Who Was Donna Norvell?
1945-2004

From 1992-2004, Donna Norvell was the Children’s Consultant for the Oklahoma Department of Libraries. On October 27, 2004, Oklahoma’s Library community lost Donna to an inoperable brain tumor.

Donna was the driving force behind Oklahoma award winning public library Summer Reading Programs. During her tenure, she brought 12 original themes to the Summer Reading Program (SRP). She diligently worked to produce the SRP manual which included bibliographies, program ideas and presenters. Donna traveled extensively each spring bringing the concept of the SRP and her enthusiasm for each new theme to all public libraries in the state. Due to Donna's dedication, summer reading participation in Oklahoma more than tripled from 26,555 during her first year to nearly 98,000 in 2004.

During her tenure at the Oklahoma Department of Libraries, Donna developed a Youth Advisory Services Council. With Donna’s guidance and counsel, librarians from across the state representing all types of libraries worked for three years to develop library standards for working with children and youth. Youth Services Guidelines for Oklahoma, 2003 was the result of this effort.

Donna received her Bachelor of Art Degree in Biology and Physical Education from the University of Southern Colorado. She held teaching Certificates in Colorado as an Education Media Specialist and in Oklahoma as a School Library Media Specialist. In 1982, Donna completed her Master of Library Science degree from the University of Oklahoma.

A mentor for both public and school librarians, Donna was known throughout the state and respected for her expertise and intelligence regarding children’s development, literature, libraries and library services. She was a contributing member to many professional organizations including: ALA, MPLA, ALSC, PLA, IRA and OLA.

Donna was an adjunct professor at the University of Oklahoma where she taught Children’s Literature. She was also a Teacher’s Associate in the College of Education at Oklahoma State University. She co-authored Travel the Globe: Multicultural Storytimes with Sandy Shropshire, DeeDee Corn, Elaine Harrod, and Desiree Webber.

After Donna's death, a group of colleagues formed the Donna Norvell Memorial Committee and as a result, the Donna Norvell Book Award was created. The award is for a book selected by the OLA Sequoyah teams based on Sequoyah criteria.