3M/NMRT Professional Development Grant Awarded to Three Individuals

Natalie Traylor Clewell, Julie Kane and Jessica Hernandez have been selected as the 2011 recipients of the 3M/ NMRT Professional Development Grant. This grant, sponsored by 3M Library Systems, covers round-trip airfare, lodging and conference registration fees for attendance at the American Library Association Annual Conference.

Natalie Traylor Clewell is currently the Douglas Campus librarian at West Georgia Technical College; however, she is transitioning to a new position as the ELI Librarian for Northern Virginia Community College. In this position she will be working with the college’s distance learning program. Natalie obtained her M.S. in Information Sciences from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2007. She is a member of the NMRT Nominating Committee and Shirley Olofson Award Committee, and also serves as the vice-chair for the Georgia Library Association chapter of NMRT. While attending the ALA conference, Natalie plans to explore new practices in reaching distance learners through library services and to interact with colleagues from across the country.

Julie Kane is the Head of Technical Services at Sweet Briar College in Sweet Briar, Virginia. She received her M.S. in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in 1998 and has been active in ALA since 2007. Julie is currently the Networking Director for NMRT, a member of the ALCTS Program Planning Committee, the ALCTS representative to the ALA Conference Planning Coordinating Team, and an ACRL Legislative Advocate. She is a monthly columnist for Library Journal's BookSmack! newsletter, reviewing memoirs. While attending the ALA Annual Conference, Julie hopes to connect with colleagues across the profession, contribute to the development of NMRT, and explore innovation in leadership. 

Jessica Hernandez is a Librarian at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Biosciences Library in Silver Spring, Maryland. She obtained her MLS from the University of Arizona's Knowledge River Program in 2009, and is currently pursuing a MS in Educational Technology. Jessica is a 2010 ALA Emerging Leader, and a member of NMRT, REFORMA, and FAFLRT. While attending the ALA Annual Conference, she will go to sessions related to library instruction and technology. Jessica looks forward to sharing ideas with her colleagues at FDA, and the greater federal library community.

3M Library Systems markets materials flow management products to libraries to prevent unauthorized borrowing and to streamline the flow of library materials. Since its inception, over 100 NMRT members have benefited from this grant. The committee would like to congratulate the recipients of the 3M/ NMRT Professional Development Grant as well as thank 3M for its continued support of NMRT and its programs.

Further information about the 3M/ NMRT Professional Development Grant, including award criteria and a list of past recipients, is available at  http://www.ala.org/ala/nmrt/applyforfunds/applyfunds.htm