4th Annual Raab Associates Prize for Illustration (2002)
"2002 Raab Associates Prize"
Susan Salzman Raab is a University of Connecticut Alumna who graduated in 1980 with a degree in English. She has experience in the retail book business and has worked at Bantam, Dell, and Scholastic. She began her own children's book marketing agency, Raab Associates, in 1986, now based in Chappaqua, New York. During the summer of 1999, Ms. Raab approached staff at the Dodd Center with the idea of creating a contest open to UConn students of art, for the best illustration of a children's story to bring attention to the field of children's book illustration as well encouraging students who have an interest in the arts and the world of publishing. A cooperative agreement was developed with the School of Fine Arts Professor, Cora Lynn Deibler, who assigns an entry for the contest as part of her fall curriculum.
2002 was the fourth year of the Raab Associates Prize. This year's assignment was to create an illustration to accompany the following poem by Jane Yolen, who read her poem and presented the award at the Book Fair dinner on November 9, 2002, at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center. The winner, in addition to receiving the prize courtesy of Susan Raab, received a year's membership in the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, courtesy of SCBWI President Stephen Mooser. The judges were Mark Zurolo (Assistant Professor in Residence, Art & Art History), Terri J. Goldich (Curator, Northeast Children's Literature Collection), Susan Raab (CEO, Raab Associates), and Jane Yolen (Author, "Blueberry Summer").
This year the students produced an unusually diverse and fine group of artwork. The size and strength of the pool of entries made the decision of the judges even more difficult than in past years, so it was decided to split the prize. There was one First Place winner with a tie for Second Place. The First Place prize was a check for $300 provided by Susan Raab, with the two Second Place winners receiving $100 each. The First Place winner also received a year's membership in the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. The 2002 Raab Associates Prize First Place winner was Danielle Lorde, a senior from Bridgeport, CT. Tommy Rosa, a senior from Stratford, CT, and Esther Cushing, a 9th semester student from East Haddam, CT, were the Second Place winners. The contest judges congratulate all of the contestants and are sincerely grateful for their participation.
Poem, "Blueberry Summer," by Jane Yolen
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