The Camden County Library System has announced that its literacy/adult education coordinator, Shyamoli De, has been selected as an American Graduate Champion by WHYY in Philadelphia.
“WHYY launched The American Graduate Champions Project to honor regular people who go the extra mile to keep students on the path to graduation,” said Craig Santoro, director of educational programs. “All successful students have caring adults and peers in their corner. This project is just one example of our commitment to education and is a great opportunity for us to highlight people who support students during their educational journeys.”
De’s work is unique in helping adults who never finished high school get the chance to earn a fully accredited high school diploma and a complementary career certificate through the library’s Career Online High School that offered 35 scholarships to residents.
In the library’s nomination of De for the honor, Camden County Library Director Linda Devlin said, “Shyamoli is passionate about literacy and adult education. She easily connects with learners and was a natural choice for overseeing our Career Online High School program. Her dedication to adult literacy was apparent in her work on a number of programs even before being appointed as the Literacy/Adult Education Coordinator for the library.”
Camden County Freeholder Ian Leonard, who has championed education and literacy, talked about the importance of De’s work and the impact it has on the public.
“This is another example of our employees and librarians going above and beyond and dedicating themselves to the very best of public service,” Leonard said. “Helping someone to earn a high school diploma or learn how to read is imperative for them to be successful, and I believe this recognition solidifies the significance of her work.”
Since becoming a Librarian in 2007, De has been actively involved in providing education programs for the customers of Camden County Library. She initiated a number of successful adult programs including a series of best-selling author visits, writing workshops, large-scale outreach services to assisted-living communities and popular ESL conversation classes that she facilitates on a weekly basis.
Her work includes developing and conducting a US Citizenship prep course in partnership with the NJ Dept. of Immigration, and an oral biography project at some of the local senior citizen centers in South Jersey.
“I am really proud to accept this award on behalf of the library,” De said. “So many dedicated staff members have worked to make our Career Online High School a success for those who enrolled. We have five graduates thus far and the rest of the students have over a half-year left to complete the program. So we are expecting more success stories as time passes.”
WHYY recently interviewed De at its TV studios in Philadelphia, and she will be featured in a program about her and other American Graduate Champions that the station plans to air.
