Lowe, Joy L. 1939-

PERSONAL:

Born October 23, 1939, in Minden, LA; daughter of Robert Milton (a builder) and Norma (a homemaker) Lambert; married Perry Lowe (an office manager); children: Joseph Milton, Kira Elizabeth, Perri Michelle. Education: Centenary College, B.A., 1961; Louisiana State University, M.S., 1962; University of North Texas, Ph.D., 1984. Politics: Republican. Religion: United Methodist. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, knitting.

ADDRESSES:

Home—9712 Highway 146, Ruston, LA 71270. Office—Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, LA 71271. E-mail—joyllowe@bellsouth.net.

CAREER:

Academic and librarian. Opelousas-Eunice Public Library, Opelousas, LA, administrative librarian, 1967-1970; Glenbrook School, Minden, LA, librarian, 1973-75; Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, associate professor, 1977-2003.

MEMBER:

American Library Association (councilor, 1990—), Louisiana Library Association (president, 1984-85).

AWARDS, HONORS:

Essae M. Culver Award, 2000, for outstanding librarianship in LA; Lynda Carlberg Award, 2001, for outstanding librarianship.

WRITINGS:

(With Kathryn I. Matthew) Neal-Schuman Guide to Recommended Children's Books and Media for Use with Every Elementary Subject, Neal-Schuman (New York, NY), 2002.

(With Kathryn I. Matthew) Colonial America in Literature for Youth: A Guide and Resource Book, Scarecrow Press (Lanham, MD), 2003.

(With Kathryn I. Matthew) Discoveries and Inventions in Literature for Youth: A Guide and Resource Book, Scarecrow Press (Lanham, MD), 2004.

(With Kathryn I. Matthew) Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World: The Best Books, Media, and Multicultural Learning Activities, Neal-Schuman (New York, NY), 2004.

(With Kathryn I. Matthew) Puppet Magic, Neal-Schuman (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Joy L. Lowe is an American academic and librarian. Lowe earned a bachelor of arts degree in speech and drama from Shreveport's Centenary College in 1961. The following year, she earned a master of science in library science from Louisiana State University. Lowe worked as an administrative librarian at Louisiana's Opelousas-Eunice Public Library from 1967 to 1970. From 1973 to 1975, Lowe worked as a librarian at the Glenbrook School in Minden, Louisiana.

In 1977, Lowe began working at Louisiana Tech University, starting a twenty-six-year career at the university. During this time, she earned a Ph.D. from the University of North Texas in 1984 in library and information sciences. She was awarded the Essae M. Culver Award for outstanding librarianship in Louisiana in 2000 and the Lynda Carlberg Award for outstanding librarianship in 2001. Lowe retired in 2003 as an associate professor. Lowe is a member of the American Library Association, serving as a councilor since 1990, and the Louisiana Library Association, where she served as president from 1984 to 1985.

In 2002, Lowe published the Neal-Schuman Guide to Recommended Children's Books and Media for Use with Every Elementary Subject, with Kathryn I. Matthew. The authors created the book to assist librarians in choosing quality books for elementary library collections. More than 1,200 books, computer software, videos, cassettes, and Internet sites are included and organized by academic subjects. Mary Lankford, writing in School Library Journal, suggested that newer librarians "will find the background information within each chapter useful." Lankford concluded by saying that "this fine resource incorporates good literature into the curriculum."

Lowe published Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World: The Best Books, Media, and Multicultural Learning Activities, with Matthew in 2004. The authors compiled a list of books representative of widely sold authors who are popular with children. The book is divided into sections on celebrations sorted by month and culture and then arranged by season and month. Booklist contributor Dona Helmer noted that Lowe and Matthew provided many "practical suggestions" in the book. Helmer appended that "this will be a welcome addition to most elementary-school libraries." Sue Morgan, writing in School Library Journal, found the four indexes to be "especially helpful." Morgan commented that what Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World "lacks in style and imagination, it more than makes up for in information."

Joy L. Lowe told CA: "As I was nearing the end of a long career as a librarian and/or teacher, I felt I could share some of what I had learned with younger librarians, teachers, and parents, and, with a colleague, began to compile some bibliographic resources for their use. Our last book deals with sharing literature with children and the young at heart using puppets."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 1, 2004, Dona Helmer, review of Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World: The Best Books, Media, and Multicultural Learning Activities, p. 164.

Library Media Connection, October, 2004, Roxanne Welch Mills, review of Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World, p. 86; March, 2005, Saundra Kilar, review of Discoveries and Inventions in Literature for Youth: A Guide and Resource Book, p. 88.

Reference & Research Book News, November, 2003, review of Colonial America in Literature for Youth: A Guide and Resource Book, p. 271; August, 2004, review of Discoveries and Inventions in Literature for Youth, p. 304.

School Library Journal, April, 2002, Mary Lankford, review of Neal-Schuman Guide to Recommended Children's Books and Media for Use with Every Elementary Subject, p. 191; May, 2004, Sue Morgan, review of Neal-Schuman Guide to Celebrations and Holidays around the World, p. 181.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2005, Lynne Hawkins, review of Discoveries and Inventions in Literature for Youth, p. 82.