H.W. Wilson Library Staff Development Grant Award recipient named

CHICAGO – The North Bergen Free Public Library is the 2019 winner of the prestigious H.W. Wilson Library Staff Development Grant. The award is presented annually to a library organization whose application demonstrates greatest merit for a program of staff development designed to further the goals and objectives of the library organization.

The North Bergen Free Public Library is committed to promoting lifelong learning and providing ease of access to resources for their community. They serve a densely populated urban area which is culturally and economically diverse, leading to a proven need for social services along with ESL and ELL services.

The award jury was impressed by the library’s multi-pronged approach to addressing the needs of their community through the training of their staff. With the award, the library plans on addressing multiple areas of service to meet the needs of the many immigrants who call North Bergen home, along with addressing the needs of the community’s underserved population.

Members of the 2019 H.W. Wilson Library Staff Development Grant jury were Neely Tang, Chair, Cornell University Library, New York; Lauren Comito, Brooklyn Public Library, New York; Sarah Copeland, Chattanooga State Community College, Tennessee; Sara Dallas, Southern Adirondack Library System, New York; and Amanda Knapp, Westerville Public Library.

The H.W. Wilson Library Staff Development Grant will be presented at the ALA Award Ceremony and Reception on Sunday, June 23 at the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. The award is funded by EBSCO Information Services which took over supporting the award after acquiring H.W. Wilson.

The deadline for submissions of applications for the 2020 H.W. Wilson Library Staff Development Grant is Feb. 2020.