Clara M. Chu receives 2002 Equality Award

Contact: Cheryl Malden


312-280-3247


cmalden@ala.org

For Immediate Release


April 2002

Clara M. Chu receives 2002 Equality Award

Clara M. Chu is the 2002 recipient of the American Library Association (ALA) Equality Award, which recognizes contributions for promoting equality in the library profession. The award, given to an individual or group, consists of a citation and $500 donated by Scarecrow Press, a member of the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group.

Chu, associate professor at the Department of Information Studies, University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA), is the only full-time faculty member of color in her department. She specializes in the social construction of information systems, institutions and access to help understand the usage of and barriers to information in multicultural communities. Current projects include: the role of librarians and educators in facilitating the mediation activities of immigrant children; multicultural information on the Internet; and infrastructure for the preservation of Chinese culture in Latin America.

UCLA students in her department submitted Chu's winning nomination. "Dr. Chu strives toward social justice and information equity in her endeavors both within and outside of academia," Todd Honma wrote.

Chu is an active and supportive member of the American Library Association (ALA). She successfully lobbied the UCLA Graduate Division to allocate funds to match those given out by the Spectrum Initiative Scholarship Awards. She also is active in REFORMA, Asian/Pacific American Library Association, Chinese American Librarians Association, Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE), and a board member of International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), Section on Library Services to Multicultural Populations

"The ALA Equality Award Jury was particularly pleased that Dr. Chu's nomination came from her students," said Chair Ann Symons. "Dr. Chu is committed not only to the education of her students, she also works within ALA and her library community to assure the importance of diversity within the library community."

Chu holds a Ph.D. and M.L.S. from Western Ontario, and a B.A. from British Columbia.

The Equality Award will be presented Tuesday, June 18, during the ALA Annual Conference in Atlanta.