AASL to again select schools to receive 3M detection systems
Contact: Keidra Chaney
312-280-4381
For Immediate Release
December 19, 2002
AASL to again select schools to receive 3M detection systems
For the fourth consecutive year, 3M™, in cooperation with the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), will donate $1.5 million in 3M Detection Systems to approximately 100 middle and high school library media centers in the United States in 2003 through the 3M Salute to Schools program.
Applications must be postmarked by March 1, 2003.
3M will provide up to two 3M Detection Systems for the entrance/exit of library media centers and a supply of Tattle-Tape Security Strips for marking print material (i.e., books)-a package with an average value of about $15,000.
3M Salute to Schools is open to middle and high schools in the United States. Individual donations will vary depending upon specific needs of the library, such as the size of a collection and the physical layout of the media center. To be considered for the donation, a school must meet eligibility requirements and be able to demonstrate a need for a detection system.
3M and AASL share a strong commitment to education and value investing in the nation's schools. In 2002, 3M donated $1.5 million worth of its detection systems to 112 schools selected by AASL.
"Protecting a school's most valuable learning tools is an ongoing challenge for a library media center with limited resources and no proven security," says Don Leslie, 3M Library Systems. "One of the fundamental goals of 3M Salute to Schools is to enhance education by making detection systems more available to schools that might not otherwise have the resources to purchase them."
"Research shows the highest-achieving students attend schools with good library media centers, and protecting library resources contributes to the overall improvement of library media services for young people," says Nancy P. Zimmerman, president of AASL. "AASL is pleased to again partner with 3M to help school libraries preserve these resources for students throughout the country."
Applications are available online at
www.3M.com/us/library or
www.ala.org/aasl/3msalute.html. Recipients will be announced in early April. For more information about the 2003 3M Salute to Schools program, contact the AASL office at 1-800-545-2433, ext. 4383, or
aasl@ala.org.
3M's Contributions Program is made up of cash and in-kind gifts made by 3M and the 3M Foundation and bolstered by employee and retiree volunteerism. 3M grants and product donations work together to improve the academic achievement of children. In 2001, the 3M Foundation donated more than $47 million to educational and charitable institutions.
AASL is a division of the American Library Association. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change, and develop leaders in the school library media field.