Last night, I had the incredible honor of attending the Newbery-Caldecott-Legacy Banquet. A truly unforgettable experience and, in my opinion, a must for every librarian at least once in their career. Over 80 tables filled with authors, publishers, librarians, award committee members, and their friends and families, all gathered in one grand room buzzing with excitement. We were warmly welcomed by both ALA President Cindy Hohl and ALSC President Robert Bittner, setting the tone for a night filled with celebration, recognition, and deep appreciation for the power of stories. One of my favorite parts of the evening? The program, always beautifully designed using the artwork from the Caldecott Medal-winning book. It’s not just a keepsake; it’s a piece of art in its own right. After a lovely dinner, the ceremony began. As always, it was moving and inspiring. The awards themselves are such an honor, representing the work of dedicated…
Tag: awards
An Experience to Remember – The Caldecott Newbery Legacy Banquet
As an educator and school librarian with over three decades of experience, I’ve attended numerous literary events. However, attending the Caldecott Newbery Legacy Banquet for the first time during #ALAAC24 was a uniquely inspiring and unforgettable experience.
ALSC Professional Awards season is here!
We recently completed a 2019 Membership Needs Assessment survey and it was surprising to learn over 95% of ALSC members have not applied for any of the available Professional Awards, Grants or Scholarships *insert my sad face*. Here are some reasons why I thought ALSC members might be hesitant in applying: There is an application process along with requirements and criteria that should be met for each of these opportunities. This could be intimidating or time consuming, but I promise our amazing ALSC staff and selection committee members are here to help answer all of your questions! It could also be possible that ALSC members just do not know these opportunities exist! If you did not know they existed, I’m here to tell you that they do! *insert my happy face* ALSC awards over $100,000 in the form of awards, grants and scholarships every year and I have listed them…
Youth Media Awards #alamw18
There are not many reasons to get up at 7 am on a Conference day when your first meeting isn’t until 10 am, but then, not every morning is the Youth Media Awards! For those of you not there… allow me to paint a picture. Denver is cold– and the streets remain a bit icy, but yet hoards of library people are up and about– you wouldn’t need to consult your Scheduler, just follow the herd of people to a packed room. The room was abuzz with people chatting about their favorite books of the year and the excitement over what books might win! I had to search for my friend and my saved seat, but it was nearly impossible with all of the excited people. Once I found her, we started discussing predictions and just general excitement over what was to come! Every year I read the results as they…
Distinguished and Diverse at #alaac15
ALSC and the ALSC Awards Preconference Pilot Program Task Force announced the theme and speakers for the 2015 ALSC preconference program. This program takes place 11:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. Friday, June 26, 2015, at the 2015 ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco. The program, entitled “Distinguished and Diverse: Celebrate the 2015 ALSC Honor Books,” will spotlight 2015 Honor Book recipients for the Newbery, Caldecott, Batchelder, Pura Belpré, Sibert and Geisel awards. The keynote speaker for the program is K.T. Horning, and there will be a panel facilitated by Judy Freeman. The event will feature authors, illustrators and editors such as Cece Bell, Jacqueline Woodson, Lauren Castillo, Mary GrandPré, Candace Fleming, Yuyi Morales, Jillian Tamaki, Katherine Roy, John Parra, Patricia Hruby Powell, Mark Siegel, Christian Robinson, Jon Klassen and Melissa Sweet. More speakers will be announced soon. This is the first year that such a preconference will be held. The…
Dreams Do Come True
In the world of children’s literature, I can’t think of a day that hasn’t been better than the one before it. On Monday morning, February 2nd, this theory proved true. Diversity in children’s literature was honored in a multitude of ways. Librarians, families, teachers and kids all awaited the Monday morning Youth Media Award announcements with anticipation. They waited to hear if their favorite girl would win an award in more than one category, if their favorite author would garner the top prize, if the book that reflected their lives and spoke to them would stand tall and proud amongst the best of the best. As the medal winners’ names were spoken, dreams were coming true all across the country. Each day that you have an opportunity to talk about diversity in children’s literature is a day when you are making the world more welcoming and real for all children….
Awards for Inspiration
Inspiration doesn’t come along everyday. Finding someone or something that inspires you is rare and should probably be rewarded. For example: Do you know someone who deserves to be recognized for outstanding service? Do you know someone who has gone the extra mile to provide outreach services to underserved communities? ALSC is reminding members to apply for professional awards this fall. Applications are open and several deadlines are approaching. Below is list of ALSC professional awards which are available for submission or nomination. For more information, please visit: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/profawards ALSC Distinguished Service Award Deadline: Monday, December 1, 2014 This award honors an individual member who has made significant contributions to and an impact on, library services to children and ALSC. Light the Way: Library Outreach to the Underserved Grant Deadline: Monday, December 1, 2014 This $3,000 grant is sponsored by Candlewick Press in honor of author Kate DiCamillo and the…