Scholarships & Fellowships

Melcher Scholarship | Bound to Stay Bound Scholarship | Spectrum Scholarship | ALSC Equity Fellowship

The Frederic G. Melcher Scholarship

The Frederic G. Melcher Scholarship provides financial assistance for the professional education of those who intend to pursue an MLS degree and who plan to work in children's librarianship. This work may be serving children up to and including the age of 14 in any type of library. Up to two scholarships are awarded annually. Effective with the 2019-2020 award year, the scholarship amount is $8,000 per scholarship. The scholarship is made possible by ALSC through generous contributions from librarians, professional associates, friends, and others in the book world, as tribute to Frederic G. Melcher, who was a leader in promoting better books for children.

Congratulations to the 2025-2026 Frederic G. Melcher Scholarship recipients!

• Legna Rios, attending Dominican University, Illinois
• Yasmin Teja, attending University of South Florida

This scholarship is offered through ALA's Scholarship Program. For more information, including specifications and requirements, please visit ALA's Scholarships Program homepage.

ALSC's Professional Recognition and Scholarships Committee Manual includes further information about applications and rubrics for this award.

The Bound to Stay Bound Books Scholarship

The Bound to Stay Bound Books (BTSB) Scholarship provides financial assistance in the form of four $8,000 annual awards for the education of individuals who intend to pursue an MLS or advanced degree and who plan to work in the area of library service to children. This work may be serving children up to and including the age of 14 in any type library. The Scholarship is made possible by the ALSC through the generous contributions of Bound to Stay Bound Books, Incorporated.

Special thanks go to the Bound to Stay Bound Books foundation, which has encouraged the professional development of Children's librarians through this scholarship since 1985. The 30th anniversary of the scholarship was in 2015, click here to read the commemorative Children and Libraries article featuring past recipients!

Congratulations to the 2025-2026 BTSB Scholarship recipients!

• Allison Alcena, attending University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Ruadhan Hettrich, attending Rutgers University, New Jersey
• Haley Neil, attending University at Buffalo, New York
• Amber O'Brien-VerHulst, attending San Jose State University, California

ALSC Spectrum Scholarship

*ALSC acknowledges and thanks Ellen Fader for her generous donation to the Spectrum Scholarship for the ninth consecutive year. Her contribution will support a student through the 2022-2023 school term.

In 2010, ALSC expanded its commitment to the Spectrum Scholarship Program through annual support of a Spectrum Scholar. Beginning with the 2022-2023 award year, ALSC will sponsor three Spectrum Scholars each year through the Frederic G. Melcher Endowment. The ALSC Spectrum Scholar is awarded to a Spectrum applicant who expresses an interest in library service to children. Since its founding, Spectrum has provided more than 600 scholarships to qualified applicants enrolled in an ALA-accredited graduate program in library and information studies or an ALA-recognized NCATE School Library Media program.

For more information on this scholarship, please visit the Spectrum Scholarship site.

ALSC Equity Fellowship

Currently on Pause

Through the ALSC Equity Fellowship program, ALSC affirms its commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion by engaging new generations of racially and ethnically diverse library professionals.

Five ALSC fellowships were awarded to American Indian/Alaska Native/First Nations, Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Middle Eastern, and/or Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander individuals who commit to service within ALSC and demonstrate a capacity for future leadership. Fellowship recipients will recieve funding for two-year ALSC and ALA memberships and one year of conference registrations and travel stipends, if applicable, for ALA Midwinter Meeting and ALA Annual Conference. Fellowship recipients will also receive mentorship from members of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion within ALSC task force.

ALSC would also like to thank members of Storytime Underground for their generous contribution to support the work of the Equity Fellowship program.

ALA's main Scholarship page with further information and the live application.

ALSC Scholarship Committee procedural manual (MS Word)

ALSC Scholarship committee procedural manual (PDF)

Questions regarding applications may be sent by e-mail to Gavin Damore

Completed applications are due March 1 of each year.

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