Louise Seaman Bechtel

Louise Seaman Bechtel (1894-1985) was an American editor, critic, author, and teacher of young children.

Bechtel was the first person to head a juvenile book department established by an American publishing house. During her fifteen-year tenure as managing editor at the Macmillan Company (1919-1934), Bechtel shepherded production of more than 600 new books, marking a milestone in the growth and development of American literature for children.

Winner of three Newberry Medals for children's literature, Bechtel's best-known books are "The Brave Bantum" and "Mr. Peck's Pets".

Bechtel was married to Edwin DeTurck Bechtel, an attorney, art collector, and authority and scholar of rose culture. She is buried at Saint Matthew's Episcopal Churchyard in Bedford, New York.

The Bechtel Prize

In honor of Bechtel, the Bechtel Prize is endowed by the Cerimon Fund and administered by Teachers & Writers Collaborative in New York. The Prize is awarded annually in recognition of an exemplary article or essay related to creative writing education, literary studies, and/or the profession of writing.

The winning essay appears in "Teachers & Writers" magazine, and the author receives a $3,500 honorarium. Possible topics for Bechtel Prize submissions include contemporary issues in classroom teaching, innovative approaches to teaching literary forms and genres, and the intersection between literature and imaginative writing.

The Louise Seaman Bechtel Fellowship at the Baldwin Library

The Bechtel Fellowship, awarded by the Association of Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association, awards a mid-career librarian, with a minimum of eight years experience working with children, $4,000 to spend a month reading and studying at the Baldwin Library at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida.

External links

* [http://twc.org/publications/bechtel-prize The Bechtel Prize at Teachers & Writers' website]