Gates Foundation Renews Library Venture

SEATTLE (AP) -- The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is renewing its effort to support free access to the Internet in U.S. libraries by providing new computers and high-speed connections to those that have struggled to keep up with technology.

A new series of grants beginning with an $11.5 million investment last month will continue to put millions of dollars into libraries in 32 states, said Jill Nishi, program manager for the foundation's library initiative. The foundation bought new hardware for libraries in the other 18 states last year.

Nishi said 40 percent of American libraries have had trouble getting the money to buy new equipment and faster connections since the foundation began working a decade ago to get every public library connected to the Internet.

"The fact that 60 percent of public libraries are in fact reinvesting on their own without our assistance is very, very encouraging," Nishi said Wednesday.

The foundation is targeting its computer upgrades to libraries that serve communities where at least 10 percent of the population is poor. They will be expected to match the foundation's dollars to participate in the program.

"Libraries have been perceived as nice amenities, but they haven't been perceived as critical to the lives of their patrons. We want to help them assert their value," Nishi said.

She noted that library Internet access offered displaced Gulf Coast residents a way to download federal assistance forms after Hurricane Katrina.

The foundation has not put a total dollar figure on the new round of grants.

Among the six grants already given is a $3.9 million one to WebJunction to help public libraries plan for technology, manage hardware and software, and train staff and patrons.

A $2.6 million grant went to Florida State University to conduct annual surveys that track trends in Internet connections and public funding for libraries.

A study last year by Florida State researchers that was also paid for by the Gates Foundation helped inspire the new round of grants, Nishi said.

The study found that about 37 percent of public libraries do not offer high-speed Internet access.

Nishi said the foundation wants to eliminate the "access divide," where some public libraries have high-speed Internet connections and up-to-the-minute computers while others have a few old computers and a dial-up connection.

On the Web:

Gates Foundation: http://www.gatesfoundation.org

WebJunction: http://www.webjunction.org

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