The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is pleased to announce that the FY 2025 Family Place Libraries™ Project grant application opens on Tuesday, September 3, 2024! TSLAC is looking for qualified libraries to attend a Family Place Libraries™ Training Institute at the new Cedar Park Public Library in Cedar Park, Texas, and implement the program in their libraries.

The purpose of this grant is to create a welcoming, family-centered environment that empowers caregivers of young children as they become their child’s first and continual teachers. This grant will provide funding for the equipment and training necessary for each library to:

• Host workshops for children ages 0-3 and their caregivers.
• Develop an interactive space for this age group to play and learn in the library.
• Forge strong partnerships with organizations serving young children and their families.

If chosen to participate in the 2025 cohort, new and expansion libraries can expect to have staff members attend a training in Cedar Park, Texas, in May 2025. To offset the cost of travel, TSLAC will provide each attendee up to $700 in travel reimbursement. TSLAC will also reimburse participating libraries up to $6,000 to purchase the supplies necessary to launch a successful Family Place Library™ location.

The applications will close for submissions on Tuesday, October 15, 2024. The application is entirely online and can be accessed after logging into the TSLAC Grants Management System. If you do not have access to the GMS system, please reach out to the Grants Team at grants@tsl.texas.gov.

Before applying, please see the following resources on the Family Place™ Project Resources page of the TSLAC website:

• 2025 Notice of Funding Opportunity– This document contains the grant guidelines that tell you all important information regarding the grant, including a scoring matrix used by review panelists to ensure the best scoring outcome.
• FY 2025 Texas Family Place Libraries™ Grant webinar recording– In this webinar, Family Place staff discuss the early learning and community benefits of dedicating resources to becoming a Family Place certified library. TSLAC’s Youth Services Consultant and a member of the Grants Team discuss expectations and requirements for the 2025 Family Place Libraries™ Project grant applications and strategies on how to meet those expectations. The discussion includes a review of how grants will be scored as well as the information needed for the application. 
• Webinar slides

All of these resources and more can be found on the TSLAC website at www.tsl.texas.gov/ldn/familyplace.

This grant application invitation is extended to accredited libraries looking to become credentialed Family Place Libraries™. Additionally, those library systems that already have an established Family Place™ location can apply for funding to expand the program into one additional branch in their library system this fiscal year. If a current established Family Place™ location needs additional staff trained to remain active, there is no need to apply. Please reach out to the TSLAC Youth Services Consultant, Katelyn Patterson at kpatterson@tsl.texas.gov to discuss your needs.

For current or past participants in the Family Place™ grant, please use this Status Update form to give us an update on your Family Place™ status.

Contact Youth Services Consultant Katelyn Patterson or the TSLAC Grants Team with any questions you might have.

This project is made possible by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act.