New Grants Help Museums and Libraries Connect Youth with Friends, Learning, and Mentors to Link their Passions to Future Success

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced the second round of winners of a national competition to design 21st century Learning Labs in museums and libraries around the country. The 12 winners -- five museums and seven libraries -- will receive a total of $1.2 million in grants to plan and design the labs.

Inspired by YOUmedia, a teen space at the Chicago Public Library, and innovations in science and technology centers, these labs will help young people move beyond consuming content to making and creating it. Each Learning Lab will be designed to facilitate a research-based education model known as connected learning – one that promotes discovery, creativity, critical thinking and real-world learning through activities and experiences that bring together academics and young people’s interests, often facilitated by digital and traditional media. The labs will connect teens to mentors and peers, as well as anytime, anywhere access to information through online social networks, so they can pursue their interests more deeply and connect these new skills to academics, career, and civic engagement.

The new Learning Labs are planned for: Dallas, TX; Madison, WI; Rochester, NY; Berkeley, CA; Billings, MT; Poughkeepsie, NY; Tucson, AZ; Richmond, VA; Tuscaloosa, AL; Pittsburgh, PA; Lynn, MA; and Las Vegas, NV. Each of the winning institutions will match funds from the competition and is developing partnerships with local educational, cultural, civic and business organizations to expand the resources available to build a network of learning opportunities for young people. Urban Libraries Council (ULC) and the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) will continue to manage and guide the Learning Lab grantee community to ensure that each new space embodies best practice principles, based on research and evidence in the field of youth digital learning, to help young people gain 21st century skills and an effective STEM education.