We are delighted to announce that three Syracuse University Master of Library and Information Science students have been recognized as Kaleidoscope Program Scholars.
Administered by the Association of Research Libraries, the goal of the Kaleidoscope Program is to attract master of library and information science (MLIS) students from historically underrepresented racial and ethnic groups to careers in research libraries and archives. The program, funded by ARL member libraries, was established in 2000 as the Initiative to Recruit a Diverse Workforce and was renamed Kaleidoscope in 2019. The Kaleidoscope Program is diversifying the profession by providing generous funding for MLIS education and a suite of related benefits, including mentoring, leadership and professional development, and career placement assistance.
The Kaleidoscope Program is supported by the Kaleidoscope Program Task Force and Kaleidoscope Program Selection Working Group.
The Syracuse University students awarded include:
Ariana Cook
Ariana Cook will be starting as a master’s student at Syracuse University in the fall of 2022. Ariana intends to focus on literacy equity within the library and information field because equal and fair access to information and knowledge is a powerful right of every individual. It is both a privilege and a source of pride to be a part of a university and intellectual community where she can work to foster diversity and create equity within the library and information field.
Ezekiel Amari McGee
Ezekiel Amari McGee is an MLIS graduate student hoping to work in the archival field. They have a long-standing interest in popular culture, particularly in regards to born-digital media, film, music, and television. They were born and raised in Michigan, but are currently residing in Rochester, New York, with their cat Sid.
Ruth Xing
Ruth Xing is currently pursuing their master’s degree in library and information science at Syracuse University. True to their interdisciplinary interests, Ruth spent their undergraduate years at Cornell University exploring a wide range of subjects, ultimately graduating with bachelor’s degrees in English and psychology. Ruth is an aspiring medieval studies librarian/archivist, researcher, and professor; in these capacities, Ruth hopes to serve international learners and scholars and to manage and contribute to medieval scholarship in multiple settings. One of Ruth’s greatest goals as a librarian of color is to advance the perspectives of people of color in medieval studies, a largely white-dominated field that routinely discourages scholars of color. In addition to being a medievalist, Ruth is also a multilingual language learner, a multi-instrumentalist, and, quite frankly, a frequent utterer of the phrase “I have too many hobbies.
