Historically, farm families knew to save a portion of each harvest as seed for the next year. This “seed corn,” as it came to be known, ensured future harvests. Eating it provided a short-term benefit but guaranteed eventual failure.
That is what’s happening in Washington today: We are eating our seed corn.
President Donald Trump is closing the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Two-thirds of IMLS’s $266 million budget is distributed to state library agencies, which then award grants across their states, often to small, rural libraries.
For Missouri residents, this will harm children, families, adults — everyone who relies on libraries for education, employment or personal enrichment.
I served on the Missouri Secretary of State’s Council on Library Development from 2014 to 2022. One of our responsibilities was to review the distribution of IMLS funds — known as Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grants.
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I saw firsthand how carefully the Missouri State Librarian distributed these funds. The smallest libraries received the most support — often located in rural communities that struggled to fund basic services. The grants supported essential technology tools, early childhood literacy programs, and staff development.
In many rural counties, the local library is the only place with reliable internet access, and they rely on LSTA funds to provide it. These same funds supported summer reading and early literacy initiatives, laying the groundwork for lifelong learning. The State Librarian set strategic goals, publicized the availability of funds, and ensured libraries were accountable for their work.
Grants also funded the digitization of overlooked collections, such as bygone rural newspapers and local history materials. These were added to the Missouri Digital Heritage collection, expanding access and ensuring long-term preservation.
Without libraries, the collection and dissemination of information fall to commercial platforms like Facebook and TikTok, where entertainment outweighs education. Public libraries receiving state aid (passed through from LSTA) must certify the use of internet filters to block pornographic content. Libraries are local learning resources with thoughtfully curated collections. Without them, we leave our education — and our children’s — to whatever turns a profit.
Public libraries are an American invention and one of our greatest ideas. Regardless of who you are or your education level, you can visit a library (in person or online) to read for pleasure, learn something new, develop a skill or research a business idea.
The seed corn that libraries provide is foundational: books, newspapers, magazines, movies, music, and a community of learners. Libraries offer this to children and adults alike.
LSTA is vital to that mission. Seed corn may look like a small part of this year’s harvest, but it represents the entirety of next year’s. By eliminating IMLS and its support for local libraries, we’re cutting off our future harvest of informed, capable citizens.
