Thank you to our three candidates for YALSA President-Nick Buron, Sarah Flowers, and Linda Braun–for taking the time these past few weeks to answer the questions in this forum and giving all our YALSA members the opportunity to get to know them better.
- Why are you running for YALSA President?
- When you are Past President and people reflect back to your presidential year, what do you hope they will remember about you?
Good luck to all our candidates and thanks again for giving such thoughtful answers!
Remember, ALA polls open March 17 and close April 24. Please make sure your voice is heard by casting your ballot!
Sarah Debraski
YALSA President-Elect
Why are you running for YALSA President?
I am running for YALSA President because I believe that the various experiences I have had in YALSA, in the library world, and in working with teens makes me extremely well-qualified to lead the organization. I feel strongly that YALSA is an organization that is in a really “good place” and I would like to help the Division, and its members, to move to the next phase of its growth.
When you are Past President and people reflect back to your presidential year, what do you hope they will remember about you?
When people think about my year as YALSA President I would like them to remember that I worked with the Division to help move it forward. I helped to take activities and programs that were already working and moved them to a next level. I was able to initiate some new programs and services that helped YALSA to support even more successfully librarians serving teens. I was a President who all members – students, new members, and members with many years in the Division – knew had their best interests in mind. And, I would like them to remember that I worked really hard to make things happen.
Final Note
Thanks to Sarah for developing and posting the various questions over the past month. They were thought-provoking and gave me (and perhaps the other candidates) a chance to think about my candidacy in new ways – and to get a chance to articulate positions.
Why are you running for YALSA President?
I am running for YALSA president because I believe that all of my various experiences in YALSA and at work have brought me to a place where I could be a successful leader for YALSA. Working with (and hanging out with) YALSA folks is one of the most enjoyable things I do at conference and, in fact, all year.
When you are Past President and people reflect back to your presidential year, what do you hope they will remember about you?
That I was competent, efficient, and especially, responsive. The most effective YALSA presidents I have worked with have been great at keeping in touch with the members, answering emails, keeping everyone informed, and making changes based on the members’ comments. YALSA’s members have so much to offer, and I would want to be the kind of president who made them all feel welcomed and valued.
Thanks to Sarah D. for moderating this little question-and-answer series. I’m a member of two other ALA divisions, and in neither of the others do I feel I have learned as much about the candidates as I have on the YALSA blog. Thanks again.
Sarah Flowers
Candidate for YALSA Vice-President/President-Elect
Thank you, again, for the opportunity to share my views with the membership in this format. As for the last questions:
Why are you running for YALSA President?
I am running for YALSA President because I have the Experience, Enthusiasm and Motivation to lead our Association of over 5000 to the Next Level.
Experience: I have been in Public Libraries for over 14 years, in a variety of positions. I have been a YA librarian, an Assistant Manager, a Branch Manager, and for over 7 years, the Coordinator of YA Services where I implemented programs and services to the borough’s (that’s what we call our counties in NYC) 230,000+ teens in 63 locations. I trained hundreds of librarians in adolescent development, programs and collections and implement innovative programs such as 21st Century Community Learning Centers and Juvenile Justice grants.
My years in YALSA have been with Best Books for Young Adults; President’s Program; Teen Read Week; and on the Board of Directors (2005-2008). I have been on a number of other ALA committees, including being an ALA Councilor-At-Large.
Enthusiasm: Since starting my work as a librarian, working with teens drove me to be a better librarian and the more dedicated professional librarians I encountered, the better I have become at my job. Over the years, I have built on my desire to help teens with their school work, being involved and helping answer their curious questions. That desire went to a new level as the Coordinator of YA Services and a member of YALSA as I started training others and passing on my enthusiasm and experience. Now, as Assistant Director at Queens Library, I find myself at our Community Libraries jumping in to help a teen with his or her reference question. It is that connection that reminds me why I entered this profession in the first place.
Motivation: I feel very fortunate to have found not just a job, but a career where I really feel I make a difference. From my first day on the job, I knew I was in the right profession. I really felt I was helping people, and that feeling has only grown over the years. First I was helping teens and other customers, then those who work with them and in YALSA. I feel I have done both. I am running for YALSA President because I am motivated to make our association an agent for success for our members, libraries and the teens in those communities.
When you are Past President and people reflect back to your presidential year, what do you hope they will remember about you?
I hope my presidential year will be as respected and honored as the other past presidents I will have succeeded. YALSA is more than one year of one person’s presidential term. I hope people look back and see that I carried on the best traditions of YALSA, maintain our excellence, continued the growth of the Association and left my mark in the form of connections made with other Divisions, help to improve the skills of those who work with teens in libraries and represented YALSA so that others can build on my tenure. If I am honored to one day be a past president, I look forward to working with the next generation of YASLA leaders and doing what I can for YALSA.