ALSC announces Bound to Stay Bound Books and Melcher Scholarship winners
Contact: Linda Mays
312-280-1398
lmays@ala.org
ALA News Release
For Immediate Release
August 2001
ALSC announces Bound to Stay Bound Books and Melcher Scholarship winners
The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), has announced the 2001 recipients of the Frederic G. Melcher and Bound to Stay Bound Books Scholarships.
Rachael L. Bohn of Mountain Grove, Mo., and Angela Joyce Grandstaff of Westerville, Ohio, are the recipients of the Melcher Scholarship. Each winner receives $6,000 from ALSC, made possible by contributions received in memory of Frederic G. Melcher.
Rebecca Ruth Borup of South Jordan, Utah; Jennifer Ann Reichert of Seattle; and Gwendolyn Yarborough Smith of Arab, Ala., are the Bound to Stay Bound Books Scholarship winners. Each winner receives $6,000, made possible through a generous contribution from Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc., of Jacksonville, Ill.
Bohn works at the Joplin Public Library as a children's librarian assistant where she provides reference help using both print and electronic sources, as well as assisting with bilingual story time and teen programs. Her goal is to become a children's librarian so she can help children "discover books and use their imaginations." Bohn will attend the University of Washington in Seattle.
Grandstaff recently graduated with a degree in English literature from Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio. During her senior year she completed an internship at both her school and local public libraries, where she assisted in children's programming, as well as researched children's literature and purchased new material for the collection. Her goal is to work in a public library system in youth services, "combining my love for children and my love for literature." Grandstaff will attend Kent State University in Ohio.
Borup, a kindergarten teacher, will combine her passions for education and library science. Two of her goals are to heighten children's awareness of all the resources that libraries can provide to them, and "to bring books to life for children." Borup will attend the University of South Carolina.
Reichert works in a homeless shelter and transitional housing program as a youth advocate, reaching at-risk young children and teens. Her goal is to be an information manager who works with children from diverse backgrounds "because libraries give everyone access to information and learning." Reichert will attend the University of Washington in Seattle.
Smith is the circulation desk clerk and children's librarian at the Guntersville (Ala.) Public Library, where she is responsible for story times and the summer reading program. She has begun integrating foreign language instruction into the story times. Her goal is to be the library's first full-time children's librarian and "continue to introduce children to literature and new languages." Smith will attend the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
The scholarships are awarded annually to students who plan to enter ALA-accredited programs, obtain a master's degree in library science and specialize in library service to children. Applicants must be United States or Canadian citizens. Recipients are expected to become members of ALA and are required to accept a position in the field of library service to children for at least one year following graduation.
Members of the scholarship committee were very impressed with the caliber of applicants. "Each and every recipient is quite excited to receive the scholarship and to be embarking on a career in children's librarianship," committee chair Tina Hubert said.
In addition to Tina Hubert of the Illinois State Library in Springfield, committee members are: Elizabeth Huntoon, Chicago Public Library; Melissa Yurechko, Hartford (Conn.) Public Library; and Grace Shanahan, Brooklyn (N.Y.) Public Library.
Applications for the 2002 scholarships will be available on the ALA Web site in mid-October; or send a postcard to ALSC, American Library Association, 50 East Huron Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611; or send e-mail to
lmays@ala.org.
