As part of a new strategy to bring the company’s book clubs and fairs and trade division under one wing, Scholastic has hired Cindy Loh as VP and publisher 0–8. The move comes following the appointment of Jackie De Leo, formerly chief merchandising officer at Barnes & Noble, as publisher and chief merchant in June. Loh will oversee imprints including Scholastic, Cartwheel, Little Shepherd, and Orchard, and lead the development of Scholastic’s intellectual property across picture books, board books, and novelty formats.
Elementary school is Scholastic’s “sweet spot,” De Leo told PW. While the pandemic brought school book fairs to a halt, they’ve since bounced back and Scholastic is now holding around 100,000 fairs across the U.S. annually, with a presence in 90% of school districts. De Leo said the fairs and clubs spark “book joy” in kids, and fair and book club staff who interact closely with students are often the first to identify what is resonating with them. “Children getting to choose their own books is the first step to creating lifelong readers,” she said, adding that uniting the fairs and clubs with the trade division allows the company to “have all voices that have a stake in the books in the room at the same time” and to “use our editorial chops to make our books the best they can be for the readers.”
Loh started in her new role in July. “Early childhood is where the magic begins—when stories spark imagination, empathy, and a lifelong love of reading,” she said. “I’m honored to lead Scholastic’s publishing for our youngest readers, to build upon our incredible legacy of award-winners and bestsellers, and to champion new books that nurture curiosity and connection in the next generation.”
Loh most recently served as publisher at Ameet, leading the Lego Books publishing program. Prior to that she was publishing director over both adult and children’s publishing at Bloomsbury. She previously served in both editorial and product development roles at Scholastic and has worked with a variety of licensed brands across publishers, including Hot Wheels, Marvel, Peanuts, Pokémon, Star Wars, and Thomas the Tank Engine.
The restructure of the 0–8 division includes additional role shifts within the company. Emily Clement, who previously served as executive editor for Graphix’s manga program and Harry Potter publishing, has been named editorial director, picture books, novelty and Harry Potter, leading acquisitions for commercial picture and board books, managing the Make Believe Ideas/Scholastic Early Learners program, and continuing to direct Scholastic’s core Harry Potter publishing. Katie Heit has been named executive editor, and will continue to acquire nonfiction and humorous fiction picture books, and Shulokhana Khan has been named assistant editor.
“This is such important and exciting work, and I’m thrilled to be part of a team so deeply committed to inspiring literacy and joy from the very start,” Loh said.
