ALA Announces 2015-2016 Diversity Research Grant Recipients

For Immediate Release
Wed, 07/08/2015

Contact:

Gwendolyn Prellwitz

Acting Director

Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services

312-280-5048

gprellwitz@ala.org

CHICAGO — The American Library Association’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services has announced the recipients of the Diversity Research Grants for 2015.

The grants consist of a one-time $2,500 award for original research.  Recipients will conduct their research over the course of the year, are expected to compile the results of their research into a paper and will be asked to present and publish the final product in conjunction with the American Library Association.

The first grant is awarded to Dr. Gregory Bond, PhD.  He completed his MLS in 2014 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison school of library and information studies and works as an archivist and historian at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and at the Wisconsin Historical Society.  His project entitled “‘We Don’t Employ Colored People in the Public Libraries:’ The Baltimore Civil Rights Movement & the Color Line Behind the Desk at the Enoch Pratt Free Library, 1926-1946,” will look at the struggle of African-Americans to train and subsequently be employed in the Enoch Pratt Free Library System in Baltimore, Maryland.  The project will add to the research by examining the long fought struggle for a more inclusive library system and will ultimately provide a digital repository of documents related to the events for future researchers.

The next grant recipients are Aditi Gupta, information services librarian at the University of Victoria Libraries in Victoria, British Columbia, and Sarbijit Kaur Randhawa, Indic librarian at the University of British Columbia.  Their project, “Exploring library perceptions, reading habits and library usage of the South Asian Population in BC,” will provide an understanding of the reading needs and library usage among the growing South East Asian Community in the Metro Vancouver Area and the Capital Regional District of British Columbia. The study will enable public libraries to better serve the needs of immigrant communities through a multitude of services accommodating language, community partnerships, collections, and programming.

The third Diversity Research Grant is awarded to Dr. Win Shih, EdD director of integrated library systems, and Eduardo Tinoco, business librarian both from the University of Southern California.  Their research work on the project “Facilitating the Learning and Academic Performance of Student Veterans” will utilize mixed-methods to examine library services to veteran student populations to understand information needs, library services, and challenges to working with this growing student population.  The research hopes to inform academic libraries, two- and four-year higher education institutions, and relevant governmental agencies on the needs of student veteran populations. 

ALA offers thanks to the Diversity Research Grants Advisory Committee for their work in selecting the 2015 Diversity Research Grant recipients: LaVerne Gray (chair), Eugenia Beh, Rebecca Hankins, Sandra M. Hughes-Hassel, Robin Kear, Thura Reed Mack, Cristina Dominguez Ramirez, Ingrid Ruffin, and EunYoung Yoo-Lee. 

The Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services drives activities around three professional issues which collectively support equity and inclusion as fundamental values of the association.  Relationships and major initiatives undertaken by the Office across these three issues help ensure the inclusion of diverse perspectives within the profession and association to best position ALA as a trusted, leading advocate for equitable access to library services for all. For more information please visit http://www.ala.org/diversity.