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CHICAGO —This year, the ¾«¶«´«Ã½'s (ALA) Office for Diversity is awarding a new round of 50 Spectrum Scholarships.

The Spectrum Scholarship Program provides scholarships to American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students pursuing graduate degrees in library and information studies. Its mission is to improve service at the local level through the development of a representative workforce that reflects the communities served by all libraries. Since 1997, the ¾«¶«´«Ã½has awarded more than 800 Spectrum Scholarships.

The 2012 Spectrum Scholars are:

• Andrea Barkley, University of Washington
• Anthony Bishop (William R. Gordon Spectrum Scholar), University of Illinois
• Liza Booker (Leo Albert Spectrum Scholar), University of Illinois
• Moddie Breland (Howard M. and Gladys B. Teeple Spectrum Scholar), Clarion University
• Brandon Cal, University of Washington
• Brenda Carrillo, San Jose State University
• Rosa Cesaretti, University of North Texas
• Leonor Mabel Cortina, Texas Women's University
• Jonathan DaSo, Florida State University
• Amanda Davis (AASL Spectrum Scholar), Valdosta State University
• Alicia Diego, University of North Texas
• Orolando Duffus (OCLC Spectrum Scholar), North Carolina Central University
• Monica Figueroa, Syracuse University
• Melissa Floch, University of North Texas
• Sarah Gross (Louise Giles Spectrum Scholar), University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
• Ticha Gwaradzimba (ALSC Spectrum Scholar), University of Western Ontario
• Lori E. Harris (NLM/MLA Spectrum Scholar), University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
• April Hathcock , University of South Florida
• Heath Horton (YALSA Spectrum Schola), Kent State University
• Eugene Hsue, University of Pittsburgh
• Meena Jain, Drexel University
• Basheer Kareem (NLM/MLA Spectrum Scholar), Kent State University
• Charlotte King (ACRL Spectrum Scholar), San Jose State University
• Monica Lagares, Catholic University
• Vivienne Layne, McGill University
• Laura Liang (PLA Spectrum Scholar), Pratt Institute
• Kirk MacLeod, University of Alberta
• Ivelisse Maldonado, North Carolina Central University
• Marcia McIntosh, University of Texas - Austin
• Marisa Mendez-Brady (TLA Spectrum Scholar), University of Texas - Austin
• Justin Mitchell, University of Pittsburgh
• Sebastian Jose Moya, Pratt Institute
• Christina Nhek, undecided
• Maria Ornes, University of North Texas
• Thomas Padilla, University of Illinois
• Lauren Peters, San Jose State University
• Levertes Ragland, Catholic University
• Saira Raza (Betty J. Turock Spectrum Scholar), University of North Texas
• Tamara Rhodes, North Carolina Central University
• Eva M.L. Rios-Alvarado, Simmons College
• Charlotte Roh, University of Illinois
• Diana Rojas, University of South Florida
• Jose Miguel Ruiz (Ron Clowney Spectrum Scholar), University of Illinois
• Elizabeth Sandoval-Marchand, University of Arizona
• Angelibel Soto, University of South Florida
• Christina Stone, Simmons College
• June Thammasnong, Simmons College
• Connie Thompson, University of Washington
• Raina Tuakoi, San Jose State University
• Alicia Zuniga, San Jose State University

Established in 1997, the ¾«¶«´«Ã½committed 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 2012, scholarships have been awarded in honor of the following individuals: Leo Albert, Ron Clowney, Louise Giles, William R. Gordon, Howard M. and Gladys B. Teeple and Dr. Betty J. Turock.

Ten of the 2012 Spectrum Scholarships have been funded by proceeds from the . In addition to raising much-needed funds for scholarships, the ALA/ProQuest Scholarship Bash provides a fun event for librarians each year at the ¾«¶«´«Ã½Annual Conference.

The Medical Library Association/National Library of Medicine (MLA/NLM) supports two scholarships. The MLA/NLM Spectrum Scholarships support students of color with an interest in the field of medical or health sciences librarianship.

The Texas Library Association (TLA) announced in 2011 that it will support one Spectrum Scholarship a year, TLA is supporting one 2012 Spectrum Scholar attending an ALA-accredited graduate program in library and information studies or an AASL-recognized school library program in Texas.

OCLC has committed funding to support one Spectrum Scholarship a year through 2014, one 2012 Spectrum Scholar has been designated in recognition.

The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) is supporting one 2012 Spectrum Scholar interested in pursuing a career as a school librarian.

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) is supporting one 2012 Spectrum Scholar interested in pursuing a career in academic and research libraries.

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) has established the ALSC Spectrum Scholarship through funding from the Frederic G. Melcher Endowment. One ALSC Spectrum Scholar interested in library service to children will be designated each year in perpetuity.

The Public Library Association (PLA) donated $8000 to the Spectrum Presidential Initiative in 2012 and one 2012 Spectrum Scholar has been designated in recognition.

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is supporting one 2012 Spectrum Scholar pursuing a career in young adult librarianship or secondary school librarianship.

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 . The application period for 2013 Spectrum Scholarships will open in October 2012.