Hello all,

The Entrepreneurship & Libraries Conference (ELC) will be held November 12 and 13 online.  It will be a great opportunity to learn from and network with libraries around the country involved in economic and business development. 

One event being planned as part of ELC is a pitch competition where library staff can win money to bring their ideas to reality.  Please see the details below and consider signing up!

Best,

Andrea

Is your library a player in economic development? Or do you have an idea on how your library could contribute to job creation, entrepreneurship, and nonprofits -- but you could use a little funding to get started?

@ the Table is the inaugural pitch competition of the Entrepreneurship & Libraries Conference (ELC). Libraries will be invited to pitch ideas or initiatives to stakeholders in economic development. Public, school, special, and academic librarians are encouraged to apply. The focus of the pitches is how a library can support local economic development, job creation, workforce development, entrepreneurs, nonprofits, small businesses, or innovation in general.

Submissions should be specific about the target population, the problem addressed,  resources available or needed, and the service provided or value added. Submitters should pretend their audience is local community partners, not fellow librarians.

Five finalists will have up to five minutes to pitch their idea or initiative live and online to a panel of economic development professionals and the ELC 2020 attendees. The first place library will receive $2,000. $500 will be awarded to both the second place winner and the audience choice winner. EBSCO is the generous sponsor of this competition.

Jennifer Hensel at Launch Greensboro will be providing pre-recorded best practices for all contestants, as well as one-on-one consultations with the five finalists before the live pitching takes place.

The competition will take place live online on Thursday, November 12, 2020 at 3pm Eastern. Registration for the ELC will be free.

Apply by: Friday, September 25, 2020 at 5pm Eastern. (https://forms.gle/pC7YjdBdhrfdAmKi7) 

Andrea Simzak Levandowski (she/her/hers)

Library Consultant for Small Business Development & Technology

New Jersey State Library

P.O. Box 520

Trenton, NJ 08625

(609) 278-2640 x190

alevandowski@PROTECTED