The Information Use Management & Policy Institute directed by Charles R. McClure, PhD, Francis Eppes Professor at the College of Information, Florida State University (FSU) has been awarded a $218,000 grant to assist public libraries and local communities to better plan for and respond to hurricanes.

The Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center at Florida State University’s College of Business awarded the grant to the Information Institute for the period August 8, 2008 through July 31, 2009. The Institute will partner with the State Library and Archives of Florida, directed by Judith Ring, LYRASIS, directed by Kate Nevins, and Florida’s Multi-type Library Cooperatives and public libraries throughout the region as well as federal, state, local and community agencies concerned with Florida hurricane preparedness and response.

Florida public libraries have provided a range of useful hurricane and disaster preparation and response services and activities, but there has been no systematic effort to identify the activities, best practices, guidelines and services provided or to better organize, coordinate, and assist all Florida public libraries to provide these hurricane/disaster planning and response services.

This project will reduce the state’s overall risk by raising the readiness level of all the state’s public libraries to meet the challenges posed by these catastrophes. The project will:

• Identify and then organize relevant public library hurricane related information resources, services, roles, and best practices;
• Identify, aggregate, assess, and organize successful individual Florida public library best practices related to hurricane preparedness and response;
• Develop model plans, standards, guidelines and recommendations – which will be made available via print and through an interactive website;
• Offer strategies to assist state and regional public library and government officials with disaster coordination and organization responsibilities; and
• Disseminate to Florida’s public libraries, agencies, and other organizations, via print and project website, resources, services, experiences, best practices, plans and guidelines to coordinate Florida’s public library managers and government partners to better prepare for and respond to hurricanes.

McClure stated that ”this grant offers a great opportunity for public libraries to better demonstrate the range of services and responses they can provide during such disasters.”

The FSU Hurricane Project has been featured on LibraryJournal.com.

For further information or for those who have knowledge and experience in dealing with public library hurricane preparedness and response, please contact Charles R. McClure Charles.McClure@cci.fsu.edu at the Information Institute.