[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 141 (Tuesday, July 25, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47922-47923]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-15665]


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NATIONAL FOUNDATION ON THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES

Institute of Museum and Library Services


Request for Information (RFI): Information Literacy Programs, 
Resources, and Promising Practices

AGENCY: Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

ACTION: Request for information (RFI).

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SUMMARY: The Institute of Museum and Library Services requests 
information on programs, resources, and activities designed to 
strengthen information literacy skills. The agency is particularly 
interested in programs and activities that can be implemented at the 
local level, in community organizations such as museums and libraries, 
to help individuals develop the skills necessary to find, evaluate, 
use, and create information in meaningful ways. The agency is also 
interested in tools and approaches that can be adapted to meet the 
needs of different users.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted via the method provided 
below, no later than midnight Eastern Time (ET) on Friday, August 18, 
2023.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted to: [email protected]. Include 
Information Literacy Request for Information (RFI) in the subject line 
of the message. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 
accompanied by a written comment. Respondents may answer as many or as 
few questions as they wish.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Katherine Maas, Institute of Museum 
and Library Services, or by email at [email protected]. Persons who are 
deaf or hard of hearing (TTY users) can contact IMLS at 202-207-7858 
via 711 for TTY-Based Telecommunications Relay Service.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Individuals are inundated with information in their daily lives. 
The digital age has contributed to the increased production of 
information, and navigating our evolving information landscape is 
increasingly complex. Moreover, continuing changes in technology (e.g., 
social media, workplace technology, educational technology) make it 
important for everyone to understand how the availability, exchange, 
and presentation of information is evolving. Information literacy 
skills are thus critical for individuals of all ages. Information 
literacy skills refer to the skills associated with empowering 
individuals to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information 
effectively (e.g., navigating information to learn a new trade or 
applying information to clarify decision options).
    The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 \1\ directed the 
Institute of Museum and Library Services to explore ways to improve 
information literacy within communities, including through the creation 
of a website to disseminate information literacy resources, toolkits, 
and best practices. The website is primarily intended to support 
activities within communities as they develop programs and other 
resources to support local interests and needs.
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    \1\ Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022: https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ103/PLAW-117publ103.pdf (page 442); 
Joint Explanatory Statement--Division H: http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20220307/BILLS-117RCP35-JES-DIVISION-H_Part1.pdf (page 
142).
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Information Requested

    IMLS seeks to understand how organizations address and incorporate 
information literacy skills into local community programs broadly; how 
information literacy-related resources and programs are applied to 
specific areas of community concern, including but not limited to 
community health, safety, and economic well-being; as well as how these 
resources and programs are adapted and developed to address local 
demographics, unique community characteristics, and the continually 
evolving information environment. IMLS also seeks to identify 
information literacy-related resources and programs that could inform 
the development of a website to disseminate successful practices on 
information literacy programs and related tools.
    IMLS invites input from stakeholders, experts, communities, and 
members of the public, including but not limited to libraries, 
archives, museums, researchers in academia, industry, government 
library and museum advocacy organizations, nongovernmental and 
professional organizations, and Federal agencies. A response to every 
topic or question is not required.

Key Topics and Questions

Topic 1: Information About Community Program Design and Development

    A. How has your organization addressed information literacy in its 
programming, either directly or indirectly? What topics have you 
connected to information literacy? How have you talked about 
information literacy in your programming? What has worked best? What 
would you have liked to have been able to do but couldn't?
    B. What kinds of resources and programming have attracted the most 
interest and engagement within your community, including but not 
limited to relating to community health, safety, and economic well-
being? What resources and programming have generated the least interest 
and engagement? Please provide examples.
    C. What methods do you use to conduct an assessment to understand 
your community's needs related to information literacy?
    D. How do you design and adapt information literacy resources and 
programming to meet the needs and preferences of different demographic 
groups within your community (e.g., adult learners, people with limited 
English language skills, people with visual or auditory impairments, 
people with limited access to or skills with digital technology)?
    E. Describe any toolkits or other readily available resources 
related to information literacy that you currently use or have used in 
your programming. Please indicate the source of these resources (e.g., 
government website, local health department, etc.).

[[Page 47923]]

Topic 2: Information About Leveraging Partnerships in Community-level 
Programs.

    A. How do organizations in your community collaborate to address 
local information literacy needs?
    B. Describe how you work with other organizations to develop and/or 
share information literacy-related resources and/or programming. What 
else can be done to support the success of these partnerships?
    C. Please share successful practices for disseminating information 
resources within your community and building effective partnerships.

Topic 3: Information About Financial Support (e.g., Grant Funding)

    A. What funding have you received in the past to support your 
information literacy programs and activities (e.g., grant funding, 
institutional funding, etc.)? Describe successful approaches you have 
used to make it easier to access funding to advance information 
literacy.
    B. Are there areas of work for which you have not been able to 
identify funding (i.e., gaps in funding)? What challenges with funding 
the full project lifecycle have you experienced?

Topic 4: Evaluation of Your Information Literacy Programs

    A. How do you evaluate the success or impact of your programs? 
Please describe any specific evaluation tools that you use.
    B. What metrics do you use to evaluate your program?

Submitting a Response

    Comments must be submitted to: [email protected] and must include 
Information Literacy Request for Information (RFI) in the subject line 
of the message. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 
accompanied by a written comment. It is recommended that attachments 
with file sizes exceeding 25MB be compressed (i.e., zipped) to ensure 
message delivery.
    Responses containing references, research studies, data 
visualizations, community program details and evaluations, and other 
empirical data should include electronic links to the referenced 
materials or be attached to the email. Responses containing attached or 
linked reference materials with multiple pages should include page 
numbers where relevant information can be found. These materials and 
artifacts should not reference programs or materials that were created 
or implemented before 2018 and have not been updated since then. All 
information should be provided at a level of granularity that preserves 
the privacy of users. IMLS is accepting information literacy resources 
and tools in other languages and/or in an accessible format. A response 
to every topic or question is not required.
    This RFI is for information and planning purposes only and should 
not be construed as a policy, solicitation for applications, or as an 
obligation on the part of the United States Government to provide 
support for any ideas identified in response to it. Responses to this 
RFI are voluntary. Please note that the Government will not pay for the 
preparation of any information submitted or for its use of that 
information. Please do not include any propriety, classified, 
confidential, or sensitive information in your response. Information 
obtained as a result of this RFI may be used by the Government at its 
discretion, including in public websites and reports. Contractor 
support personnel may be used to review responses to this RFI. IMLS may 
or may not choose to contact individual responders. Such communications 
would be for the sole purpose of clarifying statements in written 
responses.

    Dated: July 19, 2023.
Suzanne Mbollo,
Grants Management Specialist, Institute of Museum and Library Services.
[FR Doc. 2023-15665 Filed 7-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7036-01-P