S1: Welcome in San Diego , it's Jade Hindman. On today's show , we'll talk to local libraries and museums as they prepare for federal funding cuts. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. In March , President Donald Trump signed an executive order to cut funding for libraries and museums across the country. The order seeks to minimize the Institute for Museum and Library Services , otherwise known as the Imls. The agency provides federal grants to libraries and museums. Well , last week , the Imls placed its entire staff on administrative leave for up to 90 days. On Friday , California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined a coalition of 21 attorneys filing a lawsuit challenging the executive order. Library and museum leaders in San Diego are also preparing for local impacts. Midday edition producer Andrew Brackin sat down with some of them to talk about it , and listeners should note the following conversation was recorded last Wednesday , April 2nd.
S2: San Diego's public library systems primarily funded by the city but also relies on federal , state and philanthropic money in its budget. The San Diego Library Foundation is one of their supporters. CEO Patrick Stewart joins me now. Patrick , welcome back to Midday Edition.
S3: Thank you very much.
S2: Also joining me is Jessica Hanson York. She's the executive director and CEO of Ming International Museum in Balboa Park , as well as the chair of the Balboa Park Cultural Partnership. Jessica , welcome. Thanks.
S4: Thanks. Great to be here.
S2: So , Patrick , before I get your reactions to these latest funding cuts , I'm wondering if you can explain what the Institute for Museum and library services is and how it functions.
S3: So the Imls was formed in the mid 90s. Congress formed it so that it would be a standalone department. So it's not a part of the Department of Education. It's not a part of the NEA , NEA , it's a standalone organization that distributes funds , federal funds to states and then allows those states to distribute funds directly to libraries and museums , cultural organizations. It also allows primarily a lot of cultural organizations to apply directly to the Imls for specific funding for cultural programs , especially diverse programs that reach far and wide , you know , audiences and , uh , you know , allows , uh , museums to create opportunities for their diverse population to be able to see themselves in museums. And it allows libraries , particularly Smaller libraries. It's a lifeline to keeping their doors open. And then larger libraries , such as the San Diego Public Library System , were able to tap into that federal and state funding to be able to launch and pilot new programs and and again , allowing museum directors and library directors to see exactly what's going on in their communities , being able to adapt to the needs of their communities and create programming specifically for them. This this imls has been has been crucial for the last 30 years , being able to , you know , tap into that federal and state funding.
S2: So that funding builds these programs that you spoke about. And Jessica , you work , you know , in this museum space at the MinGW and your role at Balboa Park.
S4: You know , I would say just at MinGW at the museum that that I lead Imls funding in the last few years has helped MinGW to build its digital infrastructure and deliver programming for at risk youth and isolated seniors. Uh , MinGW does not have a current Imls grant. Uh , which is is good for us , but we have so many colleagues at other museums and cultural organizations here in San Diego who are , you know , are seeing their projects mid grant come to a halt. Um , Imls was funding some really important , um , digitization projects. You know , archive and collection digitization at the net , San Diego's Natural history museum , the La Jolla History Center. They've been supporting really important programming related to decolonizing initiatives at the Museum of Us supporting. I think the school library and programs at the Corona Cultural Center and Museum. So this has really had an impact at institutions around the region.
S2: So , Patrick , I want to circle back to , you know , what we're seeing with these cuts.
S3: You know , I think , you know , we've quickly we've quickly been able to , you know , mobilize some communications around what this means is Jessica just mentioned , you know , there are grants that are currently in play here in the region for the San Diego Public Library , for example , in the last three years , we've received roughly about $400,000 in Imls funding. That's allowed , you know , libraries to start homework resource centers , uh , tutoring centers , um , entrepreneur centers , helping , uh , college bound young people to connect to digital assets and technology , this kind of thing. Uh , we we have purposefully recently not gone after , uh , some imls funding or some some federal funding , simply because of the uncertainty of where the program was at. And but the thing , you know , one of the things that we've realized is that we've been able to leverage the Imls funding , leverage state funding that comes through their Grants to States program to allow the library to scale the programs that are really , really impactful and valuable. So that is that's going to be a big loss that we have. Imls , I should say. It operates on roughly $280 million. So it is it is a small , small drop in the federal budget. We're not saving a lot of money by getting rid of Imls. What we're doing , at least here locally , is where we're eliminating the opportunity to leverage that money , to get more money to be able to build these programs.
S2: Jessica Patrick mentioned their uncertainty , and that seems to be just a common theme we're hearing all across the board with proposed cuts is just the lack of knowing exactly what will happen , right ? A lot of these are proposed cuts or efforts kind of underway.
S4: And , you know , unfortunately , it's it's not just imls at this point. You know , Imls , I think has always been a little more under the radar to the general public , but it actually has a larger budget than the National Endowment for the Arts or the National Endowment for the Humanities. Unfortunately , we're seeing both of those agencies also face an uncertain future. Um , we're really looking at at the full menu , at least from the arts and culture perspective of potential federal federal funding sources. And I know for our friends at science museums and natural history museums and zoos , there was also some National Science Foundation money that's now at risk and some other agencies supporting their work at the federal level. So , you know , this is really building to an extremely uncertain environment. And it's absolutely putting programs that are in progress at organizations all across our community at risk. This will impact our audiences and it will impact people in our region.
S2: And , you know , libraries are much more than just a place to grab a book. I mean , I've seen and I've gone to like , played video games at libraries. I mean , there's so many different things there. Can you talk more about what types of programs are really at risk with this funding ? Sure.
S3: The you know , so , for example , from the young family that comes in and just starts using the library and starts , you know , making a connection to library services and the young , young parents who are being taught how to create a literacy centric home so that their child is ready for kindergarten. Uh , to , like I said , the programs that are designed to connect a high schooler to software and computer design programs so that they are getting certificates and they're there , they're ready to apply for college or go out into the workforce to the young entrepreneur who just is using the library for patent and trademark , you know , resources , corporation formation , business planning , market development , you know , analysis , all of this kind of thing. And then also just , you know , simply , you know , to the to the family that comes to the library for the arts and culture programs. And , you know , one of the things that we do that we're really excited about this year , we have the Art of Allen , uh , Chamber Music Group come in once a month and perform for free. And you just come in and just , you know , participate in something that is , you know , really culturally connecting you to your community. All of these things are affected by funding. And , you know , I should mention as well that Jessica and I were talking about this a little bit earlier. This is a bit of a double whammy. Not only are we losing state and federal funding , but our city government is , you know , facing , of course , as we know , a $258 million deficit that will absolutely affect the ability for Jessica's , uh , organization and the library to be able to function at full , full speed.
S2: And , Jessica , you know , like libraries , museums are another way for lifelong learning.
S4: We have a very well used art reference library. But , you know , much more broadly , I think every museum and and cultural Organization in San Diego is a real partner to schools. We have thousands and thousands of kids who come in for free school tours all year long. We are a partner to educators. We provide curriculum. MinGW is one of a few museums in the park that actually hosts , um , kids from a couple of schools in City Heights through the school in the Park program , and they they go to school at MinGW for a week at a time. And , do you know , standards based arts curriculum that is really inspiring and gets them out of the traditional classroom environment to do something creative and learn more creatively ? Uh , so many arts organizations are serving seniors with specific programs. We're paying artists. MinGW pays scores of artists every year. We purchase their work. We pay them to run workshops and do lectures. So , you know , there's this impact that radiates out into our community through education and lifelong learning. And there's an impact that radiates , radiates out through the economy as well. And again , I know that there are people paying artists and other creative contributors and experts in their field to be part of that education and part of the programming and the exhibition planning at their institutions. So , you know , it's it's not just the people who are in the museum every day , working in the museum every day who are going to feel this kind of a cut. And the real compounding impact of loss of federal funding , state funding and potentially city support.
S1: Still ahead , the consequences of limiting access to information.
S3: It's a really Unfortunate way to just completely disconnect most of us from our communities and our communities , locally and in our community at large.
S1: KPBS Midday Edition is back after the break. Welcome back to KPBS Midday Edition. I'm Jade Hindman. On the show today , we're talking about how libraries and museums in San Diego are under pressure amid threats to federal funding. Midday edition producer Andrew Bracken sat down with Patrick Stewart , CEO of the San Diego Library Foundation , and also Jessica Hansen York. She is the executive director and CEO of Minga International Museum in Balboa Park , and chair of the Balboa Park Cultural Partnership. Here's the rest of their conversation.
S2: Patrick San Diego's public library system is pretty robust , but not all library systems have a variety of funding they might rely more heavily on Imls funding.
S3: Like I was saying , you know , a large library system like San Diego Public Library , we will use the Imls funding so that librarians can innovate , create , pilot new programs , be responsive to the community needs. Uh , very often for these smaller rural community libraries , uh , one branch library , two branch library systems all across the country. Uh , this will this could mean you're staying open or not. This is this is going to mean you're open seven days a week. Five days a week or three days a week. This means , uh , you will lose your children's librarian that does all of the children and family programming. Uh , this could mean that you're losing your cultural programmer. The one that works with your cultural community to provide those kinds of services. This could simply also mean that you're closing your doors. which is something that we're we're really concerned about. And it's all it's all of this is happening so fast. I was I was in Washington , D.C. , a couple of weeks ago with a group led by our state librarian , Greg Lucas , to advocate for support for Imls. And then and then the 14th , the executive order came down , uh , to minimize Imls and then over the weekend to all but eliminate imls. And it's happening so fast. These libraries are are unfortunately probably not going to be able to keep up with how quickly all of this is moving and are very , very quickly going to have to reimagine what it is that it's providing it's community.
S2: And , Jessica , you know , same question to you here. But from , you know , museums , what about smaller or more rural communities and the museums ? What what could budget cuts mean for their programming ? Yeah.
S4: You know , Imls in particular was such a critical funder for rural institutions. I mean , in every state in the nation , there are over 30,000 museums in the United States , and California has the largest number of museums in the country. There are 3000 museums here in California. You know , we're familiar with with manga and all of the museums , you know , in the cultural district in Balboa Park. But all over this state , there are really important community hubs , museums that are reflecting their particular community , reflecting a tradition , a culture , a way of life in their corner of the state. And those are the museums that for whom a government grant can really make or break their programming. To Patrick's point. And it can really , you know , determine whether they're able to stay open and keep delivering on their mission to the people that they serve.
S2: So zooming out a bit here , I mean , these cuts are part of a larger push. This is not just happening in libraries and museums , right ? We're seeing it in public media , um , VA national parks. Just a few examples.
S3: Um , you know , with what is being , uh , cut , uh , with what ? The economic efficiency , the financial efficiency that they're couching these cuts with ? Um , it feels incredibly punitive. And it also feels as though there is a a concerted effort on behalf of the administration to ensure that ensure that the American citizens don't have access to education. And , you know , when you when you take a look at , you know , access to , you know , what's happening with colleges and universities , what's happening with research institutions , what's happening , you know , even , you know , the VA is , is is a major research institution that serves , you know , so many people what's happening in health care , what's happening in other cultural sectors. There is a there is a sense of of just pulling the plug on the connection that we have to not only one another , but the tools that we have to strengthen our communities and to strengthen , you know , our nation as a whole.
S2: And , Jessica , what do these cuts mean for , you know , having education that's really accessible ? Yeah.
S4: I mean , again , we you know , we know our public schools are are pretty underfunded. And museums and other arts organizations have been supplementing and supporting arts education for decades and generally getting that work funded by the government , by private philanthropy , by foundations. So there's a real interdependence and a really important ecosystem , and libraries are part of that too. That's come together to , I think , really scaffold the educational experience , particularly in our public schools and for lifelong learners. You know , museums in particular and libraries. Such an important resource. And I think when we see funding being cut to the institutions that are providing knowledge , are our places for creative expression , are places for the exchange of ideas. It does feel punitive. I think that's a great word. And , you know , these are also community gathering spaces. People are thinking about the ideas. They're gathering knowledge. They're having these educational and creative experiences in community. And that is such an important part of what's happening when you can walk into a library free of charge. You can walk into so many museums , including MinGW , on certain days or , you know , if you're under 18. Free of charge. And and to have an experience that is accessible and available to you. You know , I also think that we are we are clearly at this moment in our country , um , you know , losing faith in institutions. But it is a fact that museums and libraries are among the most trusted institutions in America. Millions and millions of people trust museums and libraries. They access museums and libraries. So that tells me museums and libraries have been doing their job really effectively. So it does make you wonder why undermine that work that's important to so many Americans.
S2: So , Patrick , White House officials have said that the restructuring of federal agencies like the Imls is part of President Trump's efforts to do away with a lot of these Dei initiatives , or what he calls anti-American programming.
S3: I think that that is a brutal way to say America is for one. Population at the expense of all of the rest of us. I think that that is a brutal way to minimize and dehumanize a whole groups of people. And I think it's a it is a brutal way to say to a particularly young people , you don't matter , right ? Young people that come from diverse backgrounds , the LGBTQ plus community. It's a it's an easy way to say you don't matter. We're going to pull the plug on what connects you to not only the rest of the community , but your community itself. Um , when this when the initial executive order came out and they said that they were going to defund it to the congressionally mandated minimum , the first thing that I did is I went on to the Imls appropriation request from last year and to see exactly what was going to be eliminated. And you can tell you can you can see it right away. The American African American Museum services , American Latino Museum services , Native American and Native Hawaiian museum and library services. You know , things that are culturally representative of those of those communities. Um , things that I guess the current administration would consider Dei uh , any diversity programs that are created in cultural institutions , schools and libraries are on the chopping block. And so , you know , it's a it's a really unfortunate way to just completely disconnect most of us from our communities and our communities locally and in our community at large. It's a really it's a really unfortunate thing to say to people , especially young people. Jessica.
S2: Jessica. I want to get your thoughts on that effort , too. And you know how museums fit into it.
S4: Well , I absolutely agree with everything Patrick said. Well said. You know , I would just add honestly a logistical layer to that. What even is the DEA ? We're not supposed to be doing if we are reflecting , if we are showing objects or programs in our museum space that are reflective of the community that we sit in. Is that Dei if we're showing the work of an artist who is inspired by their lived experience in a culture , in a place. Is that DEA ? If we're making our programs accessible to the widest possible audience ? Is that somehow breaking a , you know , anti DEA executive order ? All of this is so vague and unknown. And , you know , I think therefore really unfair to the institutions who are just trying to meet the needs of the community , as is our mandate. So , you know , there's the really , I think , cruel part of it. And then there's just the very kind of vague and I think intentionally obtuse part of it. That , again , adds to the uncertainty that we're all feeling.
S2: Patrick , we've been , you know , covering these challenges you've been outlining here that are that are real and significant. Right. I'm wondering , though , if we can kind of end on a little bit of a brighter note.
S3: People are really connecting with what is happening in arts and culture and , uh , library spaces. They're taking much more of an interest. And I think that they're that they're not happy with what's happening. And , uh , and what this is going to mean to their communities. People are really taking notice and they're asking , how can we help ? And , uh , and I find , I find that to be that is a very uplifting thing. And people are walking into libraries and I'm sure they're walking into cultural spaces as well , saying , thank you. Thank you for what you're doing. You're making a difference in our lives. You're making a difference in our community. And , uh , I know for a fact librarians are hearing that. And , uh , and I think that swift reaction to everything that's going on in opposition to these decisions has , is certainly been an uplifting , uplifting experience.
S2:
S4: Our school tours are booked up , our programs are selling out , our admissions are strong , and I know the story is the same at many museums across San Diego , and museums have traditionally been and will continue to be , you know , spaces that are open to everyone. And and I think it's they're gathering places where people can gain a deeper understanding of the broader world and of each other. And I think our mission to provide that to our community and our broader public just gives me hope for how we continue to engage in democracy and continue to support each other in this community that we're all part of. We need to keep our doors open. We need to keep , you know , Great art and good ideas and interesting science. All of that in in front of people. Uh , that continued inspiration , that continued engagement is , is what gives me hope moving forward.
S1: That was Midday Edition's Andrew Brackin speaking with Patrick Stewart , CEO of the San Diego Library Foundation , and Jessica Hansen York. She's the executive director and CEO of Minga International Museum in Balboa Park and chair of the Balboa Park Cultural Partnership. That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.
