YALSA Board at #alaac18: Book Awards and Lists in Light of #MeToo

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The YALSA board will hold a discussion at #alaac18 about YALSA’s book awards and lists in light of #metoo. I have been a member of the Printz, Odyssey, and Alex Award committees and am bringing this topic to the YALSA board for discussion and possible action.

The #MeToo movement exploded in Fall 2017, when women and some men collectively began to speak out against abusers and harassers. The movement carried over to the young adult publishing world in February 2018 via an article in School Library Journal that led to hundreds of comments to the article indicating certain authors and publisher representatives as harassers or abusers.

YALSA and its board extend their compassion to those harmed by abusers and harassers and commends those for speaking up, while at the same time also extending support to those who were also harmed but remain silent.
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Run for YALSA Board in 2019!

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Interested in Serving on YALSA’s Board of Directors?

The YALSA Board Development Committee is looking for candidates for next year’s slate for the following positions: President-Elect, Secretary, and Directors-at-Large.  Successful candidates will stand for election in the spring of 2019 and begin their term during at the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C.

For more information on the responsibilities of each role on the Board, please visit the Governance page which includes some handy links under the topic Get Involved in Governance & Leadership.

Are you ready to put your name forward? Please submit the online nomination form soon and a committee member will be in touch.

Not quite ready yet?  Please feel free to contact me, the Board Development Committee Chair, at gsarahthelibrarian@gmail.com with any questions or to request additional information.  

The Board Development Committee will also be hosting YALSA 301 at Annual 2018 in New Orleans on Saturday, June 23, from 9-10 am. Pencil it in and hope to see you there! If you can’t make it, we’ll have a virtual session this summer, too.

Thank you for considering if YALSA Board is right for you!

YALSA Board #alamw18: Advocacy Resources Inventory

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YALSA’s Organizational Plan has three goals, one of which is advocacy.  As part of this goal, YALSA seeks to provide resources to members to help them be effective advocates.  The 2017 – 2018 Implementation Plan approved by the YALSA Board of Directors at the 2017 ALA Annual Conference states that someone should “inventory YALSA advocacy resources. Update those deemed useful and ensure consistency of language and messages across resources. Sunset other resources whose shelf life has expired. Organize all advocacy resources into a more user-friendly format and develop an advocacy curriculum based on them.”
In order for this work to be completed, two members of the Advocacy Standing Board Committee, Kate McNair and Derek Ivie, are asking the Board to recruit a YALSA member to tackle these tasks.  You can read more about the tasks in Board Document #20, in which the recommended action is that the “Board directs the YALSA President to appoint a member volunteer by Mar. 1, 2018 which will inventory YALSA’s portfolio of advocacy resources and provide recommendations to the board by no later than May 22, 2018.”  Does this sound interesting to you? Contact YALSA President, Sandra Hughes-Hassell, to find out more information about the position.
Sarah Hill, YALSA Immediate Past-President

YALSA Board  #alamw18: Board Development Committee Processes

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At the 2016 ALA Annual Conference, the YALSA Board voted to expand the Governance Nominating Committee into a Board Development Committee, to support the reorganization of YALSA in alignment with the new Organizational Plan. At the 2017 ALA Midwinter Meeting, the Board reviewed and approved a proposal which provided a plan for transitioning to a Board Development Committee, and a directive was given to create a small, ad-hoc workgroup to develop a manual for the Board Development Committee that officially began work January 1st.
Board Document #31 was created by that workgroup, consisting of Sarah Hill, Todd Krueger, Shannon Peterson and Sarah Sogigian. Once the board approves the shorter timespan of the committee, the newly developed Board Development Committee will begin its work!
Have you thought about serving on the YALSA Board in some way? There are tons of benefits, and I’ve found it extremely rewarding.  Check out this FAQ about running for a board position, and please contact me at gsarahthelibrarian @ gmail.com if you have any questions.
Sarah Hill, YALSA Immediate Past-President

Celebrate Success! Advocating for Teens

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Last month, YALSA members were asked to complete our annual membership survey.  We asked you mostly the same questions last year, too, because we, like you, want to show continuous improvement and to make data-driven decisions.  One question in the survey listed possible advocacy activities, and we were thrilled by your responses!  The #saveIMLS effort brought out the fantastic advocacy efforts of many in our profession at the national level.  But many of you are advocating for teens in your library and/or library system, too.  Here are some promising statistics that showed improvement from last year:

  • 40% of survey takers worked with coworkers, administration, and stakeholders to overcome barriers to teen services (up from 33%)
  • 64% of survey takers spoke up about teen issues in formal and formal settings (up from 61%)
  • 48% of survey takers implemented positive change in teen services by working with administration and coworkers (up from 46%)

The Advocacy Standing Board Committee (Chair Kate McNair, Derek Ivie, Heather Sparks, Sarah Hill) is hoping to capture some of your successes by hearing your stories–we want to know what you did! In the YALSA enews email, we’ll be asking for specific ideas about how you advocated.  It’s not all about contacting members of Congress–we want to hear about the time you helped your teens overcome a barrier in your library or about the time you advocated for teens to your library director or principal.

We’re trying to overcome barriers to advocate for teens, too.  One of our activities as a Board this year is to “become knowledgeable about Governors’ boards and the process for appointment to them.” How awesome would it be if all governors had at least one teen advocate from library services serving on their committees or boards?

As I researched how I would go about this in my state of Illinois, I realized that the process was as simple as completing an online form. Governor Bruce Rauner has a huge list of Boards, Commissions, Task Forces, and Councils.  I’m a certified English teacher, librarian and administrator and am now a community college librarian in a rural area, so I selected the councils where I thought I could do the most good for the teens in my community.  I volunteered for the following committees: Commission of Children and Youth, Illinois Community College Board, Education Commission of the States, Education Funding Advisory Board, State Board of Education, State Board of Higher Education, P-20 Council, and the Youth Development Council.  It would take a miracle to be appointed to some of those, but I figured it was worth a shot, right? I’ll keep you updated on if I actually am appointed–promise!

Do you have an example to share in the comments about when you spoke up for teens in or outside your library?

And don’t forget about our wiki of great resources about advocacy…..

 

YALSA Board – Advocating for Teens in Other Associations

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YALSA Board Members – Other Associations

Earlier in October, the YALSA Board of Directors held a virtual discussion about what it means to serve as ambassadors for YALSA. We discussed our role in advocating with state and national elected officials and in fundraising, as well as how we actively support and advance YALSA’s positive reputation with members, within the profession, and within our own communities.  Ask any YALSA board member and we’ve got our “elevator speech” ready to go–I know I’m not the only board member with our mission statement memorized! Throughout our Board chat, we realized that we are very active in many organizations, not just YALSA.  Click on the graphic to see where else we spend our energy.  With every meeting, conference call, workshop or listserv message, YALSA Board members are advocating for teens in these organizations, too.  YALSA also has many sponsors and partners who are helping us advocate for teens–companies, foundations, nonprofits, and ALA partners.

What do we want to see?

YALSA’s vision is that all teens have access to quality library programs and services ‒ no matter where they occur ‒ that link them to resources, connected learning opportunities, coaching, and mentoring that are tailored to the unique circumstances of the community and that create new opportunities for all teens’ personal growth, academic success, and career development.

Think about the connections you have beyond the library. Where else do you spend your time and energy? How are those avenues that you can use to advocate for teens and your library?

We appreciate that you have chosen to be an ALA and YALSA member.  Thank you for your support and for believing in our vision!

Graphic Key

A-Association, IG-Interest Group, RT-Round Table

Followup from YALSA Board @ #alaac17

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If you attended ALA’s Annual Conference, I hope you’re safely home and recovering from all that is conference! If you have never been to this event, members can apply by December 1st for a travel grant from YALSA to go to the next one in New Orleans!

The YALSA Board was very productive in Chicago, and you can see the actions of the board on this page.  Some highlights include:

The board will continue to explore:

Look for the official minutes from our Annual meetings coming soon. At the conclusion of our board meetings, I officially handed the gavel over to the awesome YALSA President Sandra Hughes-Hassell, and the new board members were seated.  Check out our current roster for some new and familiar faces.

The Board’s next meeting will be at the 2018 ALA Midwinter Meeting from February 9-13, 2018. We’re looking forward to seeing YALSA members in Denver!

And remember, YALSA’s YA Services Symposium will be in Louisville, Kentucky, November 3-5, 2017. Early bird registration is going on now!

Thanks for all that you do to make YALSA an amazing association and thank you for the tremendous opportunity to serve as the association’s President. It was an honor and a privilege to work with you all this past year!

YALSA Board @ #alaac17: Membership Meeting & President’s Program

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If you’re attending Annual, I hope you can join us Monday, June 26, from 10:30-noon, in the Convention Center, room W184bc, for the Annual YALSA Membership Meeting and President’s Program!

During the membership meeting, you’ll meet the current YALSA Board of Directors, as well as next year’s Board.  We’ll recognize grant and award winners, as well as donors.  I’ll give a brief update of board actions over the past year, and the incoming president-elect, Sandra Hughes-Hassell, will discuss her initiative for next year.

Directly after the membership meeting, my presidential program task force chair, Valerie Davis, will lead a panel discussion on the theme of “Real Teens, Real Ready” about college/career readiness and adulting.  She had great help finding these speakers–her task force members were Lisa Borten, Lisa Dettling, Jeremy Dunn, Katie Guzan, and Ellen Popit.

Panelists include:

  • Tiffany Boeglen and Britni Cherrington-Stoddart, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library – Non-Traditional Career Paths
  • Laurel Johnson, Skokie Public Library – Neutral Zone/Peer Guided Conversations
  • Lisa Borten, Brooklyn Public Library – Youth Council/Urban Art Jamm
  • Jennifer Steele, Chicago Public Library – (PRO)jectUS, creative workforce development/partnerships
  • Emmanuel Pratt, Sweet Water Foundation, Chicago – Neighborhood Development for Youth

The presentations are going to be awesome, so be prepared to find ideas that you can implement in your community!  See you there!

YALSA Board @ #alaac17

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Happy LGBTQIA Pride Month!

YALSA’s Board has been hard at work since their last face-to-face meeting in Atlanta: continuing the work of the organizational plan, working on these projects, and planning for ALA Annual in Chicago!

Now, the Annual Conference is fast approaching, and I’m looking forward to the Printz Ceremony on Friday night, honoring Sarah Dessen at the Edwards Award Brunch on Saturday morning, talking with members at our Membership Meeting and President’s Program and so much more! You can find the details about these events and many more YALSA activities on the YALSA wiki.

In lieu of a happy hour this conference, YALSA is co-sponsoring The Other (Invisible) Refugees – Supporting Central American Children in Crisis on Saturday, June 24, from 4:30-6:30 pm in McCormick Place, W178a.  Join us for viewing a film from IBBY & REFORMA, and learn about the Children in Crisis Project, which seeks to raise awareness about these vulnerable youth and to provide resources to them. Donations are accepted at the door.

The Board agenda is up online, and more documents will be posted soon. Members can check them out in advance and send comments or feedback to me at gsarahthelibrarian @gmail.com. If you’ll be in Chicago for the conference, the first ten minutes of each of our board meetings are open to public comment. If you have a question for a particular board member about a document they’ve written, you can reach out to them here.

Be on the lookout for more blog posts in the two weeks from fellow Board members about the topics up for discussion and action.

You can stay up to date with all the conversations by following Executive Director Beth Yoke (@yalsa_director), myself (@glibrarian), and/or other YALSA board members for live tweets of adopted actions and discussion highlights. In addition, there will be follow-up blog posts explaining decisions and board actions once the conference is done.

Thanks for all that you do to make YALSA an awesome association, safe travels and hope to see you in Chicago!

President’s Report – May

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Annual 2017 is almost here!  It’s been a busy month preparing for conference, but I’m looking forward to a productive and exciting week in Chicago!

Accomplishments

  • Led the May board chat about the 2017-2018 draft implementation plan.  Look for an updated version coming soon!
  • Beth Yoke submitted these comments on behalf of the YALSA board about net neutrality to the FCC website, urging the FCC to neither alter nor eliminate the Open Internet Order.
  • The Board moved to approve the establishment of a President’s Advisory Taskforce for in-coming President Sandra Hughes-Hassell.
  • Traveled to DC for my very first National Library Legislative Day and went to 7 meetings on the Hill in 7 hours!  It was energetic and eye-opening and I enjoyed the conversations I had with committee and Congress representatives. Some of the meetings were held jointly with my colleagues from AASL, ALSC, PLA, and ACRL. You can read more about my day in DC in Beth Yoke’s blogpost.
  • Communicated with YALSA representatives to ALA Committees about their upcoming meetings in Chicago
  • Because Franklin Escobedo will be moving to secretary after Annual (due to Crystle Martin being elected to President-Elect in April), the Board filled the vacancy with Derek Ivie. Welcome, Derek!
  • Completed quarterly report for executive committee
  • Worked with the Executive Director on the first draft of the agendas for the meetings of the Executive Committee and Board at Annual
  • Prepared an annual report to the ALA Council about YALSA’s achievements during the year
  • Filled the opening on BFYA with Matthew Layne and the vacancy on GGN with Gail Tobin.  Thank you, Matthew and Gail!
  • Answered questions from YALSA members about committees, task forces, and various other topics

Works in Progress

  • The Board is currently virtually discussing how to best utilize endowment interest.
  • Finalizing documents and agenda for all meetings at Annual in Chicago. All Annual board docs will be posted here in the next few weeks.
  • Assisting Sandra Hughes-Hassell, incoming president, with Board Training at Annual
  • Finalizing agenda for Joint Executive Committee meeting at Annual with ALSC and AASL
  • Preparing for the Membership Meeting/President’s Program about college, career, and life readiness for teens that will be held Monday, June 26, at 10:30a in W184bc
  • Will attend PLA’s diversity-focused library internship training program next week in D.C.

Stats and Data

  • Funds raised in April = $845
  • YALSA Membership 4,813 (down 7.2% over April 2016)

Don’t Forget!

  • Visit the YALSA at ALA’s 2017 Annual Conference webpage to find out what’s happening in Chicago! Join Sarah Dessen at the Edwards brunch!  Or Rep. Lewis at the Printz reception!
  • Registration is now open for the 2017 YA Services Symposium, which will take place Nov. 3-5 in Louisville, KY. Register now through Sept. 15 and save with early bird rates! Housing is also open now through Oct. 1.
  • Log on to learn about YALSA leadership opportunities on June 20th at 2 pm ET! Check your e news email for the login info.
  • Members can reserve their free seat in the June 15 webinar: Creative Youth Development: Part One.
  • Don’t forget to check out the Current Projects page to stay updated on what’s going on!

THANK YOU

  • to all our members for all that you do to support teens and teen library services in your communities!
  • to YALSA staff and the YALSA board for your commitment to support our members!

Respectfully submitted,

Sarah Hill, YALSA President 2016-2017