ATLANTA, GA - January
10, 2017 - LYRASIS, the longest serving non-profit for archives,
libraries and museums in the United States, announces the opening of its
new Catalyst Fund. The Catalyst fund will award
up to $100k to fund innovative ideas and kick start new programs of
interest to LYRASIS member institutions. The Catalyst Fund offers LYRASIS
members the opportunity to fund a new project, idea or program by applying
for a financial award. Applications will be reviewed by the LYRASIS Leaders Circle, a new tier of
LYRASIS membership open to all libraries, archives and museums. Recipients
will present the results of their projects at the LYRASIS Member Summit in
October.
The application
period for the fund opens Monday, January 9 and will be open through February
28, 2017. The fund for award distribution this year is $100,000.
Applications can be submitted online via the LYRASIS website.
"The Catalyst
Fund is the real engine behind the LYRASIS Leaders Circle, our new
membership program. With funds from the recently created LYRASIS endowment,
we want to directly support innovation by members and foster ideas that can
benefit the entire community," says Robert Miller, LYRASIS's CEO.
"Our Leaders Circle members will have the chance to vote on member
submitted ideas for seed funding support and then engage as those projects
take shape. It's a great way for libraries, archives and museums who are
interested in supporting the profession to provide leadership, as well as
investing in the future and sustainability for their own institution."
This new program
grew out of a series of 13 regional Leaders Forums, hosted by LYRASIS and
funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation in 2016. These forums reached
more than 200 professionals in discussions about new and evolving trends,
opportunities and challenges facing archives, libraries and museums. During
those forums, members and LYRASIS alike identified the need for increased
collaboration, leadership and innovation.
Each Catalyst Fund
award is intended to cover the costs of a new project within the library,
archives and museum field that can be scaled or adopted to benefit the
wider community. These costs can include direct staff cost, testing,
software and development, as needed. Additionally, LYRASIS is also seeking
Catalyst Fund applications from member institutions who have ideas they think
would benefit the community but would like to see executed by LYRASIS or
another institution. Award size will vary based on the project scope and
needs. The Catalyst Fund application period opens Monday, January 9 online
via the LYRASIS website and this year the fund
for award distribution is $100,000. The application period will remain open
through February 28, 2017.
Joe Lucia, Dean of
Temple University Libraries and LYRASIS Board Members says,
"We are pleased that the Catalyst Fund reinforces the new direction at
LYRASIS. Building off of the superior skills developed by the world class LYRASIS transactional services and team, the
Catalyst Fund will supercharge ideas from members by linking them with
LYRASIS staff. This linkage will provide program support and will connect
them with a receptive, pre-vetted membership community."
Catalyst Fund
recipients will be selected by the LYRASIS Leaders Circle, based on
scalability, benefit and merit of the application. Applicants must be
LYRASIS members in good standing and willing to share their results and
projects with the entire LYRASIS community.
LYRASIS has been
serving libraries since 1936, with an expanded mission in 2011 to
include museums and archives. This is the charter year for both the LYRASIS
Leaders Circle and the Catalyst Fund.
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