Shaena Engle (engle@gseis.ucla.edu)                                                                     For Immediate Use

(310) 206-5951                                                                                                  September 18, 2002

 

 

UCLA AWARDED IMLS GRANT

FOR PRE-DOCTORAL TRAINING TO INCREASE DIVERSITY

IN LIBRARY RESEARCH AND LEADERSHIP

 

            The Department of Information Studies at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies is pleased to announce that it is one of seven recipients of a grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).   The $196,055 grant will fund PRAXIS - Practice, Reflection, Advocacy, eXcellence, Inquiry, Solutions: A Pre-Doctoral and Recruitment Program for Tomorrow’s Culturally Diverse Information Studies Faculty and Leaders.  PRAXIS is a one-year program that will train eight librarians of culturally diverse backgrounds in research, information technology and policy to prepare them for future doctoral studies.  It will award participants a Post-MLIS certificate and will assist them in preparing study plans for doctoral programs.

 

            “The grant enables us to sponsor working librarians of culturally diverse backgrounds, furthering their education and providing them access to the latest advances in library and information science,” said Information Studies Associate Professor and Principal Investigator Clara Chu.  PRAXIS has long-range and far-reaching impact for the profession's capacity in diversifying the faculty, research and leadership in information studies.  It is responding to two critical professional issues:

  • Shortage of library and information studies (LIS) faculty from culturally diverse backgrounds
  • Lack of empirical, critical and theoretical inquiry in multicultural library and information practice

Information sessions will be held during the month of October; applications will be due, November 13th; and the program will begin January 2003.  The grant provides participants with scholarships that will cover tuition and fees, and a stipend.  For details and deadlines, connect to the PRAXIS website at http://is.gseis.ucla.edu/

 

            The Institute of Museum and Library Services is a federal grant-making agency located in Washington, D. C. that fosters leadership, innovation and a lifetime of learning by supporting museums and libraries.

 

            One of eleven professional schools at UCLA, GSE&IS consists of two academic departments, the Department of Education and the Department of Information Studies. UCLA is the only major research university in the country that combines departments of education and information studies, both programs ranked in the top 10 nationally.

 

For more information, please contact Clara M. Chu cchu@ucla.edu, (310) 206-9368, Elizabeth Martinez, Program Director emfuture@hotmail.com, (310) 794-5096.

 

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