Outreach Services: Grant Writing & Funding Opportunities

Deadline: July 7, 2025
In partnership with your local PBS station, we invite public, academic and specialty libraries to participate in this special engagement opportunity around THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION — a sweeping six-part, 12-hour documentary series chronicling the birth of the United States from Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein, and David Schmidt.
This microgrant opportunity offers libraries $750 in funding to support community programming and engagement tied to the themes of the series and is a great opportunity to connect with your community around the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Project activities could include film screenings, history discussions, exhibits, book clubs, speaker events, youth projects, or other innovative ideas that bring local communities into conversation about the American Revolution and its enduring legacy.
For this project, activities should emphasize civic engagement, conversations, and storytelling initiatives that provide a deeper understanding of our shared history. These engagement activities will focus around themes of liberty, freedom, independence, and democracy - ideals embedded in the Revolution and inherent in our Constitution.

Deadline: July 11, 2025
Invite teens to be the next generation of library advocates! Apply now for Books Unbanned programming funding.
Books Unbanned is offering funding of $1,000–$10,000 to libraries to help them develop and run programs for teens and young adults focused on library advocacy and the freedom to read.
Libraries will be required to run at least four programs for teens and young adults (13–21) that provide them with the skills, tools, and knowledge for leadership and advocacy development, civic engagement, literacy skill building, and other related themes.
Selected libraries will receive:
Funds to support teen and young adult programming, including participant stipends, food, speaker fees, and supplies
Regular support meetings with project advisors, Emma Karin Eriksson, and Kelly Jensen, and other grant winners
Access to Books Unbanned contacts of authors, organizations, and speakers that can be used for virtual visits
A hard copy of the Freedom to Read Teen Advocacy Toolkit
Timeline
June 9, 2025 - Open application
July 11, 2025 11:59pm EST - Close application
August 18, 2025 - Selected libraries announced
August 28, 2026 - Program implementation period ends
September 11, 2026 - Program report due to BPL
Reach out to Emma Eriksson at eeriksson@bklynlibrary.org with any questions

Deadlines: April 1 and October 1
The Pilcrow Foundation's mission is to provide new, quality, hardcover children's books to rural public libraries across the United States. The Children’s Book Project grants provide a 2-to-1 match to rural public libraries that contribute $200-$400 through local sponsors for the purchase of up to $1200 (retail value) of new, quality, hardcover children’s books. Grant recipients can select from a list of over 500 quality hardcover children’s books best suited for their community, including award-winning and star-reviewed titles from educational and literary organizations.
The Pilcrow Foundation accepts applications from independent rural public libraries and Native American Tribal libraries as well as libraries that are part of a county, regional, or cooperative system. Libraries must be located in a rural U.S. area, have a limited operating budget, have an active children’s department, and raise $200-$400 through a local sponsor. Libraries with total operating budgets of less than $50,000 receive priority. A rural community is typically more than 40 miles from an urban area (population over 50,000) and not a part of a metropolitan area. A rural town library system should serve a population under 10,000 (priority to community populations under 5,000). A rural county library system should serve a population under 20,000.

Deadlines: Quarterly, Jan. 3, April 1, July 1, Oct. 1. The Literacy Opportunity Fund awards grants to nonprofit organizations within the United States that provide literacy services directly to students.
Funded by the Nora Roberts Foundation and administered by ProLiteracy, the Literacy Opportunity Fund distributes grants of $3,000 to $6,000 to support general operating expenses.
This new fund aims to meet the needs of literacy organizations of all types and sizes so that they may effectively and efficiently provide services to students.

Deadline: Ongoing. Established in 2002, the Wish You Well Foundation has the mission of "Supporting adult and family literacy in the United States by fostering new and promoting existing adult literacy and educational programs." The primary focus of their work is to support non-profit U.S. organizations that teach adults the literacy skills they need to communicate, grow, and thrive within their communities; they do not fund youth programs. The Wish You Well Foundation reviews donation requests with a wide array of funding needs. Most requests range from $200 to $10,000. Grants are awarded throughout the year.

Rolling Deadline
It is a simple process to apply for the Doris Ann Norris We Love Libraries $500 grant, which is awarded six times per year to public and school libraries. The online form is short, but it does require a little advanced preparation.
The handful of questions on the form include contact information for the applicant, basic information about the library, including the address, website, and the library director's name. A brief description of the library, including the size and the number of constituents served, is also requested. That information should be easy and quick to gather. Winners of the $500 award must use the funds to purchase library materials or for public programming. The grant money can't be directed to the operating budget.