The Betty Grant is “a monetary grant to support a project that would benefit the community,” explains Ms. Amy Voorhees, the head of the project and Director of the Library. Chosen by the Board of Trustees, the next project to receive the Betty Grant will be the customized, professionally-made bookmarks in the library.

Voorhees aims to use this grant to put in place a system that allows students to make, or at the very least have access to, custom, high-quality bookmarks. “The idea behind the Betty grant is to do something nice and extra,” says Voorhees. “You can use a scrap of paper as a bookmark, but there are lots of ways to make higher quality bookmarks.”

Voorhees also notes that at many schools it’s a senior tradition to make a bookmark of the books that have left a real impact on the student during his or her time at the school. Her goals for the project, however, are not set in stone. “I don’t want to preclude the possibility of an under-former making bookmarks,” she says, “so I haven’t yet decided if it’s going to be only for sixth-formers or for everybody.”

Voorhees goes on to explain how receiving the Betty Grant for this project has allowed her to widen the scope of her idea. She points out that some parts of the project, such as having the bookmarks professionally printed, called for money that just hadn’t been budgeted for. “The Betty Grant is going to allow us to do this in a more long-lasting way,” says Voorhees.