Federal museum, library program cuts could impact Southwest Ohio

President Donald Trump last week named a new acting director for the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Trump said his executive order “continues the reduction in the elements of the Federal bureaucracy that the President has determined are unnecessary.”

In the past five funding years, Dayton Metro Library, the Clark County Historical Society, Westcott House in Springfield and the Cincinnati Zoo have received grants through IMLS.

Library funding

IMLS’ Grants to States program is the largest source of federal funding support for library services in the United States. The State Library of Ohio received about $5.4 million from IMLS in 2024, according to IMLS’ database of grants.

Dayton Metro Library external relations director Debi Chess said the executive order directs IMLS to develop and submit plans to the federal Office of Management and Budget on reducing its function and personnel to the “minimum presence and function required by law.” But the order does not technically call for the elimination of IMLS.

The Grants to States program — which funds State Library programs, Library Services and Technology Act grants, other services and staffing — by law is required to be funded annually.

“We have every reason to believe that, as a ‘function required by law,’ State Library’s programs, grants, and services should not be directly affected by this federal Executive Order,” Chess said.

Dayton Metro Library in 2020 and 2022 received IMLS funds connected to the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan Act. These awards totaled $217,500 and covered programs related to supporting job-seekers in Dayton area and a partnership with internet service providers to help high-need local families with internet access.

Dayton Metro has also received IMLS funding that passed through the Library Services and Technology Act for summer reading challenge program costs and special collections projects.

Dayton Metro Library is supported by a five-year, 1-mill levy that voters passed last fall, as well as state funds and other community support.

“Our focus remains on the state budget and the Public Library Fund,” said Chess. “Fifty-one percent of the overall funding for public libraries comes from the state through the Public Library Fund.”

Museums

Other educational institutions, like museums and historic attractions, can also make bids for IMLS funding.

For the Clark County Historical Society, which operates the Heritage Center in downtown Springfield, applying for federal funding is normally a yearly endeavor. But because it’s a competitive process, it’s not a funding source the historical society heavily leans on, said Executive Director Jane Fischer.

“We are kind of unusual in that we don’t rely as much on federal and state grants, but that’s because we are generously supported by the voters of Clark County,” she said. “Typically if we don’t get that federal funding, there are other local and state level grants that we typically apply for if the IMLS grant doesn’t come through.”

The last year the Historical Society was awarded IMLS funding was 2023 — that grant covered costs related to taking inventory, rehousing, and updating artifact records in a collections management database for a collection of historic textiles, medical tools, pins and fashion items like petticoats. A part-time intern was also hired to take care of this work.

This project was needed after a burst pipe in 2019 flooded the society’s collections.

“It’s been a wonderful project for us, just in terms of getting things back into their pre-flood shape,” she said. “It’s just been a great grant for us in terms of just trying to get our collections back in order.”

Fischer said any cut to federal and state grants may be concerning to numerous other nonprofits, which are dependent on federal dollars.

Also in Springfield, the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Westcott House has received federal funds for programming in recent years, with awards exceeding $200,000.

Research and federal funding

Further south, the Cincinnati Zoo in 2024 was awarded a $693,669 grant for a three-year study of breeding success among cats housed at the zoo. Most cat populations in the wild are declining, and the project aims to boost the sustainability of big cat collections at North American zoos.

“The IMLS grants have played a crucial role in helping us innovate and push the boundaries of science and engagement and better serve our communities,” said Michelle Curley, communications director at the Cincinnati Zoo.

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Over the past 30 years, the Cincinnati Zoo has been awarded dozens of grants through IMLS to support work at the Lindner Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife, or CREW. With IMLS funds, CREW scientists developed a technology that stores matter like tissues of endangered animals and plants or even embryos in liquid nitrogen for preservation, according to zoo officials.

“We are committed to continuing the great work that we do and depend on support from agencies like IMLS,” Curley said. “Cuts to IMLS will reduce access to funds that would allow us to continue advancing science and building out innovative programs.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.