On September 26, Elissa Gershowitz ’00MA, Editor-in-Chief of The Horn Book, received a Mentor Award at the Carle Honors ceremony in New York City. Bestowed by The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art (Amherst, MA) — named after the late children’s book illustrator of The Very Hungry Caterpillar — these annual awards celebrate individuals and organizations who have elevated the art of children’s picture-book making.
Established in Boston in 1924 by another Simmons alumna, Bertha E. Mahony (later Bertha Mahony Miller), Class of 1906, The Horn Book emerged as the first critical journal dedicated to children’s literature. Upon receiving her award, Gershowitz credited Simmons’ Master of Arts in Children’s Literature program, which “modeled how children’s books can and should be taken seriously.”
“At this pivotal time . . . of vitriol and backlash, we must not be complacent,” added Gershowitz. “We must all be mentors to each other in service of all young people, whose stories must be honored and told.”