Background and History
The late Dr. Winifred Sewell worked with several professional associations during her long career in medical and pharmacy librarianship/information technology. This led to her appreciation of the key role that librarians and information professionals can play in raising the quality of health care. Convinced that interacting with public health and pharmacy colleagues would forge a much deeper understanding of the users’ roles and needs, she established the Grace and Harold Sewell Memorial Fund, Inc. (The Fund) to provide financial support to librarians and information providers who plan to attend the annual meetings of the American Public Health Association and the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.
Purpose
The Fund aims to increase librarians’ effectiveness at providing reliable/relevant information to health care professionals in the fields of public health and pharmacy. To achieve this purpose, the Fund awards reimbursement funds to librarians and other information professionals to defray association membership/registration/travel and per diem expenses of attending and/or participating in activities of the American Public Health Association (APHA).
Type and Number of Stipends
This year’s APHA meeting will take place in Washington, DC from October 29 – November 2, 2011. Its theme will be Healthy Communities Promote Healthy Minds & Bodies.
At least seven individuals traveling significant distances (i.e. not living in the Washington DC area) will each receive a stipend of at least $1,000. A maximum of four individuals living in the Washington, DC area (and therefore needing less travel and accommodation funding) will receive stipends of at least $640. This amount covers the APHA Membership at $195 and Early Bird (pre-August 27, 2010) Member Registration at $445. Please note, this stipend WILL NOT cover the full costs of attendance, it merely helps to offset some of the costs.
Eligibility
The applicant must have an MLS/MLIS or equivalent degree or extensive experience in providing community-based information services. In addition, the applicant must indicate some interest or involvement in public health practice. Among the other criteria that will be considered:
- United States citizenship or possession of a legal “green card”
- Current or intended work with public health practitioners
- Demonstrated interest in working with public health practitioners
- Recent MLS/MLIS graduation and assumption of a position in an enterprise that provides significant information services to public health practitioners
- Availability of other funding. The applicant should estimate the amount of funding his/her institution will provide and indicate that on the application form
Applications
The following materials are required for application in one Word document:
Assign the file a name that begins with your initials (so we can easily identify your application) e.g., bfolb-stipend 2011 application.doc
- A completed application form (Word Format)
- A statement of 250-500 words (approximately 1 page) explaining interest/purpose in applying for the stipend. This statement should address:
- Anticipated future use of the knowledge/connections gained from attending
- Proposed mentor and what may be gained from mentorship and/or presentations you will give/moderate at the meeting
- Interest/previous activity in the area of public health or assumption of a new position in an enterprise providing significant information services to public health practitioners, such as a library, information center, community center or local health jurisdiction
- Proposed use of the stipend by the recipient. (Note: The stipend may be used for travel, hotel stay, food, conference registration fee, or related expenses, e.g., poster preparation).
- A current Curriculum Vitae (in Word format)
When is the application due in 2011?
The stipend application is due Friday July 29, 2011, 5pm EST and should be sent to Barbara Folb folb@pitt.edu. It must be submitted electronically.
How are applications scored?
Applications are scored independently by each of the committee members and then total results are tabulated. Scores are based on how well the applicant addresses the areas required in the application and how well they indicate they will be able to fulfill the requirements of attendance.
Is the application form for this stipend on the Web?
It is available on the PH/HA Section web site at: http://www.phha.mlanet.org/blog/activities/sewell-stipend/. Or, you may contact any of the committee members for this form and for additional information.
When can I expect to hear if I have been granted the stipend?
The decision on who shall receive stipends in 2011 will be made by August 12, 2011. You will need to register immediately upon receiving notification to take advantage of the lower early bird registration fee.
Expectations
During the conference
During the conference, recipients are required to:
- Attend the national meeting for at least three (3) full days, including as many of the scientific sessions as time permits. Sunday, the first day of the meeting, constitutes one full day.
- Attend the stipend recipients meeting (held before the General Opening Session on Sunday) and the New [APHA] Members Orientation (Sunday at 3:30)
- An optional stipend recipient’s dinner will take place Sunday(?) evening.
- Attend the orientation meeting. Attendance at this meeting is required of both new and returning stipend recipients. It enables you to meet other stipend recipients and learn about the organization of the APHA from the librarian/information provider perspective and about current information projects in which you may want to participate. Returning stipend recipients can meet and mentor/network with new stipend recipients. If stipend recipients are interested, they may attend an evening of dining together with Client Relations Committee members, who select Sewell stipend recipients.
- Take part in at least one of the following activities:
- Shadow a public health practitioner or mentor of your choice (assuming agreement with your public health colleague) to at least one or two meetings of interest to him/her (see FAQ for additional information on shadowing.)
- Make some special contribution to the meeting, such as:
- Give a talk/presentation/poster, or
- Moderate a scientific session (must plan ahead in order to be a moderator)
Post-conference activities
After the conference, recipients are required to submit a two-page summary to the Client Relations Committee outlining:
- Scientific sessions you attended
- Lessons learned from your attendance at the sessions
- Kind of contacts you made and how you intend to cultivate this new network of practitioners
- Issues, problems, items of interest, experiences, suggestions that you’d like to share with the Committee or other members of the Public Health/Health Administration (PH/HA) section of the Medical Library Association (MLA.)
Recipients are strongly encouraged to contribute to an article outlining their experiences and lessons learned for the PH/HA blog.
Deadlines
June 27, 2011: The Call for Stipend Applications will be released by this date.
July 29, 2011: All application materials must be received by Barbara Folb folb@pitt.edu
August 12, 2011: Committee will begin notifying applicants of the success of their applications.
August 19, 2011: Deadline for Early Bird Registration for APHA meeting. Applicants should have registered by this date.
October 29 – November 2, 2011: APHA Annual Meeting
November 14, 2011: Two page summary paper must be received by Barbara Folb folb@pitt.edu by 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
December 19, 2011: First draft of the newsletter article will be ready to be made available for comment/edits by all stipend recipients.
January 9, 2012: Final draft of edited newsletter article will be submitted to the editor of PHHA Blog.
Contact Information for Questions
These members of the Client Relations Committee may be reached via email:
Joseph Nicholson, Co-Chair joseph.nicholson@nyumc.org
Barbara Folb, Co-Chair folb@pitt.edu
Mellanye Lackey mjlackey@unc.edu
Helena Vonville Helena.M.Vonville@uth.tmc.edu
Matt Wilcox matthew.wilcox@yale.edu
Updated June 23, 2011