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UNO Libraries Selected for Competitive Federal Humanities Grant

The grant funds will be used toward efforts to arrange, describe, and digitize archival collections documenting Nebraska's history in Omaha and in the state’s rural communities.

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UNO Libraries has been selected as one of 200 libraries nationwide for the American Library Association’s American Rescue Plan: Humanities Grants for Libraries opportunity, an emergency relief program to assist libraries that have been adversely affected by the pandemic.

With funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, UNO Libraries will use funds to anchor itself in the community as a strong humanities institution. The competitive award comes with a $10,000 grant that will help the library deliver excellent programs and services related to culture, history, literature, and other humanities subjects.

More than 370 libraries applied for the grant, according to ALA. View the full list of selected libraries . The participating libraries, selected through a competitive, peer-reviewed application process, include public libraries, academic/college libraries, K-12 libraries, and tribal, special, and prison libraries. The recipients represent 45 states and Puerto Rico and serve communities ranging in size from 642 residents in Weir, Kansas, to the city of Los Angeles. Libraries were chosen with an emphasis on reaching historically underserved and/or rural communities.

“We are so proud to be chosen for this amazing opportunity,” said Director of Archives and Special Collections Amy Schindler. “This grant will allow UNO Libraries to better serve our community and share strong, enriching humanities collections about Latinx Nebraskans as we come out of the pandemic.”

UNO Libraries will use the grant funds to employ staff to arrange, describe, and digitize archival collections documenting Nebraskeños history in both Omaha and the state’s rural communities. The historical material included in the scope of the grant includes the collections of Dr. Lourdes Gouveia, the Office of Latino and Latin American Studies (OLLAS), and Dr. David Lopez. The completion of this arrangement and description will enable UNO Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections to promote and make the humanities content widely available to the public through exhibits, events, digital collections, and publications. To learn more about UNO Libraries, please visit library.unomaha.edu.

“Libraries have faced significant hardships throughout the pandemic —from budget cuts to staff furloughs to building closures — especially in our communities of the greatest need,” said ALA President Patty Wong. “This crucial support from NEH will enable our beloved institutions, and the dedicated people who run them, to rebuild and emerge from the pandemic stronger than ever.”

American Rescue Plan: Humanities Grants for Libraries is an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

Community members holding collections of personal papers, organizational records, books, or other material they wish to donate to Archives and Special Collections should contact Amy Schindler, Director of Archives and Special Collections.

About the University of Nebraska at Omaha Libraries

UNO Libraries fulfill the UNO mission through dynamic services, highly qualified and adaptive personnel, unique and extensive collections, and accessible learning spaces and environments. With its two locations, Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library on UNO’s Dodge Campus and in KANEKO-UNO Library located in Omaha’s Old Market, UNO Libraries provides UNO students, faculty and staff, and the Omaha community with the resources and materials needed to excel academically and professionally.