Press Release
For Immediate Release: Monday, October 9, 2006
Contact: Jessica Mackinnon, director of public relations
(708) 524-6289, jmack@dom.edu
Dominican University’s Graduate Library School Receives $290,000 IMLS Grant
River Forest, IL – Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science has received a $290,224 Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) National Leadership Grant to examine the impact of public library summer reading programs on student achievement. Partners on this project include the Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University, the Colorado State Library, and the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
The three-year research project will study the impact of public library and school partnerships on the reading achievement of disadvantaged third and fourth grade students. This project will seek to answer whether the summer reading clubs offered by 95.2% of public libraries in the United States actually accomplish the goals of preventing summer learning loss in reading performance and sustaining a love of reading in children.
“This research promises to be a major contribution to the field and will encourage schools and public libraries to cooperate in creating a nation of readers, those who not only have the skills but also a love for reading and lifelong learning,” said Susan Roman, dean of Dominican’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science.
The IMLS is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The institute empowers libraries and museums nationwide to provide leadership and services to enhance learning in families and communities, sustain our cultural heritage, build twenty-first century skills, and increase civic participation.
Accredited by the American Library Association, Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science has been educating future library leaders and information professionals since the 1930s.
Founded in 1901, Dominican University is a comprehensive, coeducational Catholic institution offering bachelor’s and master’s degrees. In the 2007 issue of America’s Best Colleges, U.S. News & World Report again ranked Dominican University in the top tier of Midwest master’s level universities and as a “best value” for the ninth consecutive year.