How to use this Page

YALSA’s Cultural Competencies Task Force interviews Ady Huertas, Manager of the Pauline Foster Teen Center at San Diego Central Library. Ady has worked with teens for over a decade: from providing instruments and lessons for a library rock band, to providing free summer lunches, to organizing a thriving teen council, Ady continually strives to provide resources and services for teens. She currently leads and contributes to several projects serving Latino teens, such as the REFORMA Children in Crisis Task Force, and the California State Library/Southern California Library Cooperative STeP (Skills for Teen Parents) Project. This podcast gives an overview of how best to reach out and serve Latino teens and provides advice to librarians new to serving Latino young adults and their families.

Resources:

REFORMA: The National Association to Promote Library & Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking: http://www.reforma.org/.

REFORMA Children in Crisis Project: http://refugeechildren.wix.com/refugee-children.

Webinar about the STeP Project: https://infopeople.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=485.

University of California, EAOP: http://www.eaop.org/.

National Council of La Raza: http://www.nclr.org/.

National Council of La Raza | STEM: http://www.nclr.org/index.php/issues_and_programs/education/k12_education/stem/.

Summer Fun Cafe: http://www.sandi.net/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&ModuleInstanceID=19400&ViewID=047E6BE3-6D87-4130-8424-D8E4E9ED6C2A&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=49011&PageID=1.

Follow us on Twitter:
Ady Huertas: @adyhuertas
Monnee Tong: @librarianmo

Intro and Closing Music: Summer’s Coming from Dexter Britain’s Creative Commons Volume 2. https://soundcloud.com/dexterbritain/sets/creative-commons-vol2

With our youth patrons returning to school, now is the perfect time to re-evaluate your community’s demographics and set goals to “Get Away” and connect with those underserved populations. As you consider where to start, the first step may seem daunting, but tackle the unknown in a way that is most comfortable for you. We’ll be sharing our ideas about setting goals during our Teen Read Week Twitter chat Setting Goals to Reach Underserved Teens onFriday, September 11 at 2 pm EST. If numbers and statistics read like a first language, you’ll probably have your own plan of action in which to gather information and compile results into charts and graphs. However, many of us need a different approach in order to ease our way into such unfamiliar territory and we offer a few ideas here.

Demographics from an insider view

Consider your teen patrons’ habits as a diving board into better knowing your community. For instance, if your teens often ask library staff for change to spare for food, comment about not eating breakfast, or are eager to attend library programs especially for the free snacks, you may want to further explore this trend. Start by investigating the nearby school’s stats on free and reduced lunches, the city’s poverty percentages, or the state’s caseload counter for food stamp families. The location of these resources will also provide other relevant data that may offer a more detailed view into the issue. Once you have a baseline of data, connect with local food pantries and other social service providers and start a conversation. You may discover any number of ways to partner with these organizations from creating a bookmark for the public listing the location of these services to facilitating meal programs.

Demographics from a bird’s eye perspective

Map the government, parks, nonprofit, and other community agencies within your library’s service area. If a particular trend in services exists, investigate its related statistical topics and connect with those organizations. Also, the types of businesses in your service may offer a starting point into better understanding your community. If you notice an unusual number of liquor stores in your area, you may check the location of rehabilitation centers or AA groups and connect with them. Another way to address your map of agencies, is to first connect with the organizations located nearest to your library, as those service are directly targeting your immediate area.

Take action with us in better understanding your community by joining the Teen Read Week Twitter chat on Friday, September 11 at 2 pm EST. Come ready to share your goals and gain new ideas and resources from your peers. When joining the Twitter chat, be sure to use #TRW15. See you there!

Amanda Barnhart is the current chair for YALSA’s Teen Read Week committee, an MLIS student, and a Young Adult Associate for the Trails West branch of The Kansas City (Mo) Public Library.

Now that District Days are in full swing and you have hopefully reached out to your representative, we wanted to provide some resources for you that will hopefully help you in your planning! And if you haven’t reached out yet, there’s still time. Hopefully these resources will provide some inspiration.

These handouts from YALSA are a great starting point when talk to your representative about libraries and teen services for libraries are not only important but necessary.

What public libraries do for teens..

Why teens need libraries…

YALSA’s Legislative Advocacy Guide

LSTA fact sheets from ALA

Then take a look at YALSA’s wiki page on advocating for more links and resources.

Don’t forget to use one of your best resources that you have, your teens! If you have a Teen Advisory Board then talk to them and see if they have ideas.  

And just remember, you don’t have to do something big for District Days. The most important thing is that you reach out to your representative and #act4teens!

Staci Terrell is the Children's Services Manager at Anderson Public Library in Anderson, Indiana and is the current chair of the YALSA Legislation Committee.

It’s time for District Days once again, which are when congressional representatives return home to their districts on recess. The recess this year is from August 1-September 6. This is the time representatives will have office hours at their local offices, attend town hall meetings, and meet with constituents to speak with and listen to them.

As an advocate for libraries and teens, this is an opportunity to show your representatives why libraries are a valuable asset to their constituents and districts. District Days provide you the ability to let your voice as a librarian or library worker be heard before the representatives head back to Washington, D.C.

Need help getting started? Check out the great resources on the District Days wiki and look for posts on the YALSAblog throughout August for information on how to participate by the Legislation Committee. One simple way is to make sure you use this  #act4teens hashtag when you promote your District Days activities.

Need to find out who your congressional representative is for your district? Or their local district offices? There's a website and an app for that!

Some things to keep in mind, as you start to prepare for District Days.

1. Keep it simple. You don't have to create an event just for your congressional representative to attend. Invite them to a teen program, such as a summer learning wrap up party or Back to School night.
2. Include the event details. Date, time, location, whether or not press will be invited, a description of the event, plus estimated attendance and who will be attending the event.
3. Provide information about your library. Key statistics, demographics, etc. but keep it concise.
4. Make sure to publicize the event! Send information to local news outlets along with using social media.
5. Follow up after the invitation is sent. Call them a week after it's sent, if you haven't heard back from them.
6. If they can't make it, then try going to them. Contact their local office to schedule an appointment, while they are at home in their district.
7. Send a thank you note. Once the event is over, don't forget to thank your representative for taking the time to visit your library!

For additional advocacy resources, visit www.ala.org/yalsa/advocacy

Staci Terrell is the Children's Services Manager at Anderson Public Library in Anderson, Indiana and is the current chair of the YALSA Legislation Committee.

When I received my acceptance letter as YALSA’s 2014-2015 Board Fellow I was so ecstatic. I’d been involved in YALSA before I even began my time in library school at Drexel University. First serving on the Fabulous Films for Young Adults Committee and then YALS editorial Advisory Committee and the Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults Committee. But this I knew would give me a different experience that I was looking forward to, especially thinking at the time that I would love to run for an opportunity to sit on the YALSA Board of Directors.

Well, my year as Board Fellow did not disappoint. In fact, it proved to be so much more than what I bargained for when I first started out. I had certain tasks to fulfill as described in the YALSA Board Fellow Program - a major task of which was to undertake a project for the year. Stemming from a mega issue discussion, I quickly realized that the conversation of board diversity needed to continue and, with the help of Beth Yoke and Shannon Peterson, I put together a board document that would later be discussed at ALA midwinter 2015 and voted on to be moved forward via the work of a task force. I agreed to Chair this taskforce and work is currently underway to make suggestions for how YALSA can increase and maintain ongoing diversity among the board of directors.

In addition to that project, I’ve met and worked with some awesome people, and contributed in other areas like:

• Liaised with three committees where I was tasked with being a source of assistance to help them with their work including conflict solving, discussing creative ideas and suggestions and just being a general support system for their overall work.
• Reached out to new members on a regular basis in an effort to help them navigate their way through the mounds of YALSA member offerings and to provide a support systems for feedback and questions.
• Participated in monthly board discussions around projects and conversations that stemmed from previous board meetings, executive meetings and new topics.
• Worked on other projects like that of the Standing Board: Member Recruitment & Retention subcommittee that examines the chairs quarterly reports and give feedback in regards to YALSA’s strategic direction and overall purpose.
• Contributed to various discussions in our ALA Connect group that leads to the board voting on various projects and also different Google docs discussions that helps prepare and further develop certain board documents to bring to full discussion of the board.
• Shared information on social media, particularly twitter that mostly included updates from meeting as well as topic discussions and other YALSA happenings to help build board transparence and inform the members of activities as they occurred.
• Served as a speaker for a panel on Capital Hill titled “Kids, Learning, and Technology: Libraries as 21st Century Creative Spaces.”

I grew professionally from my involvement as YALSA Board Fellow. One of the most important experiences I gained was to see YALSA from a big picture perspective as opposed to the smaller areas that I had been involved in when serving on those prior committees. Whereas my personal view had been focused on urban public library teens and services (because naturally that’s the library area where I’ve been working), my view grew to all types of public and school libraries in addition to other youth serving organizations. I became more aware of ideas and circumstances that affect a much larger youth population as opposed to just the focus area of urban public library settings where I've mostly worked.

Being a Board Fellow can open such bigger-picture thinking, which can prove to be beneficial in various professional decision-makings. There’s also potential to gain a variety of skills and experiences too that can be valuable in everyday life as well as in one's career. These encompass areas such as time management, teamwork, problem-solving/critical thinking, project management, and leadership.

Overall, it has been a very busy year for me considering that shortly into my term as board fellow I began a new career role within a new organization and had to adjust accordingly. Everything considered, my board fellowship has been quite an awesome and rewarding experience. Now I have a much greater knowledge of all the work that the YALSA Board of Directors, Beth Yoke and the YALSA staff do to keep the fabulous youth serving YALSA organization striving and remaining relevant to us and our work in serving diverse sets of teens and communities.

Since becoming a member, I've valued YALSA dearly. After this year of developing such valuable insights and experiences, I dare say that I value this organization much more. Now that my term has ended, I look forward to continue to be actively involved in YALSA by completing my term as Chair of the YALSA board Diversity Taskforce and then looking at other areas where I can still contribute and learn. It's time for the next person to be selected and the application process is open for the 2016-2017 Board Fellow. If you are interested I encourage you to read over information about the program and reach out to current board members and past board fellows to get feedback and submit your application by the December 1st deadline. I hope, as it is for me, that this opportunity will be one you remember fondly throughout your career.

Nicola McDonald, the 2014-2015 YALSA Board Fellow is the Chair of YALSA's Board Diversity Taskforce and a Library Manager at NYPL.

Greetings from the ALSC Intellectual Freedom Committee! Our committee is tasked with keeping ALSC up-to-date on IF issues being discussed across the ALA divisions. We’ve got a few exciting projects on the horizon that we’re looking forward to sharing with all of you!

Need support materials on Intellectual Freedom? ALSC has a number of useful links on the Professional Tools for Librarians Serving Youth webpage. Our committee has recently updated the links dealing with issues of Access as well as Intellectual Freedom. Read something recently that you think might be useful for others? Let us know! We’re looking to add some more recent articles and online resources.

Looking for something to empower kids and teens to stand up for their rights? Over the next couple of ALA conferences, our committee will be updating the Kids! Know Your Rights handout originally created in 2007. In particular, we plan to add information specific to the Intellectual Freedom implications of leveled reading programs, and we hope you’ll share it with the young readers and future advocates in your communities.

Do you or your staff feel ill-equipped to handle community concerns? Do you wish you had a better understanding of what the right to read means in your library?  We’re working on that, too! Over the next two years, we will develop a general framework for basic IF training that any library can implement as part of new staff training as well as continuing education. We’ve heard from many ALSC members that there is a need for staff at all levels to better understand the principles of IF and how they apply to daily public service, including fielding questions and concerns from parents and community members. If you already have a similar training at your library, we’d love to hear your best practices!

And one last thing – consider joining the Freedom to Read Foundation to support their work, to spread the word about censorship and to defend everyone’s freedom to read. FTRF is a non-profit organization dedicated to defending the first amendment through participation in litigation and by providing education and grant programs. Membership is only $35 and that money helps FTRF accomplish good work and support these creative Judith F. Krug Memorial Grant projects. The FTRF Board meets the day before the official start of the ALA annual and midwinter, and guests are always welcome. It is a great way to get caught up on current issues across the country.

And that’s what’s new with the ALSC Intellectual Freedom Committee! Feel free to use the comments to share your own ideas.

The post What’s New With IF? appeared first on ALSC Blog.

The place: San Francisco. The occasion: ALA Annual. The party: Caldecott. From January 2014 – January 2015, I studiously studied. I looked at over 500 picture books, and along with 14 other intrepid souls, decided which of those were the most distinguished. Our committee is incredibly proud of our list of books. And this year at ALA annual, we got to celebrate with the distinguished artists in the class of 2015.

At the banquet – photo by Angela Reynolds

Starting with a great street party for Melissa Sweet (which included yummy tacos & a baby shower), and then the next night a dinner with all 6 honor winners, followed the next evening by “Dinner with Dan”, and then Sunday  the Caldecott-Newbery-Wilder awards banquet, it was a wild and fun ride!

But it wasn’t just fine dining. At each of these events our committee got to have some quality time with the illustrators that we honored. And we felt honored to do that. Each one of them thanked us profusely. I can speak for myself only (though I have a feeling many of my co-committee members will be shaking their heads yes), but I felt like I should be thanking them for their work, for their contribution to children’s literature. In Dan Santat’s award acceptance speech, he said the Caldecott changed his life. I must say, it changed ours, as well, Mr. Santat. 15 people became fast friends, confidantes, cohorts, colleagues. We bonded over art, over time spent together, and yes, even tattoos. This great party we called San Francisco created memories to last a lifetime.

Beekle tattoo – photo by Angela Reynolds

At the banquet, I was asked by Mac Barnett if serving on the Caldecott Committee was exciting as it sounds. I had to say a resounding yes to that. And you know what folks, only an ALSC member can do this. I’ve been a member for 21 years, and yes, I worked hard to get to a place where I could serve on this illustrious committee. But so can you. If it is your dream (as it was mine as a starry-eyed grad student), then work towards it. The rewards are immense, and they go far beyond a fancy cocktail dinner (though those are certainly nice, too). Thanks to all the publishers who wined and dined us, to all my committee members who opened my eyes to so many viewpoints, to the illustrators and authors who make amazing books, and to ALSC for being there to hold up children’s books as shining stars. Thank you all!

The post The party that was Caldecott appeared first on ALSC Blog.

On behalf of the Great Websites for Kids Committee, I’d like to share some news and enlist your help.

If you missed our recent press release, the following are the newest sites to be added to Great Websites for Kids, the online resource featuring hundreds of links to exceptional websites for children.

• Ask a Biologist – http://askabiologist.asu.edu/ 
• Bug Guide – http://bugguide.net/node/view/15740
• Code Monster – http://www.crunchzilla.com/code-monster
• CSI: Web Adventures – http://forensics.rice.edu/
• I Was Wondering – http://iwaswondering.org/
• Middle Shelf – http://issuu.com/middleshelf/docs/
• San Diego Zoo Kids – http://kids.sandiegozoo.org/
• Smithsonian Tween Tribune – http://tweentribune.com/

We hope that you will find these and other Great Websites for Kids to be useful tools for you and your library patrons. Sites are searchable by eight main classifications (Animals, The Arts, History & Biography, Literature & Languages, Mathematics & Computers, Reference Desk, Sciences, and Social Sciences) or by keyword. The committee works hard all year to find and evaluate new sites, and to weed out previously chosen sites that haven’t maintained “great” status.

We can always use your help!

If you know of a great site that you would like to have us consider for inclusion, please submit your suggestion via this link: http://gws.ala.org/suggest-site. Similarly, if you find broken links, etc. on the site, please alert us to that as well. Comments and suggestions are always welcome.

Members of the 2015 Great Websites for Kids Committee:

• Lara Crews, co-chair, Forsyth County (North Carolina) Public Library
• Lisa Taylor, co-chair, Ocean County (New Jersey) Library
• Emily E. Bacon, Yorktown (Indiana) Public Library
• Ariel Cummins, New Braunfels (Texas) Public Library
• Jill Eisele, Bellwood (Illinois) Public Library
• Krishna Grady, Darien (Connecticut) Library
• Joanne Kelleher, Kings Park (New York) Central School District
• Elizabeth Saxton, Tiffin, Ohio
• Alia Shields, Cherry Hill (New Jersey) Public Library

And now … on to ALA in San Francisco!

The post Great Websites for Kids? Look no further! appeared first on ALSC Blog.

This year, I was delighted to be appointed to the ALSC Early Childhood Programs and Services (ECPS) Committee under the fabulous leadership of Matt McLain.  Because ALSC members typically serve two years on a committee and then rotate out, when I began attending meetings they had already decided to create posters for parents to be displayed above or around changing tables in libraries, businesses, and other public places, highlighting the five practices from Every Child Ready to Read (Talk, Sing, Read, Write, Play). These early literacy practices posters would be downloadable and printable, and hopefully customizable.

The posters would be beautiful but simple, combining each of the five practices with a rhyme and a developmental tip. Our goal was to inspire parents to talk, sing, read, write and play with their children, beginning with one poster per practice initially,

All parents of young children need to change diapers. If visually appealing, easy-to-read posters were posted above changing tables in public locations, parents would likely glance up and see them during the diaper change. If the rhyme was short and familiar, and the language was easy to understand, our committee hoped that parents would actually recite the rhyme on the spot to their children. Using a simple developmental tip to accompany the rhyme would help parents understand that reciting rhymes with their children is a valuable activity that can help build important skills for the future. By combining the tips with easy, practical suggestions, our committee hoped to encourage parents to begin incorporating the five practices into everyday life with their child.

Research has indicated that there is a link between the number of vocabulary words children know and their economic background. Published in 2003, “The Early Catastrophe: The 30 Million Word Gap by Age 3” by researchers Hart and Risley demonstrated that during the first years of life, children from low-income families hear about 30 million words less than their peers who come from more affluent homes. Young children learn words by hearing them spoken by other human beings (not necessarily electronic media!); when parents speak with their babies, they are building neural connections in their children’s brains. In addition to building a larger vocabulary, the young brains are growing more synapses to enable easier learning later on in life.

The study by Hart & Risley determined that lower income parents were speaking less or using fewer words while in conversation with their children. Further studies made the connection between having larger vocabularies when entering kindergarten and higher rates of graduation from high school. Having a high school degree influences the type of job and salary a person can generally expect to get. It has also been shown to affect health outcomes, family stability, and lifetime earnings. Thus, the number of words a child knows when entering kindergarten can lead to disparities, increasing the economic divide in our country.

Yet this gap can be easily bridged; having a large vocabulary before entering kindergarten can make a difference!

With encouragement from the ALSC Board of Directors, the ALSC Early Childhood Programs and Services (ECPS) accepted the mission of addressing the 30 million word gap by creating posters to tell parents that babies need to hear words every day.

The ECPS committee held monthly online chats in addition to meeting at ALA Conferences and exchanging regular emails. At first, committee members submitted early literacy tips such as “Sing a rhyme (or do a fingerplay) while bathing or changing your baby,” for each of the five practices. Then we compiled a short list of rhymes to go along with each of the suggested tips. The rhymes had to be in the public domain; if there was any question about a rhyme’s copyright, the rhyme was excluded .The next step was to select an artist; Il Sung Na was chosen. Then, committee members looked through his books and videos in order to find images to match the tips or rhymes on each poster. Once this was done, ALSC secured rights with Random House to use those specific images.

Although the posters use simple language, it was not so simple to design them!  After the rhymes, tips, and illustrations were put together on posters, committee members weighed in on issues such as font size, placement of text, and spelling. Finally, the posters were ready and our excitement about increasing children’s exposure to language was growing.

Our “Babies Need Words Everyday” posters are now available for free download from the initiative’s webpage: http://www.ala.org/alsc/babiesneedwords . They are meant for EVERYONE: your library, community partners, businesses in your community, and families. At ALA Midwinter, the ECPS committee will be hosting a session called “Babies Need Words Everyday,” starting with keynote speaker Patti Miller from the Clinton Foundation’s Too Small to Fail initiative and followed by a panel discussion and a talk about the posters. Printed posters will be available at the session.

Our thanks go to the ALSC Board of Directors who were instrumental in this project’s success by funding the poster printing, ensuring their translation into Spanish,  and encouraging free distribution. Because of ALSC’s strong commitment to bridging the 30 million word gap, and the valuable work that can be done by a cohesive committee with strong leadership, the concept of creating posters for changing tables has become reality.

Please check out the posters at http://www.ala.org/alsc/babiesneedwords, join in the session at ALA, and volunteer to serve on an ALSC committee for the coming year. Together, we can make a difference.

Today’s guest blogger is Betsy Diamant-Cohen, posting on behalf of the ALSC Early Childhood Programs and Services Committee, of which she is a member. Betsy developed the Mother Goose on the Loose early literacy program; she enjoys consulting and presenting training workshops to fellow librarians.

The post Changing Table Initiative Come to Fruition appeared first on ALSC Blog.

One highlight from YALSA’s Future of Library Services for and with Teens is the importance of “partnering strategically to reach beyond the library’s walls” for libraries and communities to successfully work for and with teens. (p. 21-24). In order to best help members do this, YALSA’s board approved the creation of a Community Connections Taskforce. For libraries looking to begin or build on existing partnerships, the work of the committee will help members answer questions about partnerships, including:

• Why collaborate or partner? What are the benefits? Why do libraries need to do it?
• How might libraries identify or assess needs in their community and how the library might play a role?
• What partnerships might I want to replicate from other library partnerships - big, small, rural, urban, school, public?
• What do libraries might offer to partners?
• What are the outcomes to this partnership?
• How do I reach out to potential partners?

The taskforce is currently accepting volunteers. You can volunteer by submitting a volunteer form here - just look for the committee volunteer form and get started.

The committee charge is below. Please reach out to me or Candice Mack if you have any questions!

Community Connections Taskforce
Charge: compile existing and, as needed, develop new resources for members on the topic of using community engagement and partnerships to address teen needs. Resources must address the following key topics: rationale for pursuing community partnerships; strategies for assessing teen and community needs and identifying possible partners; examples of organizations that could serve as potential partners; asset mapping of library resources to determine what the library can bring to a partnership; and turn-key resources libraries can adapt and use, such as sample email messages to potential partners, community needs assessment tools, asset map checklist, etc. As completed, promote the community connections resources with the assistance of YALSA staff and member leaders through a variety of YALSA and other channels, including but not limited to: YALSAblog posts, webinars, Academy videos, Google Hangouts, and presentations at conferences. Size: 5-7 virtual members, including the Chair. Term: from August 1, 2015 to January 31, 2017.

Have you ever wondered-“Where can I get help with a big initiative in my library? Who would be a partner that can stretch beyond our walls and bring more partners to the table?” We have found this partner with our local United Way. With a new focus at the national level, the United Way has changed. With dedication to providing good education, financial stability, and healthy and strong communities, local United Ways are reaching out to their communities more than ever. Our local United Way responded to a county wide assessment that pinpointed three areas that we as a community needed to focus on-Early Literacy, Mental Health, and Low-Income families. The library was a natural partner with early literacy. We now have a partnership with United Way of Medina County that is funding our R.O.C.K.S. Program (Reading Opportunities Create Kindergarten Success). Medina County R.O.C.K.S. is an interactive workshop for parents and their kindergarten-age children. Parents listen to informational speakers while the children enjoy interactive learning and then parents and children complete a reading readiness activity together. Families receive materials to take home to practice, books, and much more!
Our United Way also partnered with us on our One Book, One Community initiative. They came to the table with the idea to collect enough copies of the book Wonder to give to every sixth grader in our county. They did it and collected over 2500 copies of the book. This is where the United Way has been most effective as a partner for us, reaching businesses and making those connections that otherwise we could not. The executive director at the time told me that asking businesses to donate books to kids was their easiest project. It was easy to convince individuals and businesses to support reading, especially a book that has the message of being kind. Choosing this book was our library response to the health assessment that indicated that 17% of the youth in our county in 2012 had seriously considered suicide.
I encourage you to seek out your local United Way and sit down and talk about how you can partner together. It has been a beautiful relationship for both the United Way of Medina County and the Medina County District Library and because of the United Way, we have found new partnerships. Check out their website at www.unitedway.org.

Holly Camino is manager of the Buckeye Branch at the Medina County District Library in Medina, OH. She is serving on the 2016 Arbuthnot Lecture Committee, the ALSC Liaison to National Organizations Committee, 2014-2016, and a Member of the ALA Committee on Membership Meetings 2015-2017. Holly is also a 2013 recipient of the Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times and American Library Association, “I Love My Librarian Award”.

The post United Way-Partnerships that create Partnerships appeared first on ALSC Blog.

Thank you to all who ran for positions on the 2017 Edwards, Nonfiction & Printz Award Committees and congratulations to those who were elected!

These award committees are partially filled by elected spots and partially filled by appointed spots, so now through June 15th, YALSA is collecting volunteer forms for the 2017 Edwards, Nonfiction and Printz Award Committees that will begin work Feb. 1st, 2016 and for the 2016 YA Services Symposium Planning Taskforce that will begin work later this year .

If you are interested in one of these committees or the Symposium taskforce, the first thing to do is learn all about what the expectations are for members of these groups.

These resources can help:

• Watch this free Award Committee Webinar
• Read this article How to Succeed on a YA Book Committee (PDF)
• Talk to current committee chairs to get first hand information about what is expected of committee members
• Read the Awards Committees Conflict of Interest Policy
• Read the Committee FAQ
• Read the descriptions of YALSA award committees and taskforces

YALSA is seeking individuals with the highest ethical standards, a passion for YALSA's mission and expertise in evaluating YA literature to serve on these awards committees.

If you feel you have met the criteria and have the time available to serve on one of these YALSA award committees or the symposium taskforce, you are encouraged to fill out the Committee Volunteer Form between now and June 15th at http://www.ala.org/CFApps/Committee/volunteerform/volunteerform2.cfm?group1=YALSA

In order to be eligible to serve on a YALSA committee, you must be a current personal member.

To learn more about membership, or to join, go to http://www.ala.org/yalsa/join.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch with me at [email protected]

Podcast length: 11 min 40 seconds

YALSA’s Cultural Competencies Task Force interviews Patrick Jones, retired young adult services guru, author, speaker, winner of the 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Library Association and Catholic Library Association, and pro wrestling enthusiast. Patrick was a teen librarian for 20 years, and continues to be an advocate for teens and teen services. This podcast gives an overview of how best to reach out and serve young adults in juvenile correctional facilities and provides advice to librarians new to outreach to prisons.

Resources:

Librarians Serving Youth in Custody: http://www.youthlibraries.org/.

The Beat Within: A Publication of Writing and Art from the Inside: http://www.thebeatwithin.org/.

Contra Costa Times article about librarian Amy Cheney: http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_27691434/alameda-county-librarian-connects-incarcerated-youths-lesser-known.

Literacy for Incarcerated Teens: http://www.literacyforincarceratedteens.org/.

Reaching Out to Young Adults in Jail, p. 16: http://yalsa.ala.org/yals/yalsarchive/volume3/3n1_fall2004.pdf

School Library Journal article about literacy for incarcerated teens: http://www.slj.com/2014/09/literacy/literacy-for-incarcerated-teens/#_

Follow us on Twitter:

Patrick Jones: @PatrickJonesYA.

Learn more about Patrick at his website: http://www.connectingya.com/.

Monnee Tong: @librarianmo.

Intro and Closing Music: Summer’s Coming from Dexter Britain’s Creative Commons Volume 2. https://soundcloud.com/dexterbritain/sets/creative-commons-vol2

Thanks to technology and a wealth of resources available via the internet, youth have more ways to discover their interests and passions. Spaces across the YOUmedia Learning Labs Network, based on the principles of Connected Learning and HOMAGO (hanging out, messing around, and geeking out) provide spaces for youth to gather, collaborate, and learn by doing. With the guidance of caring, near-peer artist-mentors, teens explore animation, recording music, and writing poetry and music. YOUmedia successfully provides a way for youth to learn 21st century skills, which in turn can lead to more workplace opportunities. There is a need for developing a 21st century skillset, which includes “life and career skills, innovation, critical thinking, and information, media, and technology skills.” In essence, workers need to be able to adapt and think critically and differently about situations. YOUmedia has had success with this, encouraging youth to experiment with new technology and activities.

Given the success of YOUmedia, how does one transform the “geeking out” stage of creation and production into a viable career path? For example, Salvador Avila, the Manager of the Enterprise Branch of the Las Vegas Clark County Library District and mentor at the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, saw how youth were constantly plugged into their music players, so he began teaching DJ classes. Organizations tapping into the successes of the YOUmedia Network are the Cities of Learning Network and twelve new user-centered spaces funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the MacArthur Foundation. The Los Angeles Summer of Learning encourages youth to explore and develop their passions in coding, community action, media, sports, and other interests, and learn how it relates to their career or academic future. Youth aged 16-24 can participate in the Workforce Readiness Challenge, where they learn job skills, interview skills and financial literacy.

A project that our office is involved in is the GRIT Lab – a teen community center in the South Bronx that will be a place to connect youth to out of school learning and workforce opportunities. Across New York City, there are 172,000 out-of school and out-of-work 18-24 year olds. Some of the challenges that out-of-school and out-of-work youth face result from a lack of interest-driven opportunities, workforce development programs, and a supportive learning environment. Working with key organizations in the South Bronx like DreamYard and New Visions for Public Schools, we observed how an advisor figure positively affects the student’s academic and personal growth and chances for success. Advisors are a crucial aspect of the youth development process because they are instrumental in advocating for and making sure students are on a path to success in their education. An advisor who works with and supports the student’s customized pathway from the interest-driven to career-driven stages would be ideal, and they could be a resource to connect different resources.

The GRIT Lab faces challenges of connecting areas of youth interest to workforce opportunities. One area of interest is technology – coincidentally, New York City is a rapidly growing technology center. Tech is now the second largest jobs sector in the city and will be a source of opportunity for many young New Yorkers. By identifying these industries and the requisite job skills now, today’s youth can be prepared to succeed in these sectors. For example, training a young person today how to code or write a computer program will give them exposure and some basic skills in the technology field. Some of these needs are being addressed by YOUmedia Cohorts and workforce development programs like the Red Hook Initiative in Brooklyn, which provides job and leadership training for young adults and has a Digital Stewardship program for young adults where they work to maintain and provide Wi-Fi for the neighborhood. Per Scholas, a non-profit based in New York with other locations across the country, trains adults in the information technology sector. Per Scholas connects their graduates with career opportunities at Doran Jones (a partner company) and other corporations. Workforce development is a necessary and important layer to add to youth centers.

These skills and opportunities are vital to workforce development, but not always connected to long-term jobs. Even though the emphasis is on developing workforce skills, the holistic needs of the teen remain important. Third places like the DreamYard Art Center with its YOUmedia space, the Children’s Aid Society Next Generation Center (NGC), and the FEGS Bronx Youth Center serve the youth population of the South Bronx. The NGC offers hangout space and structured programs, as well as resources and advisors for youth to learn more about educational and career pathways. One program, the Next Generation Caterers, is a youth-led catering business. Not only does this program produce students with job and culinary skills, they have also been introduced to a work environment through their interests in that field.

The developing trend is that children and youth need more than traditional, in-school learning. User-centered out-of-school learning environments like YOUmedia and the GRIT Lab see the whole child, and the long-term value of interspace learning, advisors and support systems, and the need to pair learning with opportunity. The movement for out-of-school learning opportunities paired with workforce development impacts teen services. The Connected Learning “hanging out, messing around, geeking out” model which YOUmedia uses and its impact on teens has been critical for this move to create an environment that supports youth, and connects their interests to academics, and workforce development.

Sources:

• Valerie Strauss, “‘You have made us the enemy. This is personal.’ – 7 N.Y. Teachers of the Year blast Cuomo,” The Washington Post, February 9, 2015.
• Michael Mandel, “New York, the Silicon City,” The New York Times, January 6, 2014.
• “Room for Debate ‘Teaching Code in the Classroom’,” The New York Times, May 12, 2014.
• TechArt Studio (Las Vegas YOUmedia Cohort)
• LA Summer of Learning
• Associated Press, “Obama: Students Need Help to Get ‘In-Demand Jobs’,” The New York Times, April 7, 2014.
• http://www.p21.org/

Margaret Sullivan, Principal of Margaret Sullivan Studio, is a leader in programming, visioning and designing libraries of our future! With a specialty in designing teen spaces to support Connected Learning principles, the Studio was responsible for designing the DreamYard Arts Center in the South Bronx, a YOUMedia prototype, and Cloud901, the new Teen Learning Lab at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library in Memphis, TN.

Other than a few favorite story times that I repeat yearly, I always like to try something new. Similarly, I’m always interested in learning something new.  In February, I put it all together – mixing things that interest me with several of the library’s most wonderful assests –  technology, diversity, creative space, and kids.

I offer you the ingreadients for “Read, Reflect, Relay: a 4-week club”

Ingreadients

• 1 part knowledge from ALSC’s online class, “Tech Savvy Booktalker”
• 1 part inspiration from ALSC’s online class, “Series Programming for theElementary School Age”
• 1 new friendship spawned by networking and a love of nonfiction books
• a desire to participate in the #weneeddiversebooks campaign
• computers
• books
• school-aged kids
• space and time to create

Each club participant read a Schneider Family Book Award winner of her choice.  If you’re unfamiliar with the Schneider Family Book Award, I’ve linked to its page. Winning books embody the “disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.”

I asked each of the participants to distill the message of her book into a sentence or two – something that would make a good commercial.  Then I gave them a choice of using Animoto, Stupeflix, or VoiceThread to create a book trailer or podcast.  All three platforms were kind enough to offer me an “educator account” for use at the library.  Other than strict guidelines on copyright law and a “no-spoilers” rule, each girl was free to interpret and relay the message of her book as she pleased.

Coincidentally, after I had planned the club, I was chatting online with Alyson Beecher.  We were both Round 2 judges for the Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction CYBILS Awards.  I had no idea that she is also the Chair of the Schneider Family Book Award Committee!  When I told her about my club, she immediately offered to Skype or Hangout with the club members.  We hastily worked out a schedule, and Alyson’s visit on the last day of the club was one of its highlights!

The girls ranged in age from 10 to teen.  I think you will be impressed with their creativity.

WordPress does not allow me to embed the actual videos and podcasts, but you can access them via the links below – or visit them on Alyson’s site where she was able to embed them.  Enjoy!

·        Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (2012 winner, Middle School)  https://animoto.com/play/kUdNM1sa4fWKfZOXId63AQ

·      After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick (2011 winner, Middle School)   https://voicethread.com/new/myvoice/#thread/6523783/33845486/35376059

·    Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin (2010 winner, Teen)  https://animoto.com/play/qFPwi1vYP1ha2FF0vVUuFg

·      Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin (2010 winner, Teen) (another one)    http://studio.stupeflix.com/v/9GKeiQfgsj9Q/?autoplay=1

·      A Dog Called Homeless by Sara Lean (2013 winner, Middle School)    http://studio.stupeflix.com/v/DQ4tJG8mnsYX/?autoplay=1

If you’d like more information, or if you’d like to see my video booktalk (or adapt) my video advertisement for the program, just leave a message in the comments.  I’ll be happy to respond.

 *All logos used with permission and linked back to their respective sites.

The post Putting it all together appeared first on ALSC Blog.

YALSA wants to support you as you implement "The Future of Library Services for and with Teens: a Call to Action," and is currently considering publishing books focused on major topics in the report.

The YALSA Publications Advisory Board has identified some of the topics from the Futures report that are the most under-represented in professional literature, and we want your input. Fill out this brief poll to let us know which subjects and formats you would find the most useful in future publications from YALSA.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Do you have a great idea for a book? Knowledge you want to share? A desire to give back to your professional community? Consider publishing with YALSA! Find more information about submitting publication proposals or writing queries for Young Adult Library Services (YALS) here.

Let’s talk about This One Summer. I know many of you have already talked about it, and I’m sure some of those conversations have been very interesting. As a member of the 2015 Caldecott Committee that chose This One Summer by Mariko & Jillian Tamaki as an honor book, I’ll try to clear up some points that have lead to questions.  According to the Caldecott definitions, “’A picture book for children’ is one for which children are the intended potential audience. “Children are defined as persons of ages up to and including fourteen and picture books for this entire age range are considered.” (Caldecott Manual, page 10) The Expanded Definitions also says, on page 69, “In some instances, award-winning books have been criticized for exceeding the upper age limit of fourteen. If a book is challenging, and suitable for 13-14 year-olds, but not for younger readers, is it eligible? Yes…” Yes, this book is for older readers. Here’s an interesting look at that question in Travis Jonker’s interview with the Tamakis.

This One Summer is a coming-of-age story about a girl entering adolescence and both appeals to and is appropriate for young readers age 12-14. Twelve, thirteen and fourteen year-olds fall well within the scope of audience for the Caldecott Medal and Honor books. Although this book is challenging in many ways, the committee found it to be “so distinguished, in so many ways, that it deserves recognition” as well as “exceptionally fine, for the narrow part of the range to which it appeals, even though it may be eligible for other awards outside this range.” (page 69 – Caldecott Manual). There are many people who do not realize that the Caldecott terms include books for older readers. I see this as an opportunity for us, as ALSC members and librarians, to deepen understanding of the award.

Committee member Tali Balas add sticker to the book. Photo by Angela Reynolds

According to The Caldecott Manual, a “picture book for children” as distinguished from other books with illustrations, is one that essentially provides the child with a visual experience. A picture book has a “collective unity of storyline, theme, or concept, developed through the series of pictures of which this book is comprised.” (page 10) The committee followed this definition closely, and This One Summer shows, through pictures, a collective unity of all three, with particular strength in storyline and theme. Graphic novels certainly provide us with a visual experience. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has a great article on using This One Summer in a classroom, which you can read here, and a “make your case” article for adding it to your collection here. And for those of you who are graphic novel fans, don’t miss this podcast with Mariko Tamaki. I love how she talks about the images being like paragraphs.

The Caldecott Committee, as directed by the manual, considered each eligible book as a picture book and made our decisions based primarily on illustration. The committee gave This One Summer an honor because of its excellence of pictorial presentation for children, as defined in the manual. If you haven’t seen it, take a look at the amazing use of just one color. Jillian Tamaki creates mood so vividly with her washes of indigo, deepening the shade when the plot gets darker. The story has much to do with water; the monochromatic blues remind us just how changeable a lake (and an adolescent girl) can be. The images in the book intertwine and play with the words, creating an authentic summer experience. I just love the image on pages 70-71 where Windy is dancing around the kitchen. It shows her personality, and Rose’s, perfectly:  setting up the tension of youthful energy and quiet contemplation. There are many images throughout the book that give us this deeper insight. Go looking for them. They will astound you.
*Special thanks to fellow committee member Sharon McKeller for help with this article.

The post Let’s talk about Caldecott: This One Summer appeared first on ALSC Blog.

In this second blog post on creating inclusive libraries, we examine the need to identify and remove barriers, and have an expanded definition of ‘the library as a safe space’.

Identifying and Removing Barriers

Paramount to our goal of creating inclusive libraries is removing barriers that prevent diverse youth from feeling welcome. In her research, Kafi Kumasi (2012) found that many youth of color feel like outsiders in library spaces, describing the school library as the sole “property” of the librarian. Kumasi argues that “these feelings of disconnect and exclusion should be attended to by school librarians, if they want to make all of their students feel welcome.”

Physical barriers can be easy to spot and can include, for example, detectors and late fees. Consider the unwelcoming message that detectors—particularly those with a ‘push’ gate—can send about libraries, especially for teens who may regularly be followed in department stores. We must recognize that these kinds of microaggressions are daily experiences for many youth, especially male youth of color, and must be mindful not to replicate them in our libraries. We must also realize that late fees represent a financial burden for some teens and their families causing teens to forego visiting the library, and ask ourselves, what other strategies might we use? Finally, our libraries must be physically and intellectually accessible for teens with disabilities (and, of course, stocked with literature that reflects their lived experiences). Project ENABLE provides free training to help librarians create more inclusive libraries that address the needs of youth with disabilities.

Other barriers are more difficult to unpack, but include library policies or procedures that inhibit teens from visiting or participating. For public libraries, this could manifest as an address requirement for receiving a library card. Teens experiencing homelessness would be unable to fulfill this requirement and thus be denied access to essential public library resources including computer time and material checkouts. For school libraries, perhaps a strict atmosphere of ‘shhh-ing’ is excluding teens from joining in library activities. Janice Hale (2001) reminds us, for example, that African American youth “participate in a culture that is highly dynamic. They thrive in settings that use multimedia and multimodal teaching strategies. And they favor instruction that is variable, energetic, vigorous, and captivating.” Do our libraries support this?

Barriers can also exist in programming. Are we scheduling programs at times that allow teen participation? Are we taking into consideration the public transportation schedules? Are we offering programs at locations in the community, rather than expecting teens to always come to the library? Are we coordinating our teen programs with our programs for children so that teens who are responsible for taking care of siblings can attend? Breaking Barriers: Libraries and Socially Excluded Communities explores ideas related to this topic specific to public libraries.

School librarians must work to embed issues of social justice throughout the curriculum recognizing that building a more inclusive library helps to cultivate a more inclusive school. We must use care to schedule our clubs—book, coding, gaming, etc.—at times when all students have the opportunity to attend. When schools have an enrichment/remediation period, this may seem like a perfect time to schedule library activities, but then we will be precluding any teens slated for remediation time from participating in our clubs—and these are exactly the teens we should be striving to reach. We need to work to select more neutral times, such as lunch, or work with teachers to create a way for students selected for remediation to fully participate

To identify barriers, it is important to see the library through the eyes of our teens— “What do they see?”  Utilizing the ideas in the Culturally Responsive Library Walk, we can ask teens who frequent the library, but perhaps more importantly those who are not regular visitors, to provide their insight into the explicit and implicit messages our libraries are sending.

Library as Safe Space

Overwhelmingly, as librarians, we believe in the idea of library as sanctuary. Are we making our libraries safe for the quiet female teen who doesn’t fit in and likes to read? Undoubtedly. [Bets are many of us were that girl.] What about the male teenager who is loud and funny and needs a place where he feels smart? Is the library a place where it is perfectly okay for him to joke with his friends while doing his homework? What about the trans teen who wants to be in a community or school space where there is no gender sorting? Are we still using phrases like “ladies and gentlemen”? Do we have separate male and female restroom passes? How do we respond when we hear teens make homophobic or racist remarks? Do we pretend we didn’t hear them, or do we intervene?

Language is important. It can be used to communicate inclusiveness or to reinforce privilege. Implicit bias and microaggressions have no place in an inclusive library. Person-first language is a necessity. For example, we don’t have autistic students; we have students with autism. We also need to educate ourselves on examples of loaded words and coded meanings and recognize terms that should not be used to describe youth. For example, we need to remove the term “at-risk teen” from our vocabulary and watch how subtle word changes can alter meaning. “Youth in poverty” implies a changeable condition; “youth of poverty” implies an immutable state of being. Similarly, the term homeless youth oversimplifies these teens’ lives, whereas the phrase youth experiencing homelessness keeps our attention focused on the teens and respects the complexity of their lives.

The Inclusive Library

Committing ourselves to increasing our cultural competence, using our diverse collections, identifying and removing barriers, and expanding our definition of ‘the library as safe space’ can help to make our libraries more inclusive. In this blog series, we have in no way provided an exhaustive list of things to think about, but we hope we have demonstrated ways to embed tenets of inclusivity throughout every aspect of our work. We would love to hear how you act for teens by making your libraries inclusive!  Tell us in the comments, email us, or join the conversation by tweeting out your best practices using #libequity and #act4teens.

Julie Stivers (@BespokeLib) is a graduate student at UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Information and Library Science and works with teens at the Durham County Youth Home and at a local public school.

Sandra Hughes-Hassell (@bridge2lit)is a professor at UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science where her research focuses on social justice and libraries.

Coming soon: on April 30, we will celebrate the culmination of Día. But did you know that Día doesn’t end there? It’s the beginning of a new year of Book Joy, emphasizing the importance of literacy for all children from all backgrounds, and in all languages.

Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales. Image from http://us.macmillan.com/vivafrida/YuyiMorales.

How can you keep Día in your heart, and your work, every day? Commit to including a book, song, or rhyme from or about another place in every storytime. Creating a book display? Include diverse books on the theme, but then add translated editions of those titles; kids and adults need to know that their favorite reads are available in their first language. Visiting a site with your bookmobile? Check your stock for titles published in the languages spoken in the community before you depart. By demonstrating how easily all people can be represented, we encourage our peers, families, teachers, and caregivers to do the same.

Crossover by Kwame Alexander. Image from http://www.bookinaday.org/.

But where to find materials? So many resources are generated within our profession and beyond:

• Check out the resources on the Día website at dia.ala.org, especially the recently-created “Building STEAM with Día” booklists.
• Not ready to start a Día Family Book Club? Use the curriculum to guide discussion in any setting.
• Need more? Bookmark the ALSC Book & Media Awards page and utilize the links to lists of vetted, quality titles and authors for kids from all backgrounds.
• Look beyond libraryland: a quick web search leads to the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign, which hosts a fantastic guide to booklists celebrating everybody!
• Finally, talk to your peers! Share books at every opportunity. Make yourself familiar with your collection, pick favorite authors, and then include them in your programming, readers’ advisory interactions, school visits, and summer reading presentations.

Stay conscious of the need to represent the world to your families. With enough repetition, we’ll build a tolerant, inclusive, well-read, and better-educated community in which everyone is reflected in books. Keep Día in your heart and mind every day!

_________________________________________________________________

This post was written by Robin J. Howe, MLIS, Children’s Librarian with the King County Library System for the Public Awareness Committee. Reach Robin at [email protected].

The post Día Every Day appeared first on ALSC Blog.

Happy Monday, amazing YALSA members!

Can you believe it's already near the end of February?

For those who've made New Year's resolutions to be more involved in the profession, it's not too late!

The deadline to apply to join a YALSA strategic committee, jury, or taskforce is this Sunday, March 1st!

You can see the full list of committees and juries here.

Strategic committees are a great way to get involved with YALSA, as they are virtual committees. Or, if you are a new member and looking to try committee work for the first time, the strategic committees are a great way to learn about YALSA, connect with teen service professionals from around the country, and help you develop your virtual work skills and teen expertise. So, if travel and conference attendance aren't an option for you this year, please take a minute to fill out the volunteer form here and send it in before March 1st!

My Appointments Taskforce and I will begin the process to fill the over 200 open positions that help YALSA accomplish the work of the strategic plan and the work that moves the association and members forward immediately after March 1st, so please be sure to get your application in before then.

I strongly encourage all YALSA members to apply - it is an easy and great way to get more involved in this amazing association, especially if you are interested in joining a YALSA selection or award committee in the future.

Please feel free to contact me at candice.yalsa (at) gmail.com if you have any questions!

In 2012 and 2013 through funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, YALSA embarked on an ambitious journey to create the National Forum on Libraries and Teens. Its culmination was The Future of Library Services for and with Teens: A Call to Action, or Futures Report for short. The report’s purpose is to provide a roadmap for 21st century teen library services. Its hashtag, #act4teens, boldly reinforces the report’s subtitle. For me, #act4teens is akin to the Yoda quote, “Do. Or Do not. There is no try.” We must act to move teen services in our libraries forward.

YALSA and the Future of Teens and Libraries Taskforce created several #act4teens resources that can be found on the National Forum on Libraries and Teens’ shared resources page, which directs you to three types of tools designed to help you #act4teens at your library and in your community.

You’ll find:

1. One-page fact sheets to give to a variety of different audiences to raise awareness and excitement about the future of library services for and with teens. Factsheets are geared to the following audiences:
   • Community members, partners, and advocates
   • Faculty and researches at library and information science schools
   • Library staff
   • School administrators and principles
   • Library trustees
2. Canned presentations to use when you present the report to others and again can be used with a variety of audiences.
3. A tip sheet geared specifically to help you bring the ideas of the Futures Report to administrators. The tip sheet provides strategies for starting a dialogue with your supervisor about the report and its implications. It also provides steps on how to start moving forward to reimagine services for and with teens in your community.

You Are Important in Helping Move the Future of Library Services for Teens Forward

The only way the recommendations of YALSA’s Futures Report will become a reality is if library staff work to make change happen. Therefore, YOU play a key role in moving teen services forward. You can do this by: talking with others about the report, highlighting small steps you’ve taken along with being honest about the challenges you face can help move #act4teens forward. Talking about the Futures Report is, quite possibly, the best way to spread the movements it calls for forward beyond your community. Don’t know where to start? Here are some ways to begin:

• Use social media using #act4teens. Tell @yalsa what you have been up to directly through Twitter or through the “How I #act4teens” form.
• Challenge yourself to do one small thing to #act4teens. Then, share what you did with others.
• Discuss the Futures Report with colleagues. Talk about how to act as well as your challenges through email, social media, phone calls, a virtual hangout, or in person.
• Talk about the Futures Report at conferences. Host an unconference discussion or present on your #act4teens story at a conference.
• Use the new resources mentioned above to talk to others about the report.

The more we let each other know what we are doing and how we are moving teen services forward, the easier it is to implement reimagined services within our communities. Your tiny victory may be an aha moment for someone else, or your challenge might be a common one that--when discussed with others--leads to strong solutions. Not every #act4teens moment needs to be transformative, but each tiny one that we share can have a snowball effect that leads to better teen services at our libraries.

Peggy Hendershot, Youth Information Specialist at the Johnson County Library, Blue Valley Branch, has just been awarded the 2015 MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens with her program, the Young Adult Discussion Diversity Panel she formed with their Young Adult Advisory  Council (YAAC).  Peggy told me about her experiences.

What was the reaction to winning the award in your community?  How did your students react?

Everyone has been very kind and full of congratulations.  The Kansas City Star’s 913 (Johnson County section) requested an interview. It’s great positive publicity for the library.

We told the teens during our usual round of introduction questions at our February 7th YAAC meeting. We asked, “What was the most exciting thing that happened to you in the last year.” When it was my turn, I said, “Winning the YALSA Mae Award for the Diversity Discussion Panel!” Then we handed out a copy of the press release to the kids. They were very excited!  There was quite a bit of whooping and hollering going on, along with plenty of high fives! We celebrated with cake, ice cream and confetti poppers.  Then they wanted to talk about the next big event they could plan!

You mention in your application that your library’s YAAC takes advantage of the YALSA YA Galley program.  Could you talk about how that works with your group?

The Johnson County Library YAAC groups applied to participate in the YALSA YA Galley/Teen Top Ten book project and were accepted into the program. Publishers sent out galleys and review titles of new and upcoming books. At our monthly meetings, the YAAC teens selected the titles that interested them from the selections sent out. The teens then read the books and completed reviews for them, which were sent back to the publishers. They also rated the books, nominating their favorites for the Teen Top Ten best books. YAAC members also discussed the books they did not select and why they chose not to read them. This information was also sent to the publishers. Our term was up the beginning of this year, but we plan to reapply to the program at the first opportunity!

Your library’s YAAC touched upon the issue of the lack of diverse titles in teen literature quite independently of our profession’s conversation about needing diverse books.  How were you able to channel that frustration/energy to, as you wrote, “do something about it” for these teens?

The teens expressed their frustration with finding main characters in YA literature that reflected them. The discussion started with one comment from one of the teens in the group, but the discussion quickly grew and became very intense as it did.  I let them talk awhile, guiding and facilitating the discussion. Then I asked them if they wanted to do something about it and they said yes.  I asked them what and they didn’t know, so I suggested they brainstorm ideas and I would, too, and then we could discuss at our next meeting which ideas they particularly liked and which ideas were feasible to pursue. The teens were extremely excited about the idea of being able to talk directly with publishing representatives.

How will you use the MAE Award money at your library?

We plan to use it toward an author visit. The teens will be submitting their suggestions at the next couple of YAAC meetings.

Any advice to librarians or teachers thinking about applying for this year’s MAE Award?

Go for it! I didn’t expect to win and was taken totally by surprise. I told YAAC in December that I applied for the award because I was proud of them and the hard work they put into the panel. It was obvious that meant a lot to them. Whether or not you win the award, submitting their program is a wonderful way to reinforce to your teens that their programming is important and relevant. If you win, the publicity for the library system is also great.

Apply for the 2016 MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens! Deadline is December 1.  Applications and additional information about the award are available online.

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. Literature awards can spark all kinds of conversations about why we need diverse books. (#WeNeedDiverseBooks).

The news spread far and wide like fire on a prairie (or snow headed for Chicago). Those announcements, though, were just a smattering of the literature awards that will be given this year. Also announced at the American Library Association’s Midwinter conference were the winners of the The Asian Pacific American Library Association (APALA) literature awards. These include a winner and honor book in children’s, young adult, and picture book categories.

The Asian Pacific American Library Association was established in 1980 to create an organization that would address the needs of Asian Pacific American librarians and those who serve Asian Pacific American communities. Since 2001 they have been honoring the best books published in the previous year for children and young adults related to Asian/Pacific American experiences (either historical or contemporary) or Asian/Pacific American cultures.

The APALA winners are announced during the midwinter meeting, but there is no fanfare until the annual ALA conference awards ceremony. And so, while we were all shouting “hooray” for the likes of Jacqueline Woodson, Kwame Alexander, Duncan Tonatiuh and others……..even more dreams were quietly coming true.

2015 Winners:
Young Adult

Winner: Tiger Girl by May-Lee Chai (GemmaMedia)

Honor: Shadow Hero by Gene Luen Yang (First Second), illustration by Sonny Liew.

Children’s

Winner: Gaijin: American Prisoner of War by Matt Faulkner (Disney/Hyperion Books)

Honor: Ting Ting by Kristie Hammond (Sono Nis Press, Canada)

Picture Book

Winner: Hana Hashimoto, Sixth Violin by Chieri Uegaki and Qin Leng (Kids Can Press)

Honor: Father’s Chinese Opera by Rich Lo (Sky Pony Press)

_________________________________________________________________

Andrea R. Milano is a Youth Services Librarian at Multnomah County Library in Portland, Oregon and she is writing this post on behalf of the Public Awareness Committee.

The post Dreams Do Come True appeared first on ALSC Blog.

Do you get caught up in the goal-oriented, stats-oriented, what-can-we-accomplish-next part of your job? I certainly do, so this past December, I took the Youth Services staff meeting (ahem, party) to the next level, adding in a look back over all the major accomplishments of the past year.

We always have plenty of fun at our December meetings, included a white-elephant gift auction, pot-luck lunch and a Secret Santa-type gift exchange. In 2013, we did a food theme for the gift exchange, but most of us (except for those lucky few, grr!) are watching their weight, so my colleague came up with the idea of socks for 2014. It was awesome—I got peacock feather socks and socks with books on them!

This year was the first of what I hope will be many “let’s celebrate what we have accomplished” themed meetings.

I created an “Annual Report” type document replete with pictures and fun quotes, printed it up big and taped the sheets up around the room. It took me about 3 hours from start to finish, and I wondered along the way whether it was worth it. I wouldn’t have been able to tackle it without the Board Reports I do every month (I knew those would come in handy someday). And I wouldn’t be able to do the Board Reports without the Monthly Updates I ask my staff to submit, which miraculously, they do!

When I had everything interesting and noteworthy culled from the Board Reports all together in a document, I saw that everything fell into these categories:

• Our Space
• Community Partners
• School Partners
• Our Staff
• Program Highlights
• Summer Reading Club Highlights
• Technology Ups & Downs
• Summer Reading Highlights

Here’s a sample of one of the pages:Next year, it might be an electronic slide-show or it might take a different format. But watching my staff as they looked at all we had accomplished this year all together, and remembered things that seemed like they were from ages ago, and pointed things out to each other, made the few hours I spent on it totally worth the effort.

Let us all know what you do to remember and celebrate accomplishments at work!

*************************************************************************

Shelley Sutherland wrote this piece as a member of the Managing Children’s Services Committee.

The post The State of the Union, er, Youth Services Department appeared first on ALSC Blog.