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Carol Stream, IL, May 28, 2004 – C. Berger Group, Inc. (CBG) the Midwest’s largest library personnel and information services firm recently announced the names of the three Masters in Library Science graduates who were selected to receive C. Berger Group Entrepreneurial Promise Awards for 2004.  CBG funds the prize which is given to graduating students who exhibit unusual creativity, reflect an innovative spirit and show the most promise for an outstanding career in a special library, nontraditional setting or as an entrepreneur.  Carol A. Berger, founder of CBG, a former special librarian herself, initiated the gift to encourage interest in special librarianship as a career option and to focus on the qualities and skills needed to succeed in this area.  Faculty members selected the students at each institution.  “Each of this year’s CBG Entrepreneurial Promise Award winners is a model achiever” said Joel Patrick Berger, CBG President.  “Not only did they excel in their library studies but they also came to this degree with masters in other specialties.  These combinations enhance their library career opportunities.”

Selected at the institutions were:

Carissa Holler, the fourth award winner from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, received her citation at GSLIS convocation, May 16, 2004.  Ms. Holler was chosen because of her commitment to learning, innovative and entrepreneurial spirit and abiding dedication to academic excellence.  These qualities were demonstrated in her assignments as a consultant for OSBI, a division of the College of Business, where she supervised other GLIS students who worked on MBA team projects, as well as in her graduate assistant assignments for the Grainger Engineering and the Physics and Astronomy libraries.  Prior to her library studies, Carissa was employed as an analyst and auditor; she holds an MBA and BS in Astronomy and Physics, both from the University of Iowa.  Ms. Holler is a native of Mr. Sterling, IL.

Kerri Canepa, second recipient at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Library and Information Studies, was chosen because of the depth of her focus on leadership and management in her studies, which support her goal of becoming a better library director.  She supplemented her courses with additional leadership and management learning opportunities and workshops and excelled at her practicum in which she analyzed user delivery problems for the South Central (WI) Library System.  Kerri worked in libraries for 18 years prior to pursuing her MSLS.  This included supervisory positions at Z.J. Loussac Library in Anchorage, AK and managing a government library for a contractor in Maryland.  Kerri also holds a M.URP from George Washington University and a BA in Anthropology from the University of Florida in Gainesville.  Ms. Canepa, who resides in Madison received her CBG award at Commencement on May 15, 2004.

Catherine Webb Saum is the second CBG Entrepreneurial Promise Award winner at Dominican University Graduate School of Library & Information Science.  Ms. Saum distinguished herself by her creativity and was singled out because of her outstanding contribution to the School as a knowledge management facilitator and model in her practicum and graduate assistant assignments.  Prior to enrolling at DU, Catherine was employed as a project manager for the Cognitive Arts Corporation, a Web-based training firm.  Ms. Saum holds an MA in History and Theory of Music from the University of Chicago and a BA magna cum laude in English and Music from Illinois Wesleyan University.  She received her Award during the Beta Phi Mu installation ceremony held on campus May 19, 2004.  Catherine resides in Chicago.

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The C. Berger Group Entrepreneurial Promise Award was established by CBG in 2000 at the University of Illinois to honor a student who exhibits unusual creativity, reflects an innovative spirit and shows the most promise for an outstanding career in a special library, nontraditional setting or as an entrepreneur.  The first awards were made to graduates of MLS programs at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and Dominican University, River Forest in 2003.   The CBG Entrepreneurial Promise Award is one of several prizes CBG funds or sponsors annually for professional librarians and support staff of distinction nationwide.  They include the Librarian of the Year, for the Illinois Library Association each fall, the Karen J. Switt Leadership Award for the Leadership and Management Division of the Special Libraries Association in June, and the Library Assistant Award at Reaching Forward South each September.

Founded by Carol A. Berger in 1982 as C. Berger And Company, C. Berger Group is a certified WBE full-service firm which provides specialized temporary and contract workers, permanent placement, consulting and project management services to libraries and information centers from its suburban Chicago headquarters. CBG clients include corporations, government agencies, law firms, trade associations, non-profit organizations, health care centers, public libraries, and academic institutions throughout the US.

For further information about C. Berger Group Inc., contact:

Carol A. Berger, Manager, Marketing Communications

Phone:  630.653.1115

E-mail:  carolb@cberger.com  

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