Purpose and Mission

The mission of the Austin Public Library Foundation is to support and strengthen Austin’s public libraries.  To accomplish this goal, the Foundation works to increase awareness about the Library and its importance to the community and to raise funds through individual gifts, corporate sponsorships, and foundation grants.  These funds are used to provide programs, equipment, and holdings in the Austin Public Library.

Buy One for the Library  The Austin Public Library book budget is only 55% of the national average for cities of a similar size. The Buy One for the Library  campaign gives you a way to help. Buy an item on the Library's wish list, and people all over town will enjoy it for years to come. Our current campaign highlights recent titles. The Library was only able to order one copy of each title, and that's not enough. Your donation will put the book on the shelf. You can view the Library's wishlist and make donations from our secure page.   Stay Connected   Sign up for our e-newsletter, How We Connect. When you register, we'll send you periodic e-mails about programs and events and ways in which you can become involved with the Library. We don't share your information with anyone and you can un-register at any time.     Why Libraries   Matter Libraries are the anchor of their communities, providing access to information, culture, and technology. Library programs address issues of literacy, economic development, and the digital divide. Libraries are a significant contributor to the local quality of life. With your help, we are building a better library for Austin.

SBC Grant Funds New Hardware Upgrades for Central Library   The Austin Public Library Foundation was able to update hardware at the John Henry Faulk Central Library this year, thanks to a $15,000 Excelerator Grant from the SBC Foundation.   Forty-two staff members serve over 500,000 visitors to the Central Library each year. SBC's support allowed the Central Library to update essential networking systems to give staff faster access to the Internet, Intranet, and other shared resources. The hardware upgrades will provide the up-to-date technology necessary to ensure the Central Library meets the information and cultural needs of our community.   This is the third year the Austin Public Library Foundation has received an Excelerator Grant.  Last year, the Library received $20,000 to fund training on the latest information technology to members of the Library technology support team.  In 2003, the Library received $20,000 to fund part-time Wired for Youth Cyberlifeguards for summer programs at the Michael & Susan Dell Wired for Youth Centers.  Thanks to SBC for their continued support of the Austin Public Library.           For information on other grants supporting important Library projects, click here.

The Austin Public Library Foundation is a non-profit 501(c) (3) corporation founded in 1995 to increase public awareness about the Library and its importance to the community, and to enhance Library collections, programs and services through financial support. The Foundation has received major gifts from The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the RGK Foundation, and from Advanced Micro Devices, the Austin Community Foundation, Bank of America, Bingo Books, the Dell Foundation, Harcourt Supplemental (Steck-Vaughn), H-E-B, The Junior League of Austin, the Bernard and Audre Rapoport Foundation, the SBC Foundation, the Topfer Family Foundation, Tokyo Electron, the Still Water Foundation, and the Webber Family Foundation.

 

A project of The Junior League of Austin