New Scholastic Vice President and Publisher Has 'Devoted Her Career' to Children's Books

Lori Benton, chairman of the board of directors for the nonprofit Every Child a Reader, has been named vice president and publisher of Scholastic's trade publishing division, overseeing direction of the publishing program for all imprints of the division. She will report to Scholastic Trade Publishing President Ellie Berger.

In addition to her role with Every Child a Reader, the nonprofit foundation of The Children's Book Council, Benton—who will assume her new responsibilities Jan. 3—most recently served as general manager and publisher of the fiction division of Bloomington, Minn.-based Capstone Publishers. Prior to her position at Capstone, she was vice president, publisher of the children's books division at Harcourt; associate publisher, director of marketing for Henry Holt Books for Young Readers; and associate marketing director for the children's book division at William Morrow & Co. Benton also spent 13 years as the children's book buyer at The Book Shop in Boise, Idaho.

"Lori Benton is one of the most experienced and well-respected executives in the children's publishing industry," says Berger. "I am thrilled to welcome Lori to Scholastic, where her expertise and enthusiasm will be a perfect addition to our exceptional team."

"As someone who has devoted her career to the publishing and promotion of children's books, I can hardly begin to express my excitement about joining Scholastic," says Benton. "Scholastic is a company I have long-admired, and I look forward to having the opportunity to work with Ellie Berger and her impressive team."

Benton also was chairman of the board of directors for The Children's Book Council from 2003 to 2005, and has recently served on the board of directors of the Association of Booksellers for Children.