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The Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation Awarded $1 Million Grant for Strategic Planning from The Pew Charitable Trusts
PHILADELPHIA, July 19, 2023— The Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation is thrilled to announce that it has secured a three-year, $1 million strategic planning grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts. The grant will allow the Library and Foundation to build a comprehensive strategic plan to create a new vision for the work of both, which will be driven by a process that is grounded in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles; and responsive to community needs.
“Like many libraries across the country, the Free Library is still feeling the impact from the pandemic. Thanks to this generous grant, the Free Library of Philadelphia and Foundation now have additional resources to ensure a strong re-emergence,” said Kelly Richards, President and Director of the Free Library of Philadelphia. “As a cornerstone of the city’s social infrastructure, the Library will use this much needed strategic planning to help us reimagine our services and the overall patron experience.”
Thanks to the generous support of The Pew Charitable Trusts, strategic plans will be created through a thorough and exhaustive process that will address the intersecting issues that predated and were illuminated by the pandemic as well as operational challenges and changes in patron behaviors that have resulted from the pandemic. By engaging residents from a wide range of races, ethnicities, languages, economic statuses, and neighborhoods, the Library hopes to better address community needs through its programs and services. Once the comprehensive plan is finalized, the key outcomes and tactics will be shared with project participants and community stakeholders, followed by a public awareness campaign to communicate the changes and improvements.
In concert with the new strategic plans, the Library and Foundation will develop new business plans that will define the relationship between the two organizations moving forward, unified around mission but with separate operations. Moreover, both organizations will create comprehensive DEI plans that will undergird these strategic and business plans, and build on the DEI work already underway at Free Library.
“The Pew Charitable Trusts is pleased to help the Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation strengthen the library’s operations, services, and impact on diverse communities throughout the city,” said Donna Frisby-Greenwood, the senior vice president who leads Pew’s Philadelphia work. “We are excited to see one of our city’s most important civic institutions engage more residents and neighborhoods while working to provide quality, in-demand services for years to come.”
To ensure strong post-pandemic re-emergence and foster a sustainable future, the Library and Foundation will use the first year of this opportunity to undergo significant research paired with stakeholder and community engagement in order to best build around the needs of the communities served. The second year will see the development of the strategic plans. The third year will be when these plans are brought to life and include significant rebranding campaigns for the Library and Foundation.
“This grant is going to affect powerful change at the Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation and the Library itself as it will give us the resources to make strong strategic decisions for the future and implement the vision of our staff, our communities, and all of our stakeholders,” said Shara Pollie, Executive Vice President of the Foundation.
The three-year grant period begins in July and will see the implementation of the strategic plans and rebranding by the summer of 2026.
07/19/2023
Department of External Affairs, Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103-1189
(215) 567-7710, FAX (215) 567-7850