Library Aid To Be Distributed to Area Schools

Public school districts throughout the state will share $37.7 million in library aid, which will be paid April 25 from the Common School Fund, the only state funding specifically designated for the purchase of materials for school libraries.

Aid is based on the number of children between the ages of 4 and 20 living in each of the state’s 424 school districts. This year’s school library aid payment will be $31.78 (rounded) per child for 1,186,272 children counted in the 2014‑15 school census. Funding is up $2.2 million from last year. The per child payment represents an increase of about $2.72 per child from the 2014‑15 school year. Districts must use Common School Fund library aid by June 30 for the purchase of print, digital and technology resources that are housed with the school library program and accessible to all students in the school.

“Common School Fund aid is a major source, and sometimes the only source, of revenue for library services in our public schools,” said State Superintendent Tony Evers.

Below is the amount area school districts will receive:

• Algoma, K-12, 1,014 students, $32,335
• Gibraltar, K-12, 790 students, $25,106
• Kewaunee, K-12, 1,353, $42,999
• Luxemburg-Casco, K-12, 2,662 students, $84,599
• Sevastopol, K-12, 783 students, $24,884
• Southern Door, K-12, 1,476 students, $46,908
• Washington Island, K-12, 92 students, $2,924