Digital Talking Books are here!

Sponsored by the SC Governor’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities

The winner of the 2013 Journalism Contest receives a four-year scholarship to the South Carolina state-supported institution of his or her choice provided, of course, that the winner is otherwise qualified.

The scholarship pays for undergraduate tuition and fees. Each institution has its own definition of tuition and fees, which may or may not include room and board.

The winner must be able to verify financial need to the chosen state-supported institution, which may require completion of a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. Colleges and universities recommend that students in financial need complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1 of the year they will enroll to establish eligibility for student aid. This may require providing income tax return information.

The scholarship may be canceled if the recipient does not maintain general scholastic and conduct standards established by the institution.

To be eligible for the 2013 Journalism Contest, you

• must be a South Carolinian 16 to 19 years old;
• must not have entered a post-secondary school before March 1, 2013;
• must be a high school junior or senior, or otherwise qualified to begin post-secondary education no later than the 2014–2015 school year.

You do not have to have a disability to enter.

For how to enter and rules, please visit the SC Vocational Rehabilitation Department's web site.

Talking Book Services invites all visually impaired and blind students in South Carolina to create a work of art to be entered into the Celebrate Art! Exhibition.

Divisions:

• Grades 1 – 4
• Grades 5 – 8
• Grades 9 – 12

Judges will choose a winner in each division. Winners will receive a prize.

State Librarian Award: Grand Prize: The State Library Director will select one piece of art from those entered in the State Librarian Award category to receive the State Librarian Award. The selected art will become a permanent part of the South Carolina State Library’s Student Art Gallery.

Entry deadline: October 5, 2012

Reception and award ceremony: time and location to be announced later. (TBS is moving to 1500 Senate St.)

All artwork will be displayed in the TBS gallery for one year. At the end of the year, all art will be returned to the schools the students attended at the time of the competition.

The Talking Book Services Readers Advisors have moved into 1500 Senate Street, however the collection is still at 1430 Senate Street.

For now, we ask anyone who would like in-person service to wait.

Please continue to call, email or fax us with your orders and they can go out by mail as usual.

With the collection in one building and the staff in another, it would be quite difficult to retrieve books while you wait.

Thank you for your patience!