practically apply those skills.

As a student in Patty Wong’s INFO 282 Grant Writing and Alternative Funding Resources course offered in the iSchool’s MLIS program, she learned how to assess a library’s needs, create marketing materials to highlight organizational strengths, identify prospective funders, and develop a grant proposal for a real library.

“Patty’s class is great. We worked through writing grants and received lots of resources and feedback. The process during class helped me to prepare for when I did write a grant,” Philby said.

Putting her grant writing skills to use shortly after earning her MLIS degree, the library assistant/teen specialist at the Des Moines Public Library applied for the Best Buy Foundation Community Grant in hopes of funding a teen makerspace with an iMac computer to better provide video/animation editing software. Her efforts proved successful, and the library was notified of the grant award in September 2017.

To learn more about the iSchool’s  INFO 282 Grant Writing and Alternative Funding Resources course, see the latest course syllabus.