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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Delia Palomeque Morales has long been a champion of early literacy and early childhood education in Multnomah County, Oregon. As a Youth and Family Program Specialist with a bilingual Spanish job designation, Delia organized
and delivered a program called Listos para el Kinder for 13 years. Listos specifically served Indigenous Latine children ages 4-6 who speak Indigenous languages and/or Spanish.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In designing Listos, Delia and the staff understood the academic gap that starts early for many Latine students in the educational systems, not only through statistical data but also through their own lived experiences.
They knew that with the right tools, information, and support, Latine families in Multnomah County could see their little ones succeed not only in their first academic years, but beyond.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Delia offered families the hope and means for their children to reach high levels of academic achievement and independent thinking, and live to their full potential. This program connected thousands of children and their
families who would otherwise have little or no access to quality early childhood education to culture-based instruction and community-building programs that emphasize the importance of early literacy, mathematics, science and parental involvement, while emphasizing
heritage, language and culture. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In one independent evaluation, the Listos program was shown to<i> triple
</i>school-readiness for participating children while simultaneously increasing their families’ use of the library and long-term involvement in their children’s learning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In addition to Listos para el Kinder, Delia’s compassionate and flexible leadership was instrumental in developing and launching the Bolsitas de Bienvenidos a la Lectura collection, all in the midst of the COVID quarantine!
This collection helps young patrons learn to read in Spanish, from the beginning stages of reading to more complex levels. It helps families select books that meet their children’s reading levels and interests while helping them build fluency, confidence and
comprehension skills, as well as a love for reading. Delia and the Bolsitas de Bienvenidos team also developed additional Spanish-language kits that feature books on science, technology, art and mathematics to meet readers’ interests and bolster academic success.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">As if all that isn’t enough, Delia led a revision of MCL's
<i>El Pequeño Libro de Rimas</i>, a small book of rhymes and songs. She worked tirelessly with three colleagues to find culturally relevant rhymes, researched copyright and countries of origin, and worked with Caldecott Honor Award winner Molly Mendoza for
culturally relevant art. Adding countries of origin was a new, intentional consideration. One storytime patron shared that she grew up with the rhyme "Pin Pon" and was thrilled to see Chile listed in the book, confirming a detail her mother had always insisted
on. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In her current role as Library Cultural Events Specialist, Delia organizes eight large scale cultural events that celebrate and uplift the remarkable diversity of patrons in Multnomah County, creating a culture of inclusivity
and belonging for children and their loved ones.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Over the years, Delia has built innumerable relationships with Spanish-speaking children, community members and educators, and is known as a trusted advocate and mediator for these families and their children, even long
after they have begun school. She has been known to routinely connect patrons both with relevant library programs and services as well as with partner organizations and community resources – for example, helping enroll kids in summer camps, summer reading
programs and after-school care; helping families evaluate schools and transfer to higher-quality school districts; connecting youth to scholarship resources; and helping first-generation college students identify and apply for financial aid.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Delia is not only exceptional at her work, she is a kind, warm-hearted individual who genuinely cares about people, and wants them to succeed. It is my honor to present Delia Palomeque Morales the 2026 Evelyn Sibley Lampman
Award.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:110%"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:110%;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif;color:#003D7D">Holly Campbell-Polivka
</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:110%;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif;color:#003D7D">(she/her)<b> | Youth Services Librarian</b></span><br>
<span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:110%;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">City of Tigard | Tigard Public Library</span><br>
<span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:110%;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Direct: 503.718.2811 | Children’s Desk: 503.718.2656</span><br>
<span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:110%;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">13500 SW Hall Blvd., Tigard, OR 97223 |
<a href="http://www.tigard-or.gov/library"><span style="color:#467886">www.tigard-or.gov/library</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:110%"><a href="https://www.tigard-or.gov/"><span style="color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="131" height="64" style="width:1.3611in;height:.6666in" id="x_Picture_x0020_7" src="cid:image001.png@01DCD655.66498250" alt="City of Tigard Logo "></span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
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