Spectrum Scholarship winners announced

Contact: Gwendolyn Prellwitz

Program Officer, Office for Diversity

312-280-5048

For Immediate Release

June 20, 2006

Spectrum Scholarship winners announced

CHICAGO - The American Library Association's (ALA) Office for Diversity is pleased to announce the ninth cohort of Spectrum Scholarships at ALA's Annual Conference in New Orleans, June 22-28. The Spectrum Scholarship Program's major drive is to recruit applicants and award scholarships to American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students for graduate programs in library and information studies.

Its mission is improving service at the local level through the development of a representative workforce that reflects the communities served by all libraries in the new millennium. Since 1997, ALA has awarded a total of 415 Spectrum Scholarships. Nearly 70 percent of past Spectrum Scholars remain active in ALA three years after graduation.

The 2006-2007 Spectrum Scholars are:

Antonio Alba, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

Shantrie Collins, University of South Florida

Floyd Council, Florida State University

Tek-Hui Eng, University of Pittsburgh

Paige Fujisue, San Jose State University

Renee Gardner, Long Island University

Meseret GebreKristos, Undecided

Taneya Gethers, Drexel University

Arnetta Girardeau, Florida State University

Lareese Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Jacob L. Harris, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis

Jennifer Harrison, East Carolina University

Christy Hogan, Florida State University

Patricia Hswe, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Kelli Hughes, Wayne State University

Karam Hwang, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Sabrina Jackson, Texas Woman's University

Terence Johnson, University of South Carolina

Felice Jones, University of Alabama

Malino Khun (MLA/NLM Scholar), Dominican University

Joy Kim, University of Michigan

Jennifer Kinkade, University of North Texas

Michael Kwende (Calloway Marathon Scholar), San Jose State University

Kafi Laramore-Josey, Wayne State University

Hannah Lee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Makiia Lucier, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Pearl Ly (Louise Giles Scholar), University of California at Los Angeles

Sally Ma, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Sanjeet-Singh Mann, UCLA

Maria Mark (Howard M. & Gladys B. Teeple Scholar), University of Arizona

Alberto Martinez, University of Texas at Austin

Rachel Masilamani, University of Pittsburgh

Jennifer Masunga, UCLA

Alma McDermott, Simmons College

Angela McMillian, Catholic University

Brenda Mitchell-Powell, Simmons College

Amber Moore, Simmons College

Zuyi Mui, University of North Carolina, Greensboro

Elizabeth Munoz-Rosas, San Jose State

Peter Nguyen, San Jose State University

Fumiko Osada, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Christina Patton, University of Pittsburgh

Fatima Perkins, Syracuse University

Jose Reyes, Indiana University - Bloomington

Marcos
Rodriguez (MLA/NLM Scholar), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Lorena Rosales, University of North Texas

Brenda Salem, University of Pittsburgh

Joshunda Sanders, University of Texas at Austin

Norma Sandoval-Reese, San Jose State University

Jamillah Scott-Branch, North Carolina Central University

Veronika Seidl, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Holly Smith, Simmons College

Alycia Smith-Howard, Long Island University

Gustavo Soto, University of Texas at Austin

Joanna Steele, UCLA

Shenee Storey, Kent State University

Lisa Tanikawa, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Chesney Taylor, Catholic University

Lettycia Terrones, UCLA

Maria Tisi (Betty Turock Scholar), Rutgers University

Van Bich Thi Tran (Leo Albert Scholar), Queens College

Lianne Valerio, University of Texas at Austin

Victoria Vanlandingham, Dominican University

Diana Wakimoto, Simmons College

Imani Warrick, University of South Florida

Kelvin Watson, North Carolina Central University

Michelle Wong, University of Washington

Candita Woodis-Rucker, University of Arizona

Emerita Yanes, Simmons College

Established in 1997, ALA committed resources for 50 annual scholarships of $5,000 a year for Spectrum's first four years.
The Spectrum program continues to fund scholarships through the initial endowment and the generous contributions of individuals and organizations whose donations support named scholarships in the Spectrum Family of Funds.
For 2006, scholarships have been awarded in honor of the following individuals:
Leo Albert, Gregory Calloway, Louise Giles, Howard M. and Gladys B. Teeple, and Betty J. Turock.

Additionally, the Medical Library Association/National Library of Medicine (MLA/NLM) has raised its commitment to provide an additional named annual award and will now support two scholarships a year through 2010.
The MLA/NLM Spectrum Scholarships support students of color with an interest in the field of medical or health sciences librarianship.

The 69 Spectrum Scholarships awarded this year mark the largest cohort of Spectrum Scholars to date.
The substantial increase in available scholarships is due both to the generosity of the individuals and organizations above and to a substantial grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
In addition to the 25 scholarships awarded by ALA, IMLS funding for the Office for Diversity "New Voices, New Visions" grant will support 41 scholarships. IMLS is an independent federal grant-making agency dedicated to creating and sustaining a nation of learners by helping libraries and museums serve their communities. To learn more about the Institute, please visit:
http://www.imls.gov
.

For more information on Spectrum and how you can contribute, please contact the Office for Diversity at 1-800-545-2433 ext. 5048 or visit www.ala.org/spectrum. The application period for 2007 Spectrum Scholarships opens October 16, 2006.