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Building Equity: Amplify Summer Learning

Program Application

Dear Library Leader:

Every child deserves positive and engaging opportunities that can unleash their potential. Without question, public libraries such as yours play an essential role in helping to facilitate these experiences of joy and learning. Public libraries delivering STEM programming provide even greater opportunities to help youth unleash their potential through active learning propelled by exploration and curiosity. Yet, many brilliant young minds in the communities we serve do not have access to quality STEM. Reaching those historically excluded is also the place where public libraries like yours can change lives and help foster equitable outcomes. The time is NOW to double down on the library’s role as a community anchor for learning and being a place for all as young people, particularly those most vulnerable, have experienced nearly two years of academic loss, educational transitions and overall uncertainty.

ULC is proud to announce Building Equity: Amplify Summer Learning to support engaging learning opportunities for middle school youth in the summertime who have historically been excluded from STEM opportunities (e.g., based on race, income, gender, ability). Building on the success of ULC’s Partners for Middle School STEM initiative and the hard work of our first learning cohort libraries, the goal of Building Equity: Amplify Summer Learning is to position libraries as critical community anchors for learning, accelerate the public library’s role in summer and reinforce the library as a place in the community for equity and inclusion.

We invite you to join us! Funded in part by IMLS and with support of our partners, the National Summer Learning Association and the National Recreation and Parks Association, Building Equity: Amplify Summer Learning brings together a cohort of libraries from fall 2021 through summer 2023 for monthly virtual trainings and support to develop and implement plans for STEM summer programming.  

Looking for more information? You can review the Program FAQs and the information session slide deck. 

Feel free to reach out to Tandra Turner, ULC’s Director of Strategic Initiatives at tturner@urbanlibraries.org with any questions. All applications are due Friday, November 12th at 11:59 p.m. ET.
1.Library Information(Required.)
2.Which describes the area(s) your library system primarily serves?(Required.)
3.Please identify the status of your proposed STEM summer program:(Required.)
4.Please identify the target middle-school audience(s) for your proposed STEM summer program:(Required.)
5.What types of programs do you currently have in place for the targeted audience(s) selected above and/or for middle school students in general? (200 words max)(Required.)
6.What outcomes do you hope to accomplish for your target audience(s) by participating in this learning cohort? (200 words max)(Required.)
7.What outcomes do you hope to accomplish for your library by participating in this learning cohort? (200 words max)(Required.)
8.Do you currently have a summer learning initiative that is separate from your summer reading program?(Required.)
9.Please identify any STEM partners (e.g., recreations and parks, schools, business, local government, hospitals) and other community partners that you plan to involve in this work. (200 words max)(Required.)
10.Do you have current relationships with these partners?(Required.)
11.Please add any other information you think is important to support your interest in and commitment to participating in this learning cohort if selected. (200 words max)
12.Please upload a letter of support from your library Director/CEO. (Required.)
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