Applications are due by the corresponding due dates: September 1, December 1, March 1, or June 1 at least 60 calendar days prior to the start of the conference or event. Applications submitted 6 months prior to the start of the event will not be awarded.

Continuing Education grants are designed to provide library staff with opportunities to attend regional or national library conferences or continuing education opportunities which fulfill identified professional development needs for the participant and their role in the library.

County, municipal, and all academic libraries will be eligible for:

• up to two (2) CE scholarships per year for in-person learning opportunities; and
• up to five (5) CE scholarships per year for online/virtual learning opportunities.

Regional library systems will be eligible for:

• up to four (4) CE scholarships per year for in-person learning opportunities; and
• up to ten (10) CE scholarships per year for online/virtual learning opportunities.

Participants are limited to one (1) CE scholarship per year. Awards are issued to employing library of the staff person applying.

Special conference scholarships offered by the State Library are not eligible for the Continuing Education Scholarships program. Examples of these special scholarships are the Association of Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) Conference and North Carolina Library Association (NCLA) Conference. The State Library will announce these special scholarship opportunities separately. If you have a question about the eligibility of a conference/learning opportunity, please contact us before applying for a scholarship.

More information can be found on our website.

For applicants requesting in-person attendance: 

• Conference registration costs (The Library of North Carolina will pay conference registration for scholarship recipients),
• Travel expenses (flight, baggage fees, rental car, public transportation), 
• Hotel expenses (hotel for up to 4 nights -- check into hotel on September 16, check out of hotel on September 19). 

  Grant agreements between the Library of North Carolina and the awardees' library will cover hotel, airfare, and travel costs not to exceed $1,500 based upon receipts submitted after the conference. The Library of North Carolina will pay for the registration costs separately and provide a conference registration code for awardees. Registration costs do not count towards the award amount.      All other expenses such as meals and other incidentals are the responsibility of the staff person and/or library. Be aware that no purchases are allowed until all paperwork has been signed and submitted for each awardee. This scholarship is reimbursable through the awarded library. 

For applicants requesting virtual-only attendance: 

• Virtual Conference registration fees (The Library of North Carolina will pay conference registration for scholarship recipients).   

Determining factors in awarding, should available funding not allow for all eligible applications to be awarded, may include prior scholarship award in the previous year, number of applicants from the same library system, and presenting at the conference.