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JEFFERSON CITY, MO -- Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan Thursday announced the Schuyler County Library District received an eReader Exploration Grant in the amount of $1,245.

The grant will provide funds to public libraries to help library staff, volunteers and patrons learn about eReader devices through a hands-on experience. This allows public libraries that participate in a Missouri State Library eReader training session to purchase several of the more popular and stable eReader devices available on the market to better serve patrons need assistance with eReaders as they download materials.

"Missourians are blessed to have a strong network of local public libraries throughout the state,” Carnahan said. “Strong local libraries provide citizens with access to vast new resources and information right in their own communities. I'm pleased that this federal grant funding will help support the Schuyler County Library District and provide library patrons even better services and programs."

The secretary of state’s eReader exploration grants are funded by the Library Services & Technology Act through the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, which is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute’s mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. 

In the 2012 Fiscal Year, the Missouri State Library has approved a total of 140 grant applications, distributing $963,660 in federal awards to libraries throughout Missouri.