Great Stories Club

��ý Awards 27 Libraries with Teen Sci-Fi Great Stories Club Grant

HARATA — Wed, 21 Jun 2023 18:43:50 +0000

��ý Awards 27 Libraries with Teen Sci-Fi Great Stories Club Grant

CHICAGO – The ��ý (ALA) has selected 27 U.S. libraries to receive implementation grants for “Imagining Tomorrow: Building Inclusive Futures.” This brand-new series in ALA’s Great Stories Club (GSC) features science fiction books that explore questions of equity, identity and alternate futures.

The 27 libraries chosen for this Great Stories Club represent public, school, tribal and special libraries that reach underserved, under-resourced and at-risk teens. In many cases the library will work with a partner organization, such as a juvenile justice facility, alternative high school or a shelter that serves young adults experiencing homelessness.

Grantees represent 17 states. Programs will be held from Alaska to the Northern Mariana Islands.

Selected grantees include the Atlantic County (N.J.) Institute of Technology who will partner with the Disability Studies program at Richard Stockton University and a local farm to engage students in disability-inclusive community service projects related to the grant’s themes. Another grantee, Impact Academy – Courage Center, is a satellite school in Indiana located within an emergency homeless youth shelter. Five of the grantees will partner with juvenile justice organizations to conduct programs. View the full list of participating libraries.

The libraries will implement humanities-based book discussions with smalls groups of approximately 10 teens with goals to provide specialized library outreach programming to underserved youth; connect participating youth with powerful works of young adult literature that will facilitate personal exploration; inspire teens to consider "big questions" about the world around them and their place in it; and facilitate discussion of future opportunities for positive change.

Libraries will receive the following books:

"Victories Greater Than Death” by Charlie Jane Anders
"Across a Field of Starlight” by Blue Delliquanti
"The Marrow Thieves” by Cherie Dimaline
“The Sound of Stars” by Alechia Dow
“War Girls” by Tochi Onyebuc

Along with paperback copies of the theme-related books for participants to take home, the 27 libraries will receive a $500 programming stipend, online training, an array of program resources and support throughout the grant term.

Since 2006, ALA’s Great Stories Club has helped libraries engage young adults with accessible, thought-provoking literature. To learn more about the Great Stories Club, please visit ala.org/greatstories.

Implementation of “Imagining Tomorrow: Building Inclusive Futures” is supported by a grant from a private donor.

To be alerted about future offerings from ALA’s Public Programs Office, sign up to receive ALA's Programming Librarian e-newsletter.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government, and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit www.ala.org.

HARATA Wed, 06/21/2023 - 13:43

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Hannah Arata

Communications Specialist

��ý

Public Programs Office

harata@ala.org

95 Great Stories Club Grants to be Awarded by the ��ý

HARATA — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 13:08:56 +0000

95 Great Stories Club Grants to be Awarded by the ��ý

CHICAGO – The ��ý (ALA) has selected 58 U.S. libraries to receive implementation grants for the Great Stories Club (GSC), a thematic reading and discussion program that engages teens who are facing difficult challenges through literature-based library outreach programs.

In total, 95 programming grants will be awarded to the selected sites. Thirty-eight of the libraries will receive two grants to conduct programs for two GSC themes, “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present Is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.” The other 20 libraries will receive a grant to implement one theme. The themes, created by scholars Maria Sachiko Cecire and Susana M. Morris, feature books that explore questions of race, equity, identity and history.

See the full list of libraries selected for "Finding Your Voice" and the full list of libraries selected for "Deeper Than Our Skins."

The grantees represent 31 states and the Northern Mariana Islands. Of the libraries selected, 42 are public, four are academic and twelve are school/K-12 libraries. School libraries participating include the Navajo Preparatory School in Farmington, New Mexico and the Military Magnet Academy in North Charleston, South Carolina.

Participating libraries will receive a $500 programming stipend (per theme) and work with small groups of approximately 10 teens; provide up to four theme-related books for each participant to keep as their own, as well as audiobooks—as available for each text—to use with the group and convene opportunities for exploration and discussion of relevant humanities content among peers.

Select titles from the themes include “The Poet X” by Elizabeth Acevedo; “Anger is a Gift” by Mark Oshiro; “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates; and “Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voice” edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale.

Book discussions will be led by an experienced programming librarian, often in cooperation with staff from a partner organization or department, such as teachers and counselors. Two participating libraries from Mississippi, the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and Pearl Public Library, will work with the Mississippi Humanities Council to conduct their Great Stories Club programming.

Implementation of both themes is supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. To be alerted about future offerings from ALA’s Public Programs Office, sign up to receive ALA's Programming Librarian e-newsletter.

About the ��ý

HARATA Thu, 06/01/2023 - 08:08

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Hannah Arata

Communications Specialist

��ý

Public Programs Office

harata@ala.org

��ýinvites libraries to apply for Great Stories Club Grants for teens

HARATA — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 13:20:00 +0000

��ýinvites libraries to apply for Great Stories Club Grants for teens

CHICAGO – The ��ý (ALA) invites library workers to apply for ALA’s Great Stories Club (GSC), a thematic reading and discussion program that engages teens who are facing difficult challenges through literature-based library outreach programs.

Visit the project guidelines and apply online by March 29, 2023.

��ýwill distribute implementation grants to 100 libraries to host GSC programming on two themes: “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present Is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.” These themes, created by scholars Maria Sachiko Cecire and Susana M. Morris, will feature books that explore questions of race, equity, identity and history.

For each theme, ��ýwill award up to 50 grants to eligible institutions. Up to 50 libraries will be selected to receive a "Deeper Than Our Skins" grant, and up to 50 libraries will be selected to receive a "Finding Your Voice" grant.

Applications will be accepted from all types of libraries (public, school, academic, and special) in the United States and its territories that meet one of the following criteria:

The applicant library is located within an organization that reaches underserved, under-resourced and/or at-risk teens (e.g., alternative high school, juvenile detention facility, tribal library).

The applicant library is working with a partner organization that reaches underserved, under-resourced, and/or at-risk teens. Possible partner organizations include but are not limited to juvenile justice facilities, drug/alcohol rehabilitation centers, nonprofits serving teen parents, alternative high schools, agencies serving teenaged foster children and shelters serving young adults and families experiencing homelessness.

Selected libraries will receive 11 paperback copies of theme-related books to use in the reading and discussion groups as well as a $500 programming stipend, online training, an array of program resources and support throughout the grant term.

Participating libraries will work with small groups of approximately 10 teens; provide up to four theme-related books for each participant to keep as their own and convene opportunities for exploration and discussion of relevant humanities content among peers. Book discussions will be led by an experienced programming librarian, often in cooperation with staff from a partner organization or department, such as teachers and counselors.

Libraries selected for a “Deeper than Our Skins” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

“Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
“The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano” by Sonia Manzano
“Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices,” edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale
“The Shadow Hero” by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Sonny Liew
“Mother of the Sea” by Zetta Elliott
“Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.” by Luis J. Rodriguez

Libraries selected for a “Finding Your Voice” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

“The Poet X” by Elizabeth Acevedo
“I Am Alfonso Jones” by Tony Medina
“Gabi, A Girl in Pieces” by Isabel Quintero
“Piecing Me Together” by Renée Watson
“American Street” by Ibi Zoboi
“Anger is a Gift” by Mark Oshiro

Because the Great Stories Club seeks to engage libraries in different areas of the country, serving high-need and diverse groups of teen readers, ��ýinvites interested librarians to get in touch if there is a specific need for flexibility with the program model or requirements.

Implementation of both series is supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. To be alerted about future offerings from ALA’s Public Programs Office, sign up to receive ALA's Programming Librarian e-newsletter.

About the ��ý

HARATA Wed, 01/18/2023 - 07:20

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Hannah Arata

Communications Specialist

��ý

Public Programs Office

harata@ala.org

35 libraries selected for ALA's Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

SOSTMAN — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 22:17:57 +0000

35 libraries selected for ALA's Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

CHICAGO — Thirty-five U.S. libraries have been selected to participate in the ��ý’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT), a thematic reading and discussion program series that engages underserved teens through literature-based library outreach programs and racial healing work.

The program is supported as part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation effort, a comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism.

The grantees represent 29 public libraries, two academic libraries, three school/K-12 libraries, and one library association. Additionally, 29 community partner organizations, including alternative schools, youth detention centers, afterschool programs and other organizations that serve youth, are participating in the project. View a list of the grantees and their partner organizations.

The libraries will work with small groups of teens to read and discuss book titles — selected by librarians and humanities scholars to resonate with reluctant readers facing difficult challenges — on the theme “Growing Up Brave on the Margins: Courage and Coming of Age.” Some libraries will also host racial healing sessions led by practitioners familiar with the Kellogg Foundation’s TRHT framework and racial healing approach.

An expansion of ALA’s longstanding Great Stories Club program model, the TRHT “Growing Up Brave” theme will feature strong protagonists who rise to challenges and fight for justice in the face of parents who may not always understand them, peers who doubt them, and communities who dismiss them or even find them dangerous.

The books will include “Ms. Marvel Volume 1: No Normal” by G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona; “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas; “March: Book One” by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell; “Shadowshaper” by Daniel José Older; “X: A Novel” by Ilyashah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon; and “The Sun is Also a Star” by Nicola Yoon.

The “Growing Up Brave” theme was developed by literature scholar Susana M. Morris, associate professor of literature, media and communication at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Anna Cvitkovic, teen librarian at the San Francisco Public Library.

Participating libraries will receive 11 copies of up to four books on the reading list; a programming grant of up to $1,200; travel and accommodation expenses paid for attendance at a two-day orientation workshop in Chicago; and additional resources, training and support.

The Great Stories Club is administered by ALA’s Public Programs Office in partnership with ALA’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. Funding is provided by the Kellogg Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor.

To be informed about upcoming Great Stories Club grant opportunities, sign up for ALA’s Programming Librarian newsletter.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

SOSTMAN Thu, 08/29/2019 - 17:17

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

��ýannounces participants in Racial Healing Circle workshop with AAC&U

SOSTMAN — Fri, 08 Feb 2019 19:55:27 +0000

��ýannounces participants in Racial Healing Circle workshop with AAC&U

Forty-two library workers and educators have been selected to participate in a two-day workshop to learn how to lead Racial Healing Circles, a transformative facilitation process, championed by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, that strives to help communities engage with storytelling, deep listening and relationship building that can support healing from the effects of racism.

The Preparation Workshop for New Racial Healing Circle Practitioners is an offering of the ��ý (ALA), presented in cooperation with the Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U. It will take place in Chicago on March 21 and 22.

View the list of participants.

Participants were selected through a competitive application process. Eligibility for this workshop, the first of its kind for ALA, was limited to individuals who have had prior experience with Racial Healing Circles, typically through ALA’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation or at a prior ��ýconference program.

Participating library workers will receive a $400 stipend to offset travel expenses, up to three nights’ lodging, and complimentary registration for the two-day workshop including support materials and meals.

Racial Healing Circles help participants recognize our common humanity, acknowledge the truth of past wrongs, and build the authentic relationships necessary to begin transforming communities and shifting our national discourse. To learn more about the Kellogg Foundation’s Racial Healing Circle methodology, see “Restoring to Wholeness.”

This workshop is being offered as part of Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT), the Kellogg Foundation’s comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change, and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism. TRHT seeks to unearth and jettison the deeply held, and often unconscious, beliefs created by racism – the main one being the belief in a “hierarchy of human value.”

��ýis one of the 100 voluntary National Partner Organizations, along with 44 scholars, that participated in the 2016 TRHT design phase. More information about the Kellogg Foundation's TRHT efforts and a downloadable copy of the TRHT Implementation Guidebook are available online at https://healourcommunities.org/.

About the ��ý

The ��ý is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with approximately 55,000 members in academic, public, school, government and special libraries. The mission of the ��ý is to provide leadership for the development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.

SOSTMAN Fri, 02/08/2019 - 13:55

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

��ýjoins W.K. Kellogg Foundation in observance of 2019 National Day of Racial Healing

SOSTMAN — Wed, 16 Jan 2019 17:36:39 +0000

��ýjoins W.K. Kellogg Foundation in observance of 2019 National Day of Racial Healing

CHICAGO — The ��ý (ALA) will join the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and organizations across the country in observing the 2019 National Day of Racial Healing on Tuesday, Jan. 22. (Read the proclamation by ��ýPresident Loida Garcia-Febo.)

On Jan. 22, thousands will celebrate our common humanity and take collective action toward a more just and equitable world. In commemoration, ��ýinvites library workers and others to:

Offer reading recommendations, programming and displays about race and equality and share messages of solidarity at your library. To start, visit our compilation of recommended reading lists on race and equality for all ages and reading levels.
Join the conversation on social media by posting images and comments using the hashtags #LibrariesRespond and #HowWeHeal. Visit ALA’s Programming Librarian website for a list of sample tweets or create a short video addressing why racial healing is important to you.
Convene a book discussion focused on themes of race, identity and healing. Download ready-to-use discussion questions for books including Ta-Nehisi Coates’ “Between the World and Me” and Elizabeth Acevedo’s “the Poet X,” available for free through ALA’s Great Stories Club.
Print and post a sign at your library or your home to show your support.

Visit the National Day of Racial Healing website or the #LibrariesRespond website for more ideas and ways to participate.

Conceived in 2016 through a collaborative effort of more than 550 U.S. leaders, the National Day of Racial Healing is a time to reinforce and honor our common humanity while celebrating the district differences that make our communities vibrant; acknowledge the deep racial divisions that exist in America and must be overcome and healed; and commit to engaging people from all racial and ethnic groups in genuine efforts to increase understanding, communication, caring and respect for one another.

The celebration is a part of the Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) effort, a national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism.

��ýis one of 100 voluntary National Partner Organizations in the Kellogg Foundation’s TRHT efforts, along with 44 scholars, that participated in the 2016 TRHT design phase. More information is online at http://healourcommunities.org/.

Recently, ��ýannounced 70 libraries that will participate in the TRHT Great Stories Club, a reading and discussion program that will engage underserved teens through literature and racial healing work. The selected books encourage participants to look beneath the surface of racism in America to see how the past is alive in the present, and explore the power of young people taking a stand against racism and other injustices to make the world a better place. The program is supported from a grant from the Kellogg Foundation.

About the ��ý

The ��ý is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with approximately 57,000 members in academic, public, school, government and special libraries. The mission of the ��ý is to provide leadership for the development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.

SOSTMAN Wed, 01/16/2019 - 11:36

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

70 libraries named for ALA’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

SOSTMAN — Thu, 13 Dec 2018 21:30:40 +0000

70 libraries named for ALA’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

CHICAGO — Seventy libraries have been selected to participate in the ��ý’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT), a thematic reading and discussion program series that will engage underserved teens through literature-based library outreach programs and racial healing work.

An expansion of ALA’s long-standing Great Stories Club program model, the TRHT Great Stories Club will feature books that can help readers look beneath the surface of racism in America to reveal how the past is alive in the present, and explore the power of young people taking a stand against racism and other injustices to make the world a better place. The program is supported as part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation effort, a comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change, and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism.

The grantees represent 46 public libraries, 13 school/K-12 libraries, 4 academic libraries, 5 community college libraries, one prison library and one cultural center library. Additionally, 50 community partner organizations including alternative schools, youth detention centers and other organizations that serve youth are participating in the project. View a list of the grantees and their partner organizations.

The libraries will work with small groups of teens in 2019 to read and discuss book titles — selected by librarians and humanities scholars to resonate with reluctant readers facing difficult challenges — on the themes “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.” Some libraries will also host racial healing sessions led by practitioners familiar with the Kellogg Foundation’s TRHT framework and racial healing approach.

Pierce County Library System in Tacoma, Wash., will collaborate with literacy arts organization Write253, local anti-racist organizers The People’s Assembly and community leaders to reach teens through an existing book club.

“Participation in the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation series represents a real opportunity for the library to put into practice racial justice principles by engaging community members deeply invested in this work, providing opportunities for relationship-building, and reaching the youth in our community who are most marginalized,” said Teen Services Librarian Elise Bodell.

Participating libraries will receive 11 copies of up to four books on the TRHT Great Stories Club reading list; a programming grant of up to $1,200; travel and accommodation expenses paid for attendance at a two-day orientation workshop in Chicago; and additional resources, training and support from ALA’s Public Programs Office and Office for Diversity Literacy and Outreach Services.

Titles for the “Deeper than Our Skins” series include “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates; “The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano” by Sonia Manzano; “Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices,” edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale; “The Shadow Hero” by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Sonny Liew; “Mother of the Sea” by Zetta Elliott; and “Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.” by Luis J. Rodriguez.

Titles for “Finding Your Voice” include “The Poet X” by Elizabeth Acevedo; “I Am Alfonso Jones” by Tony Medina; “Gabi, A Girl in Pieces” by Isabel Quintero; “Piecing Me Together” by Renée Watson; “American Street” by Ibi Zoboi; and “Anger is a Gift” by Mark Oshiro.

The TRHT Great Stories Club Implementation Team led creation of both themes. “Deeper Than Our Skins” was been developed by literature scholar Maria Sachiko Cecire (Bard College) and librarians Wini Ashooh (Central Rappahannock Regional Library System), Edith Campbell (Cunningham Memorial Library at Indiana State University) and Vanessa “Chacha” Centeno (Sacramento Public Library). “Finding Your Voice” was developed by literature scholar Susana M. Morris (Georgia Institute of Technology) and librarians Angelina M. Cortes (Sno-Isle Libraries), Joslyn Bowling Dixon (Prince William Library System) and Amira Shabana (Barrington (Illinois) Middle School).

A final round of Great Stories Club grants for the TRHT series will be offered in 2019 for programs held Oct. 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020. Learn more about the 2019 opportunity.

The Great Stories Club is administered by ALA’s Public Programs Office in partnership with ALA’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. Funding is provided by the Kellogg Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and Acton Family Giving.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

SOSTMAN Thu, 12/13/2018 - 15:30

Awards (Scholarships & Grants)

Diversity

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

Libraries invited to apply for Great Stories Club grants on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

SOSTMAN — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 19:03:49 +0000

Libraries invited to apply for Great Stories Club grants on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

CHICAGO — Library professionals are invited to apply for the ��ý’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT). This thematic reading and discussion program series will engage underserved teens through literature-based library outreach programs and racial healing work.

Visit the project guidelines and apply online by Nov. 16. Up to 70 libraries will be selected.

An expansion of ALA’s longstanding Great Stories Club program model, the TRHT series will feature books that explore questions of race, equity, identity, history, institutional change and social justice. The series is a part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation efforts, a comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change, and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism. The TRHT Great Stories Club is supported by a grant from the Kellogg Foundation.

Participating libraries will work with small groups of approximately 10 teens; provide up to four theme-related books for each participant to keep as their own; convene opportunities for exploration and discussion of relevant humanities content among peers; and offer at least one interactive session for program conveners and participants led by a racial healing practitioner(s).

All types of libraries (public, school, academic and special) are eligible, as long as they work in partnership with, or are located within, an organization that reaches underserved teens (e.g., juvenile justice facilities, alternative high schools, agencies serving teenaged foster children, youth-focused community nonprofits).

Below is a sampling of partnerships from libraries that participated in the TRHT Great Stories Club pilot program:

Juneau Public Library (Juneau, Alaska) partnered with the treatment unit of the Johnson Youth Center to introduce students in the detention facility to literature and ideas that resonate with them. “Too often curriculums and pop culture present a homogeneous culture that reflects colonization norms and does not resonate with our students,” wrote librarian Amelia Jenkins. “This series is a concrete step toward acknowledging their experience and expanding their intellectual life.”
Dallas Public Library (Dallas, Texas) collaborated with Promise House, a nonprofit group home that supports homeless LGBT youth, to lead weekly gatherings with their youth. “The participants gain an understanding of how their racial identity affects them and how to navigate society and develop positive relationships with those who are different from them,” says Monique Christian-Long, the library’s teen services coordinator.
Towson University (Townson, Maryland) worked with Baltimore Public Schools in a collaborative program for high school and college-age students. “By connecting the high school students with university students who are involved with Towson University’s Black Student Union, Towson Freedom School and our library’s A-LIST Student Leadership Program, we hope to provide a window into what activism and engagement on a college campus can look like,” wrote librarian Miriam DesHarnais.

Grantee benefits include 11 paperback copies of up to four books on the reading list; a programming grant of up to $1,200; travel and accommodation expenses paid for attendance at a two-day orientation workshop in Chicago; and additional resources, training and support from ALA’s Public Programs Office.

Applicants may choose to apply for one of the following themes: “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.”

Libraries selected for a “Deeper than Our Skins” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

“Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
“The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano” by Sonia Manzano
“Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices,” edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale
“The Shadow Hero” by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Sonny Liew
“Mother of the Sea” by Zetta Elliott
“Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.” by Luis J. Rodriguez

Libraries selected for a “Finding Your Voice” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

“The Poet X” by Elizabeth Acevedo
“I Am Alfonso Jones” by Tony Medina
“Gabi, A Girl in Pieces” by Isabel Quintero
“Piecing Me Together” by Renée Watson
“American Street” by Ibi Zoboi
“Anger is a Gift” by Mark Oshiro

The TRHT Great Stories Club Implementation Team has led creation of both series. The “Deeper Than Our Skins” series has been developed by literature scholar Maria Sachiko Cecire (Bard College) and librarians Wini Ashooh (Central Rappahannock Regional Library System), Edith Campbell (Cunningham Memorial Library at Indiana State University) and Vanessa “Chacha” Centeno (Sacramento Public Library). “Finding Your Voice” was developed by literature scholar Susana M. Morris (Georgia Institute of Technology) and librarians Angelina M. Cortes (Sno-Isle Libraries), Joslyn Bowling Dixon (Prince William Library System) and Amira Shabana (Barrington (Illinois) Middle School).

A final round of Great Stories Club grants for the TRHT series will be offered in 2019 for programs held Oct. 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020. Additional details are available online.

The Great Stories Club is administered by ALA’s Public Programs Office in partnership with ALA’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. Funding is provided by the Kellogg Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and Acton Family Giving.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.

The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.

About the National Endowment for the Humanities

Created in 1965 as an independent federal agency, the National Endowment for the Humanities supports research and learning in history, literature, philosophy, and other areas of the humanities by funding selected, peer-reviewed proposals from around the nation. Additional information about the National Endowment for the Humanities and its grant programs is available at: www.neh.gov.

About the National Endowment for the Arts

Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. Visit arts.gov to learn more about NEA.

SOSTMAN Wed, 09/05/2018 - 14:03

Awards (Scholarships & Grants)

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

Free virtual event with MARCH graphic novel creators offered as part of ALA’s Great Stories Club

SOSTMAN — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 15:12:14 +0000

Free virtual event with MARCH graphic novel creators offered as part of ALA’s Great Stories Club

The ��ý (ALA) invites library professionals and their patrons to a free virtual event with Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell, co-author and illustrator of the acclaimed graphic novel series March. During the event, Aydin and Powell will speak with attendees about the Civil Rights Movement and their experience telling Congressman John Lewis’s story in March.

The virtual event is supported by an ArtWorks Literature grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and will be held at 1:30 p.m. CDT on Wednesday, Sept. 12.

Learn more and register online. Space is limited, and participation is first-come, first-served.

A New York Times bestseller and winner of the National Book Award, March tells the story of the Civil Rights Movement through the eyes of one of its most iconic figures. Co-authored with Rep. Lewis, the trilogy offers a vivid firsthand account of his lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation.

Aydin, the series creator and Digital Director & Policy Advisor to Rep. Lewis, and Powell, an award-winning visual artist, will discuss:

creating March and speaking with audiences around the country about Rep. Lewis’s call for people of all ages to get into “good trouble” and move productively towards community-based change and equity;
how telling diverse stories, including one’s own, can influence people’s perspectives, perceptions and behaviors about and towards one another; and
how developing fundamental skills like reading, writing, and creative self-expression can positively affect one’s future.

During the event, the presenters will take questions from young people participating in current Great Stories Club programs, which are being hosted in more than 100 U.S. libraries. Those include libraries selected for the Great Stories Club pilot series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) that are using March: Book One, and those selected for the GSC themed series “Empathy: The Cost of Switching Sides” that are using March: Book Three.

An expansion of ALA’s long-standing Great Stories Club program model, the TRHT pilot series features books that explore the coming-of-age experience for young people in historically marginalized groups. This pilot is a part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation efforts, a comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change, and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism.

��ýwill invite applications for the next round of TRHT Great Stories Club grants starting on Sept. 4. Library professionals interested in applying to be part of the program may sign up for ALA’s Programming Librarian e-newsletter to receive applications instructions when they are available.

The themes for the upcoming rounds of the TRHT Great Stories Club are “Deeper Than Our Skins” and “Finding Your Voice.” Participating libraries will establish community outreach partnerships, work with small groups of teens to read and discuss four titles selected by librarians and humanities scholars, and convene racial healing circles inspired by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s TRHT framework and methodology.

The Great Stories Club is administered by ALA’s Public Programs Office in partnership with ALA’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. Funding is provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

About the National Endowment for the Humanities

About the National Endowment for the Arts

SOSTMAN Thu, 08/16/2018 - 10:12

Awards (Scholarships & Grants)

eLearning

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

100 libraries selected to lead Great Stories Club reading programs with underserved youth

SOSTMAN — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 15:35:19 +0000

100 libraries selected to lead Great Stories Club reading programs with underserved youth

CHICAGO — The ��ý (ALA) has announced 100 libraries nationwide selected to take part in the Great Stories Club, a national grant program that supports reading and discussion programs for underserved teens.

The grantees represent 77 public libraries, 14 school/K-12 libraries, three college/university libraries, two community college libraries, three prison libraries, and one tribal library. They come from 35 states, the District of Columbia, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

View the grantees and their partner organizations for “Empathy: The Cost of Switching Sides.”

View the grantees and their partner organizations for “What Makes a Hero? Self, Society and Rising to the Occasion.”

Created in 2006, the Great Stories Club engages young adults with accessible, thought-provoking literature, facilitates humanities-based discussion with peers, and encourages library outreach partnerships with alternative schools, juvenile detention facilities and a variety of other youth-focused community organizations.

The 2018-19 themes for the Great Stories Club are “Empathy: The Cost of Switching Sides” and “What Makes a Hero? Self, Society and Rising to the Occasion.” Working with small groups of approximately 10 teens, participating library professionals will discuss stories from one or both themes.

“Empathy: The Cost of Switching Sides” will feature the following titles:

“Flight” by Sherman Alexie (Read ALA’s statement about the use of “Flight” for this project.)
“Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation” by Octavia Butler, Damian Duffy and John Jennings
“All American Boys” by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
“Stuck in Neutral” by Terry Trueman
“March: Book Three” by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell

“What Makes a Hero? Self, Society and Rising to the Occasion” will feature the following titles:

“Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet, Book 1” by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Stelfreeze
“Maus II: A Survivor’s Tale: And Here My Troubles Began” by Art Spiegelman
“Binti” by Nnedi Okorafor
“Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two” by Joseph Bruchac
“What Can(t) Wait” by Ashley Hope Pérez
"Buck: A Memoir" by M.K. Asante

The titles were selected in consultation with humanities scholars and librarians to inspire teens — especially those facing difficult circumstances or challenges — to consider "big questions" about the world around them and their place in it, ultimately affecting how they view themselves as thinkers and creators.

“It is our goal as educators to help students develop a sense of identity, yet connect with and find understanding with people who are different,” said Great Stories Club grantee Amber Peterson, assistant youth services librarian at Norfolk (Nebraska) Public Library. “We hope (the Great Stories Club) will also empower our students to see themselves differently, to see their world differently and be part of the work to change it.”

Grantees will receive 11 paperback copies of each of the three book selections (10 to gift to participants; one for discussion leader/library collection); programming materials such as discussion guides, reading lists and program activities; and training opportunities, including travel and accommodations for an orientation workshop in Chicago. The workshops will include dialogue facilitation training led by consultants to Everyday Democracy and program modeling led by national project scholars Maria Sachiko Cecire (Bard College) and Anna Mae Duane (University of Connecticut).

The grant will be administered by ALA’s Public Programs Office. The Great Stories Club has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

About the ��ý

The ��ý (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ��ýhas been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

About the National Endowment for the Humanities

SOSTMAN Tue, 07/24/2018 - 10:35

Awards (Scholarships & Grants)

Great Stories Club

Contact:

Sarah Ostman

Communications Manager

��ýPublic Programs Office

sostman@ala.org

312-280-5061

Great Stories Club

������ý Awards 27 Libraries with Teen Sci-Fi Great Stories Club Grant

95 Great Stories Club Grants to be Awarded by the ������ý

������ýinvites libraries to apply for Great Stories Club Grants for teens

35 libraries selected for ALA's Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

������ýannounces participants in Racial Healing Circle workshop with AAC&U

������ýjoins W.K. Kellogg Foundation in observance of 2019 National Day of Racial Healing

70 libraries named for ALA’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

Libraries invited to apply for Great Stories Club grants on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation

Free virtual event with MARCH graphic novel creators offered as part of ALA’s Great Stories Club

100 libraries selected to lead Great Stories Club reading programs with underserved youth

��ý Awards 27 Libraries with Teen Sci-Fi Great Stories Club Grant

95 Great Stories Club Grants to be Awarded by the ��ý

��ýinvites libraries to apply for Great Stories Club Grants for teens

��ýannounces participants in Racial Healing Circle workshop with AAC&U

��ýjoins W.K. Kellogg Foundation in observance of 2019 National Day of Racial Healing