Dr. Nicole A. Cooke, Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s School of Information Sciences, has been named the 2016 recipient of the American Library Association’s Equality Award. The award, which is given annually and comes with $1,000 and a citation of achievement, recognizes a group or individual who has made significant contributions toward promoting greater equality within the library and information science profession. Dr. Cooke, who is also a faculty affiliate at the Center for Digital Inclusion, was recognized for her career-long devotion to increasing equity in librarianship, particularly by improving library services for racial minorities and other underserved groups. Cooke has been involved with many projects through the Association for Library and Information Science Education and UIUC’s iSchool, and she also has an extensive publishing record on issues related to equality and social justice. According to the award committee, her largest impact has been in the classroom, where she has inspired numerous future librarians to make libraries, and the profession as a whole, more fair and accessible to all.
To read the full announcement, go here.