UNC Asheville’s D. Hiden Ramsey Library has been awarded a $100,000 grant to be used to partner with 12 other UNC System libraries in creating an infrastructure for long-term preservation of books as part of a shared collection, the university announced Aug. 3.  

This funding is part of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant program – federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services that are awarded by the State Library to eligible North Carolina libraries as investments that help libraries deliver relevant and up-to-date services for their communities.

“The LSTA grant will sustain the cultural legacy of the print record by helping us identify at-risk collections and formalize a method for retaining them,” said University Librarian Leah Dunn. Through analysis of overlap and uniqueness of titles, a framework for identifying, marking, and sharing titles tagged for long-term retention will be developed. This “collective collection” concept that will be developed as a result of this project will lead to cost-effective, collaborative preservation strategies and collection development strategies.

Joining UNCA as partners in this effort are the libraries at these UNC System schools: Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, NC A&T State University, North Carolina Central University, UNC Asheville, UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro, UNC Pembroke, UNC Wilmington, Western Carolina University and Winston-Salem State University.

This project is made possible by funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (IMLS grant number LS-00-18-0034-18). 

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. This year’s federal allotment to North Carolina was $2.6 million and the grant awarded to UNCA was one of the 53 for fiscal year 2018-2019 awarded to North Carolina libraries.