91´«Ã½

CHICAGO — Library professionals are invited to apply for the 91´«Ã½’s Great Stories Club series on Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT). This thematic reading and discussion program series will engage underserved teens through literature-based library outreach programs and racial healing work.

and by Nov. 16. Up to 70 libraries will be selected.

An expansion of 91´«Ã½’s longstanding Great Stories Club program model, the TRHT series will feature books that explore questions of race, equity, identity, history, institutional change and social justice. The series is a part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation efforts, a comprehensive, national and community-based process to plan for and bring about transformational and sustainable change, and to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism. The TRHT Great Stories Club is supported by a .

Participating libraries will work with small groups of approximately 10 teens; provide up to four theme-related books for each participant to keep as their own; convene opportunities for exploration and discussion of relevant humanities content among peers; and offer at least one interactive session for program conveners and participants led by a racial healing practitioner(s).

All types of libraries (public, school, academic and special) are eligible, as long as they work in partnership with, or are located within, an organization that reaches underserved teens (e.g., juvenile justice facilities, alternative high schools, agencies serving teenaged foster children, youth-focused community nonprofits).

Below is a sampling of partnerships from libraries that participated in the TRHT Great Stories Club pilot program:

• Juneau Public Library (Juneau, Alaska) partnered with the treatment unit of the Johnson Youth Center to introduce students in the detention facility to literature and ideas that resonate with them. “Too often curriculums and pop culture present a homogeneous culture that reflects colonization norms and does not resonate with our students,” wrote librarian Amelia Jenkins. “This series is a concrete step toward acknowledging their experience and expanding their intellectual life.”
  
  
• Dallas Public Library (Dallas, Texas) collaborated with Promise House, a nonprofit group home that supports homeless LGBT youth, to lead weekly gatherings with their youth. “The participants gain an understanding of how their racial identity affects them and how to navigate society and develop positive relationships with those who are different from them,” says Monique Christian-Long, the library’s teen services coordinator.
  
  
• Towson University (Townson, Maryland) worked with Baltimore Public Schools in a collaborative program for high school and college-age students. “By connecting the high school students with university students who are involved with Towson University’s Black Student Union, Towson Freedom School and our library’s A-LIST Student Leadership Program, we hope to provide a window into what activism and engagement on a college campus can look like,” wrote librarian Miriam DesHarnais.

Grantee benefits include 11 paperback copies of up to four books on the reading list; a programming grant of up to $1,200; travel and accommodation expenses paid for attendance at a two-day orientation workshop in Chicago; and additional resources, training and support from 91´«Ã½’s Public Programs Office.

Applicants may choose to apply for one of the following themes: “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.”

Libraries selected for a “Deeper than Our Skins” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

• “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• “The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano” by Sonia Manzano
• “Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices,” edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale
• “The Shadow Hero” by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Sonny Liew
• “Mother of the Sea” by Zetta Elliott
• “Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.” by Luis J. Rodriguez

Libraries selected for a “Finding Your Voice” grant may choose up to four books from the following reading list:

• “The Poet X” by Elizabeth Acevedo
• “I Am Alfonso Jones” by Tony Medina
• “Gabi, A Girl in Pieces” by Isabel Quintero
• “Piecing Me Together” by Renée Watson
• “American Street” by Ibi Zoboi
• “Anger is a Gift” by Mark Oshiro

The TRHT Great Stories Club has led creation of both series. The “Deeper Than Our Skins” series has been developed by literature scholar Maria Sachiko Cecire (Bard College) and librarians Wini Ashooh (Central Rappahannock Regional Library System), Edith Campbell (Cunningham Memorial Library at Indiana State University) and Vanessa “Chacha” Centeno (Sacramento Public Library). “Finding Your Voice” was developed by literature scholar Susana M. Morris (Georgia Institute of Technology) and librarians Angelina M. Cortes (Sno-Isle Libraries), Joslyn Bowling Dixon (Prince William Library System) and Amira Shabana (Barrington (Illinois) Middle School).

A final round of Great Stories Club grants for the TRHT series will be offered in 2019 for programs held Oct. 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020. Additional details are available .

The Great Stories Club is administered by 91´«Ã½’s Public Programs Office in partnership with 91´«Ã½’s Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. Funding is provided by the Kellogg Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and Acton Family Giving.

About the 91´«Ã½

The 91´«Ã½ (91´«Ã½) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the 91´«Ã½ has been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit .

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.

The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit .

About the National Endowment for the Humanities

Created in 1965 as an independent federal agency, the National Endowment for the Humanities supports research and learning in history, literature, philosophy, and other areas of the humanities by funding selected, peer-reviewed proposals from around the nation. Additional information about the National Endowment for the Humanities and its grant programs is available at: .

About the National Endowment for the Arts

Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. Visit to learn more about NEA.