For immediate release | July 23, 2013

ALSC now accepting applications for 2014 Bechtel Fellowship

CHICAGO — The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Special Collections and Bechtel Fellowship Committee are now accepting online applications for the 2014 Louise Seaman Bechtel Fellowship. The Bechtel Fellowship is designed to allow qualified children’s librarians to spend a total of four weeks or more reading and studying at the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature, a part of the George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida, Gainesville.

The Baldwin Library contains a special collection of 85,000 volumes of children’s literature published mostly before 1950. The fellowship is endowed in memory of Louise Seaman Bechtel and Ruth M. Baldwin and provides a stipend of $4,000.

Each applicant will be judge on the following:

  • The description of the topic of study for the fellowship period.
  • The applicants’ demonstration of ongoing commitment to motivating children to read.
  • The applicants must be prepared to spend a total of four weeks in Gainesville. The time spent does not have to be successive weeks. They can be broken up into two-week increments.

Applicants must be personal members of ALSC, as well as ALA members to apply. Deadline for submissions is Oct. 18, 2013. For more information about the requirements of the fellowship and submitting the online application please visit: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/profawards/bechtel

ALSC, a division of the ALA, is the world’s largest organization dedicated to the support and enhancement of library service to children. With a network of more than 4,000 children’s and youth librarians, literature experts, publishers and educational faculty, ALSC is committed to creating a better future for children through libraries. To learn more about ALSC, visit ALSC’s website at www.ala.org/alsc.

Contact:

Caroline Jewell

Awards Coordinator

Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

cjewell@ala.org