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The Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival is an annual book festival that was founded in 1968 and is sponsored by The University of Southern Mississippi.
In 1968, Dr. Warren Tracy, chairman of the Library Science Department and university librarian for The University of Southern Mississippi, saw his vision for a children’s literature conference come to life. The university, under the leadership of Dr. William D. McCain, and the Library Science department hosted the Conference on the Writing, Illustrating, and Publishing of Children's Books, the first of what soon became the annual Children's Book Festival.
Two years earlier, Dr. Lena de Grummond, professor of Library Science, with Dr. Tracy’s blessing, had begun to procure early children's books to support the Library Science program. She spent countless hours writing to authors and illustrators of contemporary children’s books to acquire original material for the library. Contributions of artwork and manuscripts flowed in from across the United States and Canada. Today, more than 1200 authors and illustrators are represented in the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection.
In his original vision for a children's literature conference, Dr. Tracy saw the conference as a way to highlight the de Grummond Collection. That first conference in May 1968 was designed to announce the opening of the special children's literature collection. Librarians, teachers, parents, and other adults interested in promoting children's literature were invited for three days of exhibits, workshops, and panel discussions led by publishers and editors of children's books. Dr. Francis Lander Spain, past president of the American Library Association and former head of the children's department of the New York Public Library, spoke at the first evening session, which was open to the public.
In 1969, the conference became known as the Children's Book Festival and included an event that became an honored tradition – presentation of The University of Southern Mississippi Medallion, an award for distinguished service in the field of children’s literature. A committee of professionals associated with children’s literature selects the recipient each year. Unique among literary prizes, the medallion is awarded for an individual's total body of work, rather than for one particular work, and each medallion is different. Cast in silver for the recipient and for permanent display in the de Grummond Collection, in bronze for sale to the public, a profile of the honoree is engraved on the face, or obverse, of the medallion, and an illustration from the honoree's work is engraved on the reverse side. Since the first award to author Lois Lenski at the Second Annual Children’s Book Festival, the Southern Miss Medallion has been presented to an outstanding array of children’s authors and illustrators.
From 1977 to 1980, Dr. Onva K. Boshears served as director of the festival. Dr. Jeannine Laughlin-Porter assumed the directorship in 1980. That was the year Ezra Jack Keats, internationally acclaimed author and illustrator for children, was invited to accept the Southern Miss Medallion. Following his visit, Keats became one of the strongest supporters of the Children's Book Festival and the de Grummond Collection. Since his death, the university has acquired his personal and professional papers, original artwork, typescripts, and dummies and preliminary sketches for 36 of his books. The materials are now housed in the de Grummond Collection. In 1985, the Keats Foundation established an Ezra Jack Keats lectureship, with Barbara Cooney as the artist honoree and Brian Alderson as the first Keats lecturer. Children's Authors Speak, a collection of speeches compiled by Dr. Laughlin-Porter and Sherry Laughlin, was published in 1993 and includes a number of Keats lectures, as well as speeches by Southern Miss Medallion honorees.
Dr. Boshears, during Dr. Laughlin-Porter's directorship of the festival, continued to work closely with her and chaired the Medallion Selection Committee through spring 1993. In 1994, he resumed directorship of the festival and continued as director until his retirement in 2001. Dr. Rosemary Chance, an assistant professor in the School of Library and Information Science, became the director of the festival in 2002. Upon Dr. Chance's retirement in 2004, Dr. Catharine Bomhold became the director of the Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival.
In 1998, Miss Fay B. Kaigler, a retired elementary school teacher and native Mississippian, funded the first Kaigler–Lamont Award to be given for distinguished service to children by a librarian or teacher. On December 5, 2001, the festival was renamed in honor of Miss Kaigler, who contributed a planned gift to the festival.
The University of Southern Mississippi Medallion, sometimes promoted as the Southern Miss Medallion, [1] annually recognizes one person for "outstanding contributions in the field of children's literature". It was inaugurated at the second annual Festival in 1969.
"Silver medallions are cast for the recipient, for the president of The University of Southern Mississippi, for members of the medallion selection committee, and for the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection's permanent display. In addition, bronze medallions are cast and are available for purchase during the festival." —2010 Program [2]
The Medallion is a lifetime achievement award that will be conferred for the 47th time at the annual conference in April 2015. [3] [4]
Hans Augusto Rey was a German-born American illustrator and author, known best for the series of children's picture books that he and his wife Margret Rey created about Curious George.
Margret Elizabeth Rey was a German-born American writer and illustrator, known best for the Curious George series of children's picture books that she and her husband H. A. Rey created from 1939 to 1966.
Ezra Jack Keats was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. He won the 1963 Caldecott Medal for illustrating The Snowy Day, which he also wrote. Keats wrote A Letter to Amy and Hi, Cat! but he was most famous for The Snowy Day. It is considered one of the most important American books of the 20th century.
Janina Domańska was a Polish-born American artist, author and illustrator.She is best known for her self-illustrated children's books. She won a Caldecott Honor for her book If All the Seas Were One Sea in 1972.
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James Edward Marshall was an American illustrator and writer of children's books, probably best known for the George and Martha series of picture books (1972–1988). He illustrated books exclusively as James Marshall; when he created both text and illustrations he sometimes wrote as Edward Marshall. In 2007, the U.S. professional librarians posthumously awarded him the bi-ennial Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal for "substantial and lasting contribution" to American children's literature.
The University of Southern Mississippi is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, master's, specialist, and doctoral degrees. The university is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".
Nonny Hogrogian is an Armenian-American writer and illustrator, known best for children's picture books. She has won two annual Caldecott Medals for U.S. children's book illustrations. Since childhood she prefers folk and fairy tales, poetry, fantasy and stories.
Hans Wilhelm is a German-American writer, children's book author and illustrator, and artist. Hans Wilhelm has written and/or illustrated over 200 books – mostly for children. They have been translated in more than thirty languages and have won numerous international awards and prizes. Many of them have been made into animated television series. Presently there are over forty two million books by Hans Wilhelm in print. Some of his best-known books include "I'll Always Love You", "Bunny Trouble" series, "Tyrone The Horrible" series, "Waldo" series, and the "Noodles" books.
The McCain Library and Archives is the chief reserve library for The University of Southern Mississippi. It houses the items in Southern Mississippi's possession that are not available for checkout. Besides being the archives, the building also houses the office of the President Emeritus, and the universities audio visual department. The Archives also house the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection, one of the largest collections of children's literature in the world.
Ashley Frederick Bryan was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Most of his subjects are from the African-American experience. He was U.S. nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2006 and he won the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for his contribution to American children's literature in 2009. His picture book Freedom Over Me was short-listed for the 2016 Kirkus Prize and received a Newbery Honor.
Margot Ladd Tomes was an American artist and illustrator of children's books. Books that she illustrated have been among The New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books of the Year, Jack and the Wonder Beans in 1977 and If There Were Dreams to Sell in 1984. She also provided illustrations for Jean Fritz’s Newbery Honor Book and American Book Award Homesick: My Own Story in 1982.
Harold Jones was a British artist, illustrator and writer of children's books. Critic Brian Alderson called him "perhaps the most original children's book illustrator of the period". He established his reputation with lithographs illustrating This Year: Next Year (1937), a collection of verses by Walter de la Mare.
Adrienne Adams was a children's book illustrator as well as an artist and writer of children's books. She won two Caldecott Honors and in 1973 she was awarded the Rutgers Award for overall contributions to children’s literature. In 1977, she was awarded the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion.
Hildegard Woodward was the author and illustrator of many children's books, two of which were awarded a Caldecott Honor. Woodward's art was not restricted to children's books; her portfolio includes numerous works of fiction and humor for adults. Although most noted for her watercolor illustrations, she painted in oil and was a children's portrait artist.
The Ezra Jack Keats Book Award is an annual U.S. literary award.
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Alice Cooper Bailey was an American writer of children's books and articles for periodicals. She is best known for the books Katrina and Jan and Kimo.
Symeon Shimin was a Russian born American artist and illustrator of Russian Jewish descent. He was principally known as an artist of Hollywood Film Posters and as an award-winning illustrator of 57 children's books including two that he authored himself, I wish there were two of me and A special birthday. His fine art, developed throughout his life, includes the highly acclaimed mural Contemporary Justice and The Child created in 1936, that took four years to complete. Other notable work includes the painting The Pack that he completed in 1959.
Zhenya Gay (1906–1978) was an American writer and illustrator.
Coordinates: 31°19′42″N89°19′58″W / 31.328278°N 89.332712°W
