Competition for the creation of school libraries

A Library in Every School is both the slogan and dream of BIRBA, the not-for-profit organisation in Assisi, Italy, which, thanks to all the BIRBA volunteers,  created its first library in 2003 at the Sant’Antonio Elementary School in Assisi. Ever since, BIRBA has remained committed to helping and offering consulting services to other parents who would like to use their the BIRBA experience as a model. 
School libraries have always been a rarity in Italy. That is slowly beginning to change. To date, BIRBA has successfully collaborated in the ideation and realisation of many other school libraries in Italy, from Canton Ticino in the north to the province of Lecce in the south.

In accordance with its goals, BIRBA has established, in the context of the Festival: The Mischief of Reading — A Festival of Narration in Assisi, Italy, an international competition which will award a prize each year to the project for the realisation or development of school library which it deems most worthy of its help and support.

BIRBA is a felicitous example of an active collaboration among parents, teachers, and schools, of a sort not often found in Italy. Part of Birba's mission is to help other groups of parents who believe in the profound importance of reading to create similar collaborations in their schools. 

When many people have the same dream, it begins to become real and to create a new reality!

In Italy
To Participate in this School Library Competition, you must submit a project demonstration the following:

• that you are a group of volunteers living abroad (made of parents or people who are legal guardians of minors, associations, experts, or people devoted to books and libraries, etc) whose intention it is to become a non-profit organisation dedicated to the creation of a library;
• that you have been granted a space on school premises which is adequate and appropriate for the creation of a school library. Photos must be submitted along with your project;
• that your project will create of a library which is accessible to all students and their families, which is both lively and takes an active part in school life, and has at least one or two members willing to take responsibility for guaranteeing the services of a regular and ongoing lending library, even after the award moneys have been spent. 
• that you are committed to increasing and constantly updating the supply of books and other materials relevant to a school library.

Abroad
If your project involves the creation or development of an Italian-language based library for children in a school outsider Italy, to Participate, you must submit a project demonstration the following:

• that you are a group of volunteers living abroad (made of parents or people who are legal guardians of minors, associations, experts, or people devoted to books and libraries, etc) whose intention it is to become a non-profit organisation dedicated to the creation of a library;
• that you have been granted a space on school premises which is adequate and appropriate for the creation of a school library. Photos must be submitted along with your project;
• that your project will create of a library which is accessible to all students and their families, which is both lively and takes an active part in school life, and has at least one or two members willing to take responsibility for guaranteeing the services of a regular and ongoing lending library, even after the award moneys have been spent;
• that you are committed to increasing and constantly updating the supply of books and other materials relevant to a school library.

The winners moreover must commit to sending to BIRBA, after the elapse of one year, a brief description  of the life of the library and the activities it has successfully undertaken, to be accompanied by photos. 

Priority will be given to projects devoted to the creation of libraries in schools and in areas where resources earmarked for the promotion of reading are scarse. 

The winner will be awarded 1000 euros worth of books as well as free help and consulting services from BIRBA. 

Participants in the Competition “A Library in Every School” must submit their projects by February 28, 2018  to concorso@birbachilegge.it

The prize for the  winning project will be awarded during the “Mischief of Reading: Storytelling in Assisi” festival which will take place in Assisi from May 24th to May 27th, 2018. 

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