Dear Colleagues, The Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) offers scholarships to subsidize first-time conference attendance by professional librarians, qualified paraprofessionals, and students. RBMS is currently accepting scholarship applications for the 2018 RBMS Conference, to be held in New Orleans from June 19-22, 2018. The deadline to apply is January 12, 2018 and applicants will be notified on or before February 28, 2018. RBMS is committed to increasing diversity in its membership and the special collections and archives professions. Accordingly, several conference scholarships have been designated for applicants from underrepresented ethnic and racial groups or for those employed by institutions that primarily serve one or more of these groups. For more information about the RBMS commitment to diversity, please visit the RBMS website (http://rbms.info/diversity/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__rbms.info_diversity_&d=DwMFAg&c=VYKZvO_tnlsTxm5qZp1oww&r=0aChR05cBZczFeBFqyur8A&m=kYLDZtSwuBS2RSAn6M3au3rZhsqHkKWl-wkOVMwSTFU&s=F3jg7OxniBnjqroztGF3i3n8Lob2YI014uEVv9ncIdA&e=>). If you would like to donate to the RBMS conference scholarship program, you may do so when you register for the conference, or separately through the Friends of ACRL website (http://www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl/givetoacrl/donate/friendsacrl<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.ala.org_acrl_aboutacrl_givetoacrl_donate_friendsacrl&d=DwMFAg&c=VYKZvO_tnlsTxm5qZp1oww&r=0aChR05cBZczFeBFqyur8A&m=kYLDZtSwuBS2RSAn6M3au3rZhsqHkKWl-wkOVMwSTFU&s=g4OuAYEve94fNUyTm-I6hVeRPTev5X99eB0G2nuPBH4&e=>). For the Friends site, please remember to indicate that the donation is for RBMS conference scholarships. Full and partial scholarships are awarded. Full scholarships include a waiver of the conference registration fee (up to $290 for professional and paraprofessional ACRL members, or $135 for full-time student members) plus a travel and accommodation stipend. Partial scholarships provide complimentary registration and may or may not include a stipend. Eligibility All candidates must be: 1. Currently enrolled in a library, information science, or archival studies program; a graduate of such a program; OR currently employed as a paraprofessional in a rare books, special collections, or archives capacity and 2. Members of ACRL who have not previously attended an RBMS conference and who do not have sufficient institutional support to attend. Criteria The Scholarships Committee will take into consideration the following criteria when considering applicants: * Evidence of commitment to and interest in the special collections field * Interest in contributing to the profession * Potential to benefit professionally from attendance at the conference * Financial need * Member of an underrepresented racial or ethnic group, or employed by an institution that primarily serves one or more of these groups Requirements Scholarship recipients are required to attend the entire conference and complete the conference evaluation. To help us ensure the ongoing improvement of the scholarship program, all scholarship winners will be required to submit a post-conference evaluation letter by July 31, 2018. The deadline to apply is January 12, 2018 (11:59pm EST). Please see the RBMS Conference website for more details and to apply: http://conference.rbms.info/2018/scholarships/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__conference.rbms.info_2018_scholarships_&d=DwMFAg&c=VYKZvO_tnlsTxm5qZp1oww&r=0aChR05cBZczFeBFqyur8A&m=kYLDZtSwuBS2RSAn6M3au3rZhsqHkKWl-wkOVMwSTFU&s=2l-7pM3F1JpYzRiMJaJBhMVFzvp5Y_wbpNAekuaQbzY&e=> Please feel free to share this opportunity widely! Thank you! Katie Henningsen Katie L.B. Henningsen Head of Research Services David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library Duke University katie.henningsen@duke.edu<mailto:katie.henningsen@duke.edu> 919.660.5825 http://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__library.duke.edu_rubenstein_&d=DwMFAg&c=VYKZvO_tnlsTxm5qZp1oww&r=0aChR05cBZczFeBFqyur8A&m=kYLDZtSwuBS2RSAn6M3au3rZhsqHkKWl-wkOVMwSTFU&s=-W1cOfKKh5SmPFy2Qy9tbE7w2NRB6GgyrLNftu7FNi8&e=> Wanda Kay Brown Director of Library Services C. G. O'Kelly Library (227) Winston-Salem State University 601 S. Martin Luther King Dr. Winston Salem, NC 27110 336-750-2446 [cid:image013.png@01D1CAD3.1E61A140]Like us on Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/cgokelly> [cid:image014.png@01D1CAD3.1E61A140]Follow us on Twitter<https://twitter.com/cg_okelly> [cid:image015.png@01D1CAD3.1E61A140] Follow us on Instagram<https://www.instagram.com/okellylibrary/> [cid:image016.png@01D1CAD3.1E61A140] Follow us on WordPress<https://okellylibrary.wordpress.com/> [cid:image017.png@01D1CAD3.1E61A140] Subscribe to our YouTube Channel<https://www.youtube.com/user/cgokellylibrary>