The Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program focuses on recruiting, educating, and retaining the next generation of library and archives professionals. 

Under the Laura Buch 21st Century Librarian Program Grant, the UCR Library will participate in a three-year Joint Professional Development Institute (JPDI) with the University Libraries at Virginia Tech, the University of North Texas, the University of Colorado Boulder, and Los Alamos National Lab Research Library. 

Zhiwu Xie, the UCR Library’s Assistant University Librarian for Research & Technology, will spearhead the PDI, which will offer participants three levels that cater to the diverse needs of the library workforce at different points in their careers.

• Level 1: Library professionals will attend a series of free online training and mentoring events.
• Level 2: Participants will be offered seed funding to support involvement in collaborative research projects.
• Level 3: Six fellows will be allowed three months to conduct focused research and produce scholarly work.