GSLIS students named ARL 2013-2015 Diversity Scholars

Washington, DC—The ARL Committee on Diversity and Leadership has selected 15 masters of library and information science (MLIS) students to participate in the 2013–2015 Initiative to Recruit a Diverse Workforce (IRDW) as ARL Diversity Scholars.

The ARL IRDW offers numerous financial benefits to program participants as well as leadership development provided through the annual ARL Leadership Symposium, a formal mentoring program, career placement assistance, and a research library visit hosted by the Purdue University Libraries. The IRDW is underwritten by ARL member libraries. This program reflects the commitment of ARL members to create a diverse research library professional community that will better meet the challenges of changing demographics in higher education and the emphasis on global perspectives in the academy.

Jeffrey Trzeciak, university librarian at Washington University in St. Louis and member of the IRDW selection committee, said, “I'm quite honored to have been part of the selection process this year. It was a stellar group of applicants, which made our jobs both more challenging and more rewarding. I am encouraged by the quality of individuals who chose to apply. It is a real indication of the appeal our profession has to a broad range of individuals from a variety of backgrounds.”

Fellow selection committee member Terry Birdwhistell, dean of libraries at the University of Kentucky, added, “The experience and expertise that this new generation of diverse students brings to graduate library programs across the nation speaks well for the future of our research libraries.”

The 2013–2015 Diversity Scholars are:

Joanna Chen, University of California, Los Angeles         
James Cheng, University of Texas at Austin
Andrea Devlin, University of Rhode Island
Rhonda Evans, Pratt Institute   
Pia Hunter, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Rhonda Jones, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Melissa Kahili, University of Washington
Rebecca Nieto, McGill University
Paula Pascual, University of Michigan
Conrad Pegues, Kent State University
Sarah Pham, University of California, Los Angeles
Saira Raza, University of North Texas
Joel Sanders, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Nelson Santana, Drexel University
Madeline Sheldon, University of Michigan

For more information about the IRDW, visit the ARL Initiative to Recruit a Diverse Workforce website.

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