Press Release
May 9, 2022
The American Indian Library Association and the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association Announce Winners of the 2022 Talk Story Grant
The American Indian Library Association (AILA) and the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA), supported by Springer Nature, are pleased to award a $500 grant to each of the following four libraries and community organizations to host Talk Story: Sharing Stories, Sharing Culture programming. The awarded libraries and community organizations are:
Auburn Hills Public Library, Michigan – In collaboration with a local Hindu temple, the library plans to expand their world language collection and offer a Diwali cultural program in Fall 2022. Books focusing on Hindi, Telugu, and Kannada will be added to the collection, in preparation for the Diwali (October 24th) program, featuring but not limited to: a Diwali story, brief, a lesson about Diwali and its history and appropriate crafts, activities, and snacks. All will be presented by community members who emigrated to the US and are able to speak about their lived experiences of celebrating Diwali in India.
Benton Middle School Tiger Library, Louisiana – The Tiger Tales Book Club will connect with and feature Mrs. Karen Bean, teacher, librarian, and Filipina/Pacific Islander author, to collaborate with Filipinx students on a weekly basis to co-read books (for reading literacy) and share lived experiences (for oral traditions) to gain knowledge about the cultures presented in young adult books, along with growing students’ ability to honor, elevate, and understand the cultures of others within and outside of the book club.The program will culminate into a Filipinx feast, inviting families to highlight stories the students learned and the activity of sharing stories between generations of family and community members.
Downers Grove Public Library, Illinois – In partnership with the Midwest SOARRING Foundation (MSF) to provide two storytelling events, one for children and families, and one for adults. Both storytelling events will share Native folktales, a discussion about what these stories teach and inform our communities, and a table of Native artifacts. The adult event will feature an in-depth discussion about current lifestyles and issues facing Native communities, as well as an opportunity for patrons to taste authentic Native fry bread. The children/family program will feature a beading craft led by the MSF. These storytelling events will provide opportunities for our patrons to learn about Native culture through oral histories and folklore, presented by Native individuals during Native American Heritage Month. Additionally, the grant will allow the library to add new materials to the library’s collection for patrons to learn more. Native titles that are typically inaccessible for purchase from traditional vendors will be featured in the library’s catalog, which will be easily accessible by all 100-consortium members.
Florence-Lauderdale Public Library, Alabama – While partnering with the Florence Indian Mound and Museum, tribal Chickasaw members will be invited to share their culture and storytelling practices. A Chickasaw story (from the Chickasaw Press) will focus on themes or characters within the story. Young patrons will be invited to create their own stories using the characters or themes they previously learned about. Community members will learn to work together to write and illustrate their ideas. The storytelling event will coincide with Oka Kapassa, “an annual festival held at Tuscumbia’s Spring Park. The Festival practices storytelling, dancing, music, traditional cuisine, crafts, and demonstrations to celebrate the culture and traditions of Native Americans who once thrived in the area.” These programs will connect patrons to nature, history, culture, and music as well as bring awareness of harmful stereotypes and the effects of colonialism to a group of people who may not have this opportunity otherwise.
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Talk Story: Sharing stories, sharing culture is a literacy program that reaches out to Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) and American Indian children, their families, and their intergenerational community members. The program celebrates and explores culturally informed stories through books, oral traditions, art, and immersive activities to provide an enriching experience of reading, language, and cultural literacy that challenges mainstream Anglocentric literacy practices. Grants provide financial support to libraries and community organizations who want to introduce a Talk Story program into their community programming.
Talk Story is a joint project between the American Indian Library Association (https://ailanet.org/) and the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (www.apalaweb.org). It began as part of ALA 2009-2010 President Camila Alire’s Family Literacy Focus Initiative. 2022 is the 12th year that AILA and APALA have partnered on the Talk Story project and allocated grant funding to libraries to implement programs geared towards the APIA/American Indian communities. This is the first year that Springer Nature has supported grant sponsorship.
Committee Chairs are Aaron LaFromboise (AILA), Amy Breslin (APALA), and Sarah Nguyễn (APALA). For more information, please visit the Talk Story web site: www.talkstorytogether.org.