Washington State Library’s Tabletop Gaming Program Awarded $249,500 National Leadership Grant

The Washington State Library, in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s Wisconsin State Library Agency, has been awarded a $249,500 National Leadership Grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for developing games-based library services. 

The Washington State Library’s “Empowering & Innovating Games-based Library Services: National Best Practices for Gaming Collections & Programming” project will span three years and will include collaboration with partners like the Seattle nonprofit Game to Grow, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Olympia gaming studio and workshop Heart of the Deernicorn. The partnership will develop and disseminate a digital toolkit to guide libraries in implementing games-based services.

“This is an exciting opportunity for library patrons across our state to engage with a broad range of games-based activities,” Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs said. “The work funded by this grant program will create a blueprint for activating tabletop gaming spaces in public libraries that can be used nationwide.”

Washington State Librarian Sara Jones echoed this sentiment.

“We are so thankful for the support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services,” Jones said. “This project will provide libraries with recommendations for equitable and accessible games-based services that will greatly benefit the community.”

This project builds on an ongoing initiative by the Washington State Library to support tabletop role-playing games in public, tribal, and community college libraries. This year, WSL awarded 52 grants to Washington libraries to implement or enhance tabletop role-playing game programs. In March, Wizards of the Coast donated 75 Dungeons & Dragons box sets to the Washington State Library to provide every library system and institutional library in the state with a free gaming kit for patron use. Seattle-based game company Break from Reality Games donated grip mats for distribution to Washington libraries.