Chambersburg District Libraries

RELEASE DATE: November 26, 2001

CONTACT PERSON: Ricky Prado 717-709-0282 x216 rprado@fclspa.org

SUBJECT: Franklin County Library System Receives $112,000 Grant from the Gates Foundation

The Franklin County Library System is delighted to announce it has received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (B&MGF) totaling over $112,000. The purpose of the grant is to increase public access computing at all of the public library facilities in Franklin County. The standard grant package of four Gates computers and a laser printer were awarded to Blue Ridge Summit Free Library, Ragged Edge Library, Ft. Loudon Library, Alexander Hamilton Free Library, Lilian S. Besore Free Library, and Coyle Free Library. Two Gates standalone computers and one laser printer were awarded to St. Thomas Library. Coyle Free Library was also awarded an eleven-computer lab, complete with laser printer and ViewSonic Projector. "The lab is going to be a great asset for our community," states Ricky Prado, District Library Consultant and one of the writers of the grant, "we will be able to offer workshops to help folks learn new computer skills. I can see offerings like 'Email for Seniors' so that they may email their grandchildren, or 'Using the Internet to Find Work' as another example. All the possibilities are truly exciting!"
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation began awarding grants to public libraries nationwide over four years ago starting with the states with higher poverty levels. By using meticulously crafted criteria, the B&MGF award packages were based on each library's service area and the poverty levels within that area. The Franklin County grant award package initially did not include Alexander Hamilton, Blue Ridge Summit, Ragged Edge and Besore because they were considered above the poverty levels set by the Foundation. However because of a successful petition for reconsideration all four received full awards increasing the value of the grant by over $44,000.

"It's great to see the library system receiving the computer resources it needs to support the information needs of the community", states Bernice Crouse, Executive Director of the Franklin County Library System. "All of these machines are going to be State-of-the-Art and should last us for a nice long time," says Prado, "We should be up and running countywide by April of next year."

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