National Vocabulary Championship joins the Smartest Card Campaign
Contact: Angela Thullen
PLA, Marketing Specialist
312-280-5023
athullen@ala.org
Kelly Bernstein
GSN, Executive Director,
Marketing & Promotions
310-255-6929
For Immediate Release
September 25, 2007
National Vocabulary Championship joins the Smartest Card Campaign
CHICAGO - The Public Library Association (PLA) is pleased to announce that GSN's 2007-2008 National Vocabulary Championship (NVC) has joined the Smartest Card @ your library campaign as an official Smartest Card Team Member.
The NVC awards over $100,000 in money toward college tuition and other prizes and is open to eligible high school students who are in grades 9 through 12 and between the ages of 13 and 19. The NVC was created to incentivize students of all backgrounds to improve their language arts skills and expand their vocabularies in an effort to prepare them for future academic excellence and success in life.
Students can enter the competition in one of two ways: either through the online National Qualifying Exam, which is offered anytime throughout the month of November, or through the In-School Qualifying Exam, which is available to students who attend an NVC "participating school" and who wish to qualify for one of eight local citywide championships. To download free Princeton Review study materials or to obtain entry information and program specifics, visit
www.WinWithWords.com.
Advocacy is a fundamental goal of the PLA Strategic Plan. During this time of increased competition, budget cutbacks and the evolving role of libraries, it is essential to raise public awareness about what our libraries provide and to fill the information gap about their value. The campaign theme: "The Smartest Card" incorporates the @ your library(r) brand developed for The Campaign for America's Libraries, a multi-year public education campaign sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA).
For more information, contact the PLA office, 800-545-2433, ext. 5PLA or by e-mail
pla@ala.org. PLA is a division of the ALA. PLA's core purpose is to strengthen public libraries and their contribution to the communities they serve, and its mission is to enhance the development and effectiveness of public library staff and public library services.
About the "National Vocabulary Championship"
GSN's National Vocabulary Championship (NVC) is a nationwide academic competition that offers high school students the opportunity to win money toward college tuition through local and national events. Created by GSN, along with educational partner The Princeton Review, the NVC is open to eligible high school students in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The NVC is the cornerstone of GSN's award-winning "Win With Words" public service campaign dedicated to improving language arts skills in high schools by promoting the value of an enhanced vocabulary, providing free Princeton Review study materials and engaging students in wordplay. For free vocabulary study materials, please visit
www.winwithwords.com.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY to enter or participate in the NVC. Open only to high school students who are legal residents of the U.S., between the ages of 13 and 19 as of the date of the applicable NVC exam and/or event. Minors in their state of residency must provide written consent from their parent or legal guardian to be eligible to advance to an NVC citywide championship or regional exam. Fifty finalists (eight citywide champions and 42 top scorers from the National Qualifying Competition) will win an opportunity to compete for $40,000 towards college tuition at the National Vocabulary Championship Finals. Void where prohibited. See Official Rules at
www.winwithwords.com for complete details, including dates of NVC qualifying examinations and events, additional eligibility restrictions and prize descriptions/restrictions.
