The Center for Digital Literacy at the School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, under the leadership of Drs. Ruth Small and Marilyn Arnone, is excited to announce receipt of an IMLS National Leadership Grant entitled “School
Libraries as Innovation Spaces, School Librarians as Innovation Mentors: Stimulating Students’ Curiosity, Inquiry and Innovative Thinking.” For this innovative project, we are working in partnership with four recognized organizations that support youth innovation
and a renowned expert in mentorship.
As part of this project, in addition to creating a unique website called “The Innovation Destination” that inspires, supports and informs young innovators (grades 4-8) and provides a wealth of instructional support
materials for librarians and teachers, we will be developing a series of online learning modules and webinars for librarians on ways to effectively mentor children to be creative and innovative. These mentoring materials will be developed in partnership with
one of the country’s leading experts on mentorship.
We are seeking ten school librarians nationwide who work in schools where innovation activities are offered and supported (e.g., invention fairs, makerspaces, innovation competitions) to join our
dynamic team.
The ten school librarians we select to participate will be asked to (1) pilot test our modules and other materials, (2) enroll in our webinars, (3) use our website with young innovators in their schools, and (4)
document their experiences with their young innovators as part of our research efforts. What we learn from your documentation will be included in research articles and presentations in professional journals and at professional conferences.
We expect participation will require a minimum of 25 hours over approximately one year. A modest stipend will be provided to each of the six librarians for their participation in this national project. The participation
of these six trailblazing librarians will serve as a model to other librarians wishing to mentor young innovators in their schools.
If you are interested in being considered for participation in this unique new project or have any questions, please contact Dr. Ruth Small at
drruth@syr.edu no later than February 15, 2016. In your message, please describe why you are well-suited to participate in this project in light of the requirements and activities described above and be sure and include
contact information should we have any questions for you. The six librarians selected for participation will be notified no later than March 1, 2016 and will be provided with detailed information about the project and their participation in it at that time.
Again, if you have any questions, please contact me.
Thank you for your attention and consideration.
Ruth V. Small, Ph.D.
Laura J. & L. Douglas Meredith Professor
Founding Director, Center for Digital Literacy
Director, Project ENABLE; Young Innovators Project
Co-Editor, School Library Research
School of Information Studies
Syracuse University
105 Hinds Hall
Syracuse, New York 13244-4100