ASCLA 2002 Award Recipients
ASCLA Exceptional Service Award
Michael Gunde, bureau chief, Florida Department of Education, Division of Blind Services, Bureau of Braille and Talking Book Library Services, is the 2002 recipient of the ASCLA Exceptional Service Award presented by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA).
The ASCLA Exceptional Service Award is a citation presented to recognize exceptional service to patients, to the homebound, to medical, nursing, and other professional staff in hospitals, and to inmates, as well as to recognize professional leadership, effective interpretation of programs, pioneering activity, and significant research.
“He has the staff’s complete admiration and respect for his advocacy on behalf of persons with disabilities, professionalism and leadership, intelligence and energy, and his very unique combination of innovation and practicality,” stated Jan Walsh, ASCLA award committee chair. “Mike is known throughout Florida, and in library circles nationally, for his professional service, advocacy, and leadership in promoting compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.”
ASCLA Leadership Achievement Award
Stephen Prine, head of network services, National Library Services for the blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress, is the 2002 recipient of the ASCLA Leadership Achievement Award presented by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). The ASCLA Leadership Achievement Award is a citation presented to recognize leadership and achievement in consulting, multi-type library cooperation, and state library development. The award recognizes sustained activity that has been characterized by professional growth and effectiveness, and has enhanced the status of these areas of activity.
“Steve has been a consultant at the state, regional and national level in several capacities from 1973 to the present,” stated Jan Walsh, ASCLA award committee chair. “While his focus and area of expertise is in serving those with physical and visual challenges, Steve has brought a commitment to both excellence of services provided by libraries and access for all constituencies to those service regardless of their nature. His depth of knowledge gained over decades, combined with an open mind, and commitment to service and applied with his special brand of humor is welcomed around the country in both network locations and state library agencies.”
ASCLA Service Award
Stephen Prine, head of network services, National Library Services for the blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress, Washington, DC, is the 2002 recipient of the ASCLA Service Award, presented by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).
The Service Award is a citation presented to recognize an ASCLA personal member for sustained leadership and exceptional service through participation in activities that have enhanced the stature, reputation, and overall strength of ASCLA as well as representation of ASCLA.
“For over 25 years, Stephen Prine has worked tirelessly for ASCLA,” stated Jan Walsh, ASCLA award committee chair. “He has held numerous positions and acted in a variety of roles, including representation on the Board, the Budget and Finance, Awards, Nominating, Organization and Bylaws, and President’s Program Committees, as well as a number of LSSPS Committees. Stephen is truly a leader whose achievements are many, a worthy selection for this award.”
ASCLA National Organization on Disability Award
Dunellen Public Library Director William M. Robins, Ph.D., demonstrates the ZoomText Xtra 7.0 magnification software installed on the library’s Disabilities Resources Computer to circulation staff member Bridget Ricker.
The Dunellen Public Library, Dunellen, New Jersey, is the 2002 recipient of the ASCLA/National Organization on Disability Award for Library Service for Persons with Disabilities. Donated by the Aetna U. S. Healthcare through the National Organization on Disability, the $1,000 award and certificate is given to a library organization that has provided services for people with disabilities.
“At the Dunellen Public Library, “Our Doors Are Open: Making the Disabled Welcome,” project accomplished exactly what it said,” stated Jim Kirks, ASCLA Award committee chair. “Not only did the library recognize the needs of individuals for assistance, the library involved the community and its expertise to develop resources to meet special needs utilizing the latest technology as well as print and media resources, and public programming.”
The Dunellen Public Library formed an Assistive Technology Committee including library staff, public school personnel, R.O.A.R. (a community organization) and Cerebral Palsy Association of Middlesex County. Through the project, the library sponsored public programs on learning disabilities, provided access to American Sign Language videos, created a print-based disabilities resource collection for families and caregivers of the disabled, and developed a recreation program to make patrons with disabilities feel welcome at the library.
Francis Joseph Campbell Award
Julie Klauber, librarian, Talking Books Plus, Outreach Services, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, New York, is the recipient of the 2002 Francis Joseph Campbell Award given by the Library Service to People with Visual or Physical Disabilities Forum of the Libraries Serving Special Populations Section of the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA). The citation and medal is presented to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of library service for the blind and physically handicapped.
“Julie Klauber created and maintains the newsletter, Disability Resources Monthly (DRM), and the Web site, Disability Resources Monthly Guide to Disability Resources on the Internet, www.disabilityresources.org,” said Ruth Nussbaum, award committee chair. “These current and constantly updated resources are invaluable guides for librarians and the general public. Julie’s boundless energy and devotion to the dissemination of information have made a profound impact on the library services to individuals with blindness or physical impairments.”
On September 3, 2002, Julie Klauber passed away. In a message prepared by Barbara Mates: "Julie's professional life always focused on access for persons with disabilities. Her concern extended beyond her "day job" as Director of the Talking Books Plus library, in Suffolk County, New York. [In addition to the Campbell Award] Julie's work was recognized by the ALA in 1999 when DRM received the ALA/ASCLA/National Organization on Disability Award, which is given to a library or organization that makes strides in creating access for persons with disabilities.
"Her articles on library resources and services for people with disabilities have been published in leading professional publications, including Library Journal, School Library Journal and American Libraries. Her handbook, AIDS Information for People with Disabilities: A Handbook for Information Providers in Libraries, AIDS Organizations, and Disability Organizations, is included in resource collections, bibliographies and databases throughout the world. Her resource guide, When the Print Is Too Small: Resources and Services for Older Adults with Visual Impairments in Suffolk County, won a national award from the American Association of Retired Persons and the U.S. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. "
ASCLA Century Scholarship
Christine Anne Baynes, Minneapolis, Minn., is the 2002 recipient of the Century Scholarship. Baynes has been accepted to the Masters in Library and Information Sciences program at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee.
The independently funded Century Scholarship is a diversity initiative aimed at promoting the American Library Association’s mission of improving service at the local level through the development of a representative workforce that reflects the communities served by all libraries in the new millennium. The Century Scholarship is a $2,500 monetary award given annually to a student or students pursuing a degree in library and information science.
“We look forward to awarding the third Century Scholarship to Christine Baynes, who as a successful library instructor, will be an exemplary role model to encourage individuals with disabilities to become librarians. Baynes, who has a learning disability, teaches library skills to diverse patrons in two urban college libraries where she fills patrons’ unique information needs and enriches her own knowledge of special learning requirements through dialogue with them,” stated Elizabeth Ridler, Century Scholarship Jury Committee Chair.
Ellen Perlow, chair of the Century Scholarship Committee stated, “Christine Baynes, our 2002 Century Scholar, as well as past Century recipients, Rebecca Van Scyoc and Simon Healey, already are the greatest of assets to and ambassadors for, our LIS profession. Our Century Scholars are the finest examples of how people who represent the universal diversity of doing things differently achieve and succeed. Please join us in continuing to promote, strengthen, and expand the Century Scholarship Diversity Recruitment Initiative, so that our profession reflects the diversity of the communities LIS professionals serve."