ASU's Frazine Taylor Wins National Award

ASU's Frazine Taylor to be presented with Top National Award for Information Professionals   

By Kenneth Mullinax/ASU 

An Alabama State University staff member who is widely recognized as one of the state of Alabama's foremost genealogists and information professionals -- Frazine Taylor -- will be recognized with the Dorothy Porter Wesley Award, a prestigious national recognition that lauds the work of information professionals which is awarded by the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History. Taylor will receive the award during a dinner ceremony on Oct. 1 in Montgomery.

Taylor was one of the leaders of the Alabama Department of Archives and History's Reference Department for many years before retiring and then joining ASU as a staff member in the Levi Watkins Learning Center (LWLC) as both a genealogist and coordinator of volunteers. She is an expert on Alabama historical records and also is a nationally acclaimed expert in African-American ancestry and historical record research for individuals, families and communities. 

"It is a great, great, honor for me to be the recipient of the Dorothy Porter Wesley Award, and I am just thrilled beyond words," Taylor said. "I am so pleased that my profession helps me to help people learn more about the rich history and details of their families and communities. As the custodian of the records and resources that help people learn more about themselves, their histories, families, and the community in which they live, makes me a jubilant person since this information empowers those whom I help to know as much as possible about what makes them unique and knowledgeable about their past." 

IMPRESSIVE CREDITIANALS 

Taylor is the president of the Elmore County Association of Black Heritage, chair emeritus of the Black Heritage Council of the Alabama Historical Commission and past president of the Alabama Historical Association (AHA) and the Friends of the Archives. She serves on the boards of the Patrons for the Study of Civil Rights and African-American Culture at ASU, is a member of the Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance, served on the Alabama Governor’s Mansion Authority, and is the past president of the Friends of the Alabama Archives. 

PRAISE FOR TAYLOR’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS 

Dr. Howard Robinson, who serves as the LWLC's associate director for Archives and Cultural Heritage Services, said he is most pleased that Taylor has won this important national recognition, which he says, is long overdue. 

"Frazine has been among the best and most accurate of archivists and information experts for decades, and the collections of historical records and important data that she has built serves as a catalyst for research and continuous learning for scholars, the communities they serve, and just regular people who have a thirst for knowledge. Because of her work, intellectual prowess and curiosity, she has helped form the very foundation of many of the collections in our nation's colleges and universities; especially as it relates to African-American culture and history," Robinson stated.  

News media contact: Kenneth Mullinax, 334-229-4104.
 

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