Professors Catherine Arnott Smith and Kristin R. Eschenfelder (School of Library and Information Studies) have been awarded a grant for their proposal “Public Libraries as Financial Literacy Providers” by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Financial Security (CFS).
The award is part of the 2010-2011 UW-Madison CFS Financial Literacy Research Consortium Cooperative Agreement with the Social Security Administration.
Arnott Smith and Eschenfelder will explore how local public libraries in Wisconsin can serve the public’s financial literacy needs during this economic downturn.
The results of this study will inform the education of future librarians and the development of library professional continuing education/training materials with the hope of increasing the capacity of libraries to serve the financial literacy needs of their patrons, with specific emphasis on service to patrons from diverse communities, low-income communities, and jobless and/or transient populations.
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