Port Washington Public Library has plenty to celebrate, there's more good news from the organization. 

Elly Shodell, director of the library's Local History Center, has received a 2011/12 Fulbright Specialist grant in the field of library science.

The Fulbright program aims to promote increased connections between educational and cultural institutions around the world. Under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, with the cooperation of the Institute of International Education, Shodell’s grant recognizes the importance of archives and historical preservation as a worldwide concern.

Shodell will spend a semester in Mozambique, Africa, providing training to archivists, records managers and graduate history and library students. She will also lead workshops at the National Archives in Maputo on disaster preparedness and oral history techniques and outcomes.

The library has long been a leader in special collections and archives preservation. Shodell said she “looks forward to sharing with other professionals and gaining new ideas and collaborations, particularly in the areas of technology and digitization.”

As the library celebrates its 120th anniversary, its staff note that with Shodell's Fulbright, a global dimension has been added to its vision for the future.