Marathon County Public Library Board of Trustees Recognized with Lee Buress Intellectual Freedom Award

Thursday, October 19th, 2023 -- 11:01 AM

The Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English (WCTE) has recognized the Marathon County Public Library (MCPL) Board of Trustees with the Lee Buress Intellectual Freedom Award for demonstrating a commitment to intellectual freedom and free speech.

MCPL Board of Trustees members received the award at a WCTE luncheon on October 13 in Wausau. “The selection committee was impressed by the ways in which you have advocated for expression free from censorship within your libraries,” said WTCE.

The Lee Buress Intellectual Freedom Award was created in 2016 by the National Council of Teachers of English to recognize individuals, groups or institutions for advancing the cause of intellectual freedom. It was begun in honor of Lee Burress, a long time educator at UW-Stevens Point.

Each state may name one award winner per year. The MCPL Board of Trustees joins previous winners recognized by the Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English, including the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (Madison, Wisconsin) and Sauk Prairie High School (Sauk Prairie, Wisconsin), and Mount Horeb High School (Mount Horeb, Wisconsin).

The Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English (WCTE) is a nonprofit, voluntary educational organization whose purpose is to improve the quality of instruction in the English language arts and English at all school levels in the State of Wisconsin.

Incorporated in 1963, WCTE has provided forums for the exchange of ideas among teachers throughout the state and has supported research, curriculum improvement, and professional development for all teachers of English language arts. WCTE is affiliated with the National Council of Teachers of English.

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