YALSA is seeking a Member Manager for the YALSA blog. The deadline has been extended to submit an application by May 5, 2023. The Member Manager will be responsible for the content and look of the blog and will work closely to recruit and oversee designated bloggers. The mission of the YALSA Blog is to provide a virtual space for publishing information about time-sensitive issues and to provide a forum for members and the library community to discuss matters relating to serving teens through libraries.

List of Qualifications:

  1. Excellent verbal and written communications skills
  2. Experience in web publishing, either in editing or writing, sufficient to enable the individual to recruit and manage bloggers, with responsibilities including but not limited to identifying timely topics, maintaining a high standard of writing, and ensuring compliance with YALSA’s Blog Policy
  3. HTML proficiency
  4. Familiarity with content management software including WordPress for the administration of blog sites
  5. Dynamic, self-motivated individual
  6. Ability to delegate.
  7. Strong organizational skills
  8. Ability to set and meet deadlines.
  9. Experience in library services to young adults
  10. Membership in YALSA

General Responsibilities:

  • Communicate with bloggers and the YALSA Office on a regular basis in order to generate ideas for content, assign posting topics, and discuss blog management.
  • Review and edit audio and video content submitted to the blog to make sure the quality is acceptable and that it includes YALSA branding prior to posting.
  • Manage blog postings daily to guarantee the quality of content and appropriate tagging and category identification.
  • Manage comments and spam daily in order to guarantee that the blog content is appropriate.
  • Recruit bloggers on a regular basis
  • Meet with and provide any necessary training to bloggers via Zoom or another online meeting tool
  • Attend the YA Symposium and Annual to recruit bloggers and inform committees about the blog
  • Write reports prior to the Summer and Winter virtual meetings for submission to the YALSA Board.
  • Work with YALSA and ALA Office staff as appropriate to update and manage blog software.
  • Keep track of add-ons and plug-ins to blog software to make sure they are up to date and to add to the blog as necessary.
  • Work with the YALS, JRYLA editors, and The HUB Blog manager as appropriate to coordinate the dissemination of information to members and the library community.
  • Co-Chair the YALS and YALSA Blog Advisory Board
  • Answer questions and inquiries about the blog.
  • Follow all established blog policies and guidelines, enforce them as necessary, and periodically conduct a review of them to ensure currency.

The Member Manager will be selected by the YALSA Executive Committee by May 26, 2023. The year term will begin in June 2023, with an option to renew in May 2024. The Member Manager will receive an honorarium of $500 per year plus $500 towards travel to each Annual Conference and YA Symposium while serving as Member Manager. Candidates should send a cover letter and resume, which includes writing and web publishing experiences to:

LaMoya Burks, Interim Executive Director at lburks@ala.org

and cc, Franklin Escobedo, YALSA President at franklin.yalsa@gmail.com

All resumes, etc. must be submitted via email. For further information contact Franklin Escobedo, YALSA President at franklin.yalsa@gmail.com.  The deadline for submission is May 5, 2023.

As the chair of the inaugural YALSA Writing Award Jury, I am proud to announce the four outstanding pieces of writing contributed by YALSA members last year. After receiving a shortlist of nominations from the respective publications’ editors and managers, our committee carefully considered each of the article’s merits to select the winners. Without further ado, here are the winning articles:
Read More →

Do you have a passion for teen services? Would you like to provide up-to-the-minute coverage of YALSA programs and events? Can you see yourself scouring the web for the best apps, games and websites for teens? The YALSA Blog wants YOU!

We’re looking to expand our ranks of regular bloggers. We need dedicated, talented writers with strong communication skills and a willingness to collaborate. You must be a current YALSA member who can commit to posting at least once a month, on topics of your choosing as well as on rotating themes and month-long projects. Podcast and video skills are a big plus.

Being a YALSA blogger helps your fellow librarians, by providing timely, cutting edge content on teen services and youth library resources, but it can also help you. Many of us who write for the blog have gone on to manage or edit YALSA publications, chair committees and task forces, and even serve as YALSA President. I started posting when I was still in grad school, and my work with the blog (both as an author and as a manager) has led to presenting at national conferences and writing a book for YALSA and Neal-Schuman.

For more information on blogging for YALSA, read the blogger guidelines and contact YB manager mk Eagle at eagle.mk@gmail.com.

In this interview Linda Braun talks with Heidi Dolamore who will take over duties as YALSA’s Blog Manager on June 1. In the podcast you’ll learn about Heidi’s:

  • Work background
  • ALA experience, including serving on ALA Council and thoughts about the importance of serving on ALA Council
  • Plans for the YALSA blog

Listen

If you would like to become a YALSA blogger, or have ideas for the YALSA blog you can contact Heidi at heidi.dolamore@gmail.com

Welcome to YALSA’s new blog. We changed blogging software (we are now using WordPress) and are working with an entirely new design. The new interface gives YALSA bloggers new features to make their blogging even better. This includes integration of tags, images, and links. Over the next few weeks we may make a few changes to what you see on the blog pages. The primary interface however is ready for public consumption.

To subscribe to the YALSA blog via RSS click on the Subscribe RSS link in the far-right sidebar. Or, simply put this URL, http://feeds.feedburner.com/yalsa_blog, in your RSS reader. You can also receive blog updates via Twitter by following YALSA at http://www.twitter.com/yalsa.

Thanks to all our readers for their patience while we converted to our new site.

As YALSA Communications Specialist, Stevie Kuenn noted in her”http://tinyurl.com/3cw9xn”>last YALSA update, the YALSA blog is about to go through a really exciting transformation. Come April 4 the blog will not only look different, but it will also have new features for both blog readers and bloggers. Some of the features to look forward to include:

  • Easy linking of YALSA blog posts to social bookmarking sites and blogs and the ability to easily send posts via email to colleagues, friends, and teens.
  • More user-friendly commenting, including the ability to easily add links to blog comments.
  • Improved integration with web 2.0 tools.
  • Better search functionality and overall organization of blog content.

On Monday, March 31, the YALSA blog will close for at least a portion of the week. When we shut-down, we’ll start moving content over to the new blog and get things ready for the launch, which will take place by Friday, April 4.

When the new/improved blog launches, there will be a new URL and a new RSS feed address. We’ll make sure to get the word out on what those new addresses are as soon as they are available.

Stay tuned for more details about this exciting change.