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P.S. A correction: we have just *$4,000* to go to meet the scholarship fundraising goal! We really are so close -- thank you in advance for considering supporting the fund or sharing the donation call. Scholarship website: https://fundutischoolbipoc.wordpress.com/ Donation portal: https://www.texasexes.org/iSchoolScholarship On Wed, Mar 30, 2022 at 12:07 PM Alison Clemens <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Dear C4L colleagues, > > I'm writing with a request for your consideration in contributing to the > University of Texas iSchool Alumni Scholarship for BIPOC Students. > > We have just $8,000 to go! We've raised $45,850 of $50,000 funds to create > an endowed UT iSchool scholarship to help more BIPOC scholars enter the > profession, and if we raise the remaining funds by the end of this month > (just a couple days away!), we'll be able to begin awarding the scholarship > to students in fall 2023. > > Donations between now and the end of March will be matched, up to $3,500 > total! We're getting so close and are very hopeful we can begin providing > financial support to students next year! > > *Please consider helping us meet our goal and being part of the > scholarship's success*! You can visit the scholarship's website ( > https://fundutischoolbipoc.wordpress.com/) or its donation portal ( > https://www.texasexes.org/iSchoolScholarship). A full press release about > the scholarship is below. > > With gratitude, > Alison Clemens, for the UT iSchool BIPOC Scholarship Team > > *UT iSchool alumni step up to create an endowed scholarship for BIPOC > students* > > Graduates of the University of Texas at Austin School of Information have > started a grassroots fundraising campaign to create an endowed scholarship > to help more BIPOC scholars enter the profession > > The grassroots fundraising campaign was formed in response to a 2020 > petition by UT iSchool students > <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ucP6DehuxRRJTaAu73lWku2EFFooQ2QQxNo_QL3g8SE/edit?usp=sharing>. > The petition stated “BIPOC students, who face additional obstacles to > academic success and personal well-being, should have pathways for > education at the iSchool through accessible and available funding,” among > other demands for antiracist action. The call prompted UT iSchool alumni > Alison Clemens and Michelle Keba Knecht to organize planning for an endowed > scholarship to support BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) > students. > > The “iSchool Alumni Scholarship for BIPOC Students” will be administered > by Texas Exes, the UT Austin alumni association, and supporters can donate > through www.texasexes.org/iSchoolScholarship. Meeting the initial goal of > $50,000 will create a recurring yearly scholarship of $2,000. Fundraising > began in October 2021 and raised $8000 in the first month. > > *The scholarship is a concrete step towards the University of Texas’s, and > the School of Information’s, goals of greater diversity, equity, and > inclusion. It is the only scholarship specifically for UT iSchool students > of color, who are underrepresented both in the information profession and > the iSchool -- Emma Hetrick, MSIS expected 2022* > > > BIPOC communities are under-represented in the information professions. In > 2017, surveys of both the American Library Association > <http://www.ala.org/tools/research/initiatives/membershipsurveys> and the Society > of American Archivists > <https://www2.archivists.org/aboutarchives/resources/factsandfigures/wars-saa-salary-survey> reported > that the library and archives fields are roughly 87% white, while the U.S. > population <https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045219> is > currently 76% white. Significantly, fewer than 5% of individuals in both > professions reported identifying as Black or African American, compared to > 13% of the country as a whole. Results from an informal 2020 survey of > iSchool students by the petitioners showed that “89.3% of respondents want > action to be taken to increase scholarship and funding opportunities for > BIPOC students and to hire more BIPOC faculty and staff.” > > The UT iSchool BIPOC Scholarship Team began meeting in December 2020. The > team is led by Michelle Keba Knecht and Alison Clemens in collaboration > with Lauren Algee, Hannah Calkins, Martha Horan, Kathi Isham, Dana Sagona, > Elliot Williams, Rachel E. Winston, student representative Emma Hetrick, > and faculty representative Dr. Loriene Roy. > > *Press contact*: Alison Clemens, [log in to unmask], 203-432-9029 > *Website*: https://fundutischoolbipoc.wordpress.com/ > *Related press*: “School of Information creates scholarship for BIPOC > students <https://thedailytexan.com/2021/10/14/dt-10-15-21/#3>,” Daily > Texan, October 15, 2021 >