The OLA Scholarship Committee had an outstanding pool of applicants for the 2008 Awards. The committee members carefully considered each of the candidates and made recommendations for our limited pool of funds. We wish all candidates and recipients every success as they continue their graduate work with their goal of librarianship as a profession. Applicants who were not selected are encouraged to re-apply next year, providing they meet the criteria and requirements.

The OLA Scholarship Committee announces the following selections for the 2008 Graduate Scholarship:

• Diane Gordon
• Kristal Sergent
• Jenneffer Sixkiller

Diane Gordon is currently a classroom teacher in the Perkins-Tryon School. She is enrolled at Oklahoma State University in the Master’s in Educational Technology program with an option in School Library Media Certification. She has been a classroom teacher for sixteen years and states that she values the collaboration between the classroom teacher and the library media specialist. After graduation she intends to pursue a position as a library media specialist. Her personal statement asserted the importance of technology integration in the classroom and teaching ethical researching and information literacy skills. A past recipient as the Teacher of the Year, one of her references stated: “Diane has an amazing ability to connect with her students.”

Kristal Sergent is currently a graduate research assistant at the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa Library. She is enrolled in the OU School of Library and Information Studies and serves as the graduate student representative to the curriculum committee. Presently she is a 2007-2009 Diversity Scholar from the Association of Research Libraries and a 2007-2008 ALA Spectrum Scholar. Her personal statement described the development of a user needs assessment program in her graduate research assistant position. One of her references stated, “She is the only graduate student to have initiated her own library program evaluation project. Her successful research assignments have already made a contribution to the library.”

Jenneffer Sixkiller is currently a part-time adult services librarian at the Stillwater Public Library. She is also an intern in the Visual Resources Library at the Art Department of OSU. She is enrolled in the OU School of Library and Information Studies with a focus on art librarianship. Her personal statement described “My coursework at the SLIS program has been extremely helpful in answering the ‘whys’ of day to day library work, and has given me a different perspective than I had before.” Jenneffer has presented at an OLA workshop and Southwest Texas Popular Culture Conference. One of her references stated, “Jenneffer makes time to attend conferences, volunteer for community projects, and conduct research involving archival materials.”