Winners of 2010 ASCLA achievement, innovation awards announced

For Immediate Release
Tue, 06/08/2010

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CHICAGO—The Association for Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA) has selected its winners for its 2010 awards.

In addition to the Francis Joseph Campbell Award and the ASCLA Century Scholarship—both of which are housed under the Libraries Serving Special Populations Section (LSSPS) of ASCLA—the division also offers the Exceptional Service Award, the Cathleen Bourdon Service Award and the ASCLA/KLAS/NOD award. This last award is sponsored by Keystone Systems and the National Organization on Disability (NOD).

The 2010 Exceptional Service Award is presented to Barbara T. Mates, who recently retired from her position as head of the Cleveland Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. This award recognizes exceptional service to patients in a medical facility, to persons who are homebound, to inmates, to older adults and to adults with a physical or mental disability who live in group homes or residences, as well as to recognize professional leadership, effective interpretation of programs, pioneering activity and significant research. As an active member of ALA, ASCLA and the Libraries Serving Special Populations Section (LSSPS) of the division since 1976, Mates distinguished herself as a passionate, outspoken advocate for persons with disabilities and for those who are aging.  Her leadership and advocacy have significantly improved not only library services for people with disabilities, but also the accessibility of conference and other services provided by the American Library Association to its members. She has also left a mark on the profession through her collaboration with colleagues in the national Network of Libraries for Blind and Physically Handicapped and at the Library of Congress to advance service improvements, as well as her contributions to published guides and tools for library staff to use in delivering accessible services to library users.

Jerry Krois, recently retired from the Wyoming State Library after 31 years of service—most recently as the Deputy State Librarian—is the 2010 recipient of the Cathleen Bourdon Service Award. This honor is presented to an ASCLA personal member for exceptional service and sustained leadership to the division. Krois has long been an active member of ALA and ASCLA and has served in a variety of capacities, including division president, chapter council for the Wyoming chapter of ALA, president of the Wyoming Library Association and currently as a director-at-large on the ASCLA Board of Directors. In these leadership roles, he has contributed exciting ideas for division programming, has cultivated relationships with partnering organizations and enriched the division with the creation of resources such as the “LSTA Success Stories” web resource. He is now serving as the Director of the Eaton (Colo.) Public Library.

The Resource Library of the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities (WIND) is the winner of the 2010 ASCLA/KLAS/NOD Award for its project “Disability Etiquette Infusion Units: Changing Attitudinal Barriers at University of Wyoming.” Winners are honored for innovative and well organized projects that have successfully developed or expanded library services for people with disabilities. As Wyoming’s University Center for Excellence in Disabilities (UCEDD), part of a national network of UCEDDS, WIND envisions “a Wyoming where all people can participate in everyday community life.” Changing attitudinal barriers toward people with disabilities in society is an important goal toward achieving that quality of life. Through this project, WIND had a positive impact on more than 850 students’ attitudes towards those with disabilities. More information is available at the WIND Library website: http://www.uwyo.edu/wind/library/.

This year’s winners will be honored during the ASCLA/COSLA reception, which is scheduled for 8-10 p.m., Sunday, June 27, in the Bridge Rooms of the Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H. Street NW, Washington, D.C. The awards portion of the evening will begin at 8:30. All conference participants are welcome to attend.

ASCLA, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), is a diverse organization of librarians and support staff who work in academic and public libraries, state agencies, specialized libraries and multi-type cooperatives, as well as those who are self-employed. Not an ASCLA member, but interested in discounted registration rates on conference, ASCLA preconferences and other ASCLA events? Join, renew or add ASCLA to your ALA membership at www.ala.org/membership.