With the help of English professor Mary Lou Kete as lead project scholar, the Brownell Library in Essex Juntion, Vt. is one of 30 recipients nationwide of a $2,500 grant from The American Library Association (ALA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The grants have been awarded to support outreach programming featuring the documentary Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women and the companion biography of the same name.

The documentary, co-produced by Nancy Porter Productions, Inc. and Thirteen/WNET New York's American Masters, will air on Vermont Public Television Sunday, Jan. 23 at 2 p.m., and a series of events at Brownell Library will provide the public with the opportunity to discuss and learn more about the 19th century American novelist.

On Wednesday, Feb. 23 at 6:15 p.m. Kete will deliver a "Dine and Discuss" talk titled, "Little Women Revisited; Why Should We Read Louisa May Alcott" at the Brownell Library. On Wednesday,  March 16  at 6:15 p.m., Kete will participate in a second "Dine and Discuss" on the biography Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women.

More events will be announced throughout the spring. Visit the Brownell Library website for more information or contact martha@brownelllibrary.org, (802) 878-6955.

The national library outreach program, a collaboration among NEH, the ALA Public Programs Office and Nancy Porter and Harriet Reisen for Filmmakers Collaborative, has been designated as part of NEH’s We the People initiative, exploring significant events and themes in our nation's history and culture and advancing knowledge of the principles that define America. Funding was provided by a major grant from NEH to the ALA Public Programs Office.