Bookmobile day: National Bookmobile Day is April 17, and the American Library Association (ALA) has loads of freebies to help you plan your library’s celebration. There are publicity templates, logos, sticker templates, flyers, bookmarks, and images to use on Facebook. You can download all of these tools right away. There will also be posts to help you market your event at ALA’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services blog.
National Bookmobile Day, celebrated in conjunction with National Library Week (April 14-20), is sponsored by ALA, the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services (ABOS), and the Association for Rural & Small Libraries (RSL). This special day honors the more than 900 bookmobiles and their staff members and the importance of mobile delivery outreach to library service throughout the United States.
Professional Development
Bullying prevention: Mackin Education Resources’ professional development offerings are being expanded to include on-site events at their offices in Burnsville, MN. The first event will feature two hours with author/illustrator Patricia Polacco via Skype discussing bullying prevention strategies that educators can use to deal with the problem in their classrooms and libraries. A target of bullying herself during her childhood, Polacco will also speak about Bully (Putnam, 2012), her book about cyberbullying. The story, which centers around sixth grader Lyla, her overweight friend Jamie, and a clique of popular girls, sheds light on the pervasiveness of bullying.
The seminar is scheduled for Saturday, April 20 at 9:30 am CT at Mackin’s headquarters. Preregistration is $25 or $30 at the door and includes two continuing education credits for Minnesota educators, an autographed copy of Bully, and a continental breakfast. To register, call Amy Baum at (800) 245-9540.
Mackin provides print books, ebooks, online databases, audiobooks, video resources, and more to schools and libraries.
Literacy Awards
Combat illiteracy: The Library of Congress Literacy Awards is a new program made possible by David M. Rubenstein, a longtime donor to the Library of Congress, who is contributing $1.5 million to fund these three annual awards. According to the Library of Congress, these awards “will recognize and support individuals and institutions in the United States and abroad that have made significant contributions to combating illiteracy and aliteracy.”
The David M. Rubenstein Prize ($150,000) will be awarded for “a groundbreaking contribution to the sustained advancement of literacy by any individual or entity worldwide.” The $50,000 American Prize will be given for “a project developed and implemented during the past decade with special emphasis on combating aliteracy.” The International Prize ($50,000) will be awarded for “the work of an individual, nation, or nongovernmental organization working in a specific country or region.”
Individuals (such as educators, librarians, school media/technology specialists, and community leaders), institutions, and organizations (such as libraries, schools, nonprofit or nongovernmental organizations such as museums, community-based programs, school or library organizations, etc.) that are working to reduce illiteracy or aliteracy can apply. Among the criteria for selecting the winners are innovation, reliability, sustainability, and measurable impact.
Be sure to check out the rules and download an application. Completed entries should be sent to literacyawards@loc.gov by April 15. Winners will be announced on August 16 at the second annual International Summit of the Book in Singapore.
Anti Sexual Violence Donation Campaign
Sexual violence prevention: Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group is supporting Laurie Halse Anderson’s young adult novel, Speak (Farrar, Straus, 1999), the story of a teenage girl’s struggle to find her voice in the aftermath of sexual violence, to form a partnership with the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). During Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April, Macmillan is partnering with RAINN in a matching donation campaign to raise money for RAINN’s anti sexual violence programs. Nicknamed #Speak4RAINN, the campaign will launch on April 2 to coincide with National Sexual Assault and Awareness Day of Action and run through the end of the month. Macmillan will match up to $10,000 in donations and will also spearhead several incentive programs such as a “How Speak Spoke to Me” creative contest, signed book giveaways, and a chance for the school that raises the most money to win a visit from Anderson. Information about the campaign and how you can get involved will be available on April 2.
Anderson’s book, Speak, was named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book, a National Book Award Finalist, and an Edgar Allen Poe Award Finalist.
And the Winner Is…
Summer reading grants: The winners of the 2013 Summer Reading Program Grants, funded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, have been announced by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association. Twenty public and school libraries will be receiving $1,000 to help fund summer reading programs for teens: Joyce Arellano, Franklin Park (IL) Public Library District; Michael Cherry, Evansville (IN) Vanderburgh Public Library; Sherry Christman, Coatesville (PA) Area Public Library; Allyson Evans, Calvert Library, Prince Frederick, MD; Erin Downey Howerton, Wichita (KS) Public Library; Lynndy Hurdle, Strayhorn High School Library, Sarah, MS; Penny Johnson, Baraboo (WI) Public Library; Flora Kim, Bound Brook (NJ) Memorial Library; Laura Lehner, Hudson (OH) Library & Historical Society; Joan Light-Kraft, Montrose (CO) Library District; Stacy Lienemann, Watonwan County Library, St. James, MN; Tammy Mulhearn, Livingston (LA) Parish Library; Julia Simpson, Auburn (GA) Public Library; Shanna Smith, Mesa County Public Library District, Grand Junction, CO; Jessica Swift, Baright Public Library, Ralston, NE; Alyssa Szabo, Zion-Benton Public Library, Zion, IL; Staci Terrell, Anderson (IN) Public Library; Laura Truman, Avondale (AZ) Public Library; Julie Vaught, Florence (SC) County Library; and April Wallace, Pinson (AL) Public Library.
“The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support YALSA’s efforts to assist librarians with their teen reading programs,” noted Denine Torr, Dollar General’s director of community initiatives. “Summertime is a great time for teens to discover the joy of reading for pleasure while also continuing to learn.”