Good morning and happy Monday! This Wednesday, June 26 at 11:00 AM, MLA is hosting a free informational MLA Connect Coffee Hour about the Future Pathways Grant Program on Zoom. Please join us! Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0rdu2grj4jG9E7I5ImClEi3AtWh9IbYyQ... Future Pathways Grants aim to encourage the participation, engagement, and leadership of racially and ethnically diverse library workers in the library profession and MLA. (Applications are open through July 15<https://www.milibraries.org/mla-equity-fund>.) Whether you are a supervisor or library director looking for professional development resources and opportunities for your library's staff, or an eligible library worker interested in learning more about the grant requirements or application process, we welcome you to join us! Future Pathways Grants aim to empower underrepresented individuals in the library community by reducing financial barriers to career advancement. Grants provide funding for professional development opportunities or innovative projects like: * Educational opportunities (conference attendance, workshop participation, or tuition/books/etc. from an undergraduate or graduate School of Library or Information Science degree-granting program). * Travel to educational opportunities, if warranted (mileage, airfare, overnight accommodations, food, etc.) * Memberships in any professional organizations that help build the grant recipient's professional capacity. * Projects or activities led by the grant recipient in their local library that advance the transformation of libraries and library services through diversity, equity, and inclusion. Register today<https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0rdu2grj4jG9E7I5ImClEi3AtWh9IbYyQW#/registration> and join us to get your questions answered, learn about upcoming opportunities that the grant could fund, and brainstorm project ideas. We’ll discuss the grant application requirements, demo how to submit an application packet, and answer all of your questions! For complete eligibility requirements, restrictions, and selection criteria, see the Future Pathways Guidelines<https://www.milibraries.org/assets/docs/MLA%20Future%20Pathways%20Guidelines.pdf> (pdf). Applications will be reviewed twice per year. Beginning in 2025, deadlines for submission will be January 15 and July 15. Applications are open now through July 15. Learn more and apply or share this information with colleagues!<https://www.milibraries.org/mla-equity-fund> Questions? Contact MLA MLA@milibraries.org<mailto:MLA@milibraries.org>. [cidimage002.png@01D73C4D.ABEAD040] Rachel Ash Membership and Communications Director Michigan Library Association PO Box 27337 Lansing, MI 48909 Phone: (517) 394-2774 ext. 2 Direct: (517) 881-6652 milibraries.org rfash@milibraries.org<mailto:%0bmilibraries.org%0brfash@milibraries.org> Follow MLA on Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/MichiganLibraryAssociation> and Twitter<https://twitter.com/mlaoffice>!