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2016 RUSA Achievement Awards: Call for Nominations and Submissions

Beginning Sept. 1, 2015 the RUSA is seeking nominations for its annual series of awards and grants. Nominations and supporting materials for most awards must be submitted by Dec. 4, 2015.

RUSA encourages members to nominate their colleagues whose work has influenced their thinking and performance and whose contributions merit recognition by the profession. With over $30,000 generously donated annually by industry sponsors, RUSA has, and will continue to, nominate, select and honor the very best in the field of reference and user services.

Achievement awards for individuals and groups:

Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award, RUSA’s highest honor, recognizes an individual who has made a distinguished contribution to the field of reference librarianship. $5,000* and a citation.

Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Library Services is given to a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique resource to meet patrons’ reference needs. $3,000* and a citation.

NoveList’s Margaret E. Monroe Library Adult Services Award recognizes a librarian who has made significant contributions to library adult services. Sponsored by NoveList; $1,250* and a citation.

John Sessions Memorial Award recognizes a library or library system that has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and by doing so has brought recognition to the history and contribution of the labor movement to the development of the United States. Sponsored by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, the winner receives a plaque.

Reference Service Press Award recognizes the most outstanding article published in Reference and User Services Quarterly (RUSQ), RUSA’s research journal, during the preceding two-volume year. Sponsored by Reference Service Press; $2,500* and a plaque.

BRASS Award for Excellence in Business Librarianship is presented to an individual who has made a significant contribution to business librarianship. $3,000* and a citation.

Louis Shores Award recognizes an individual reviewer, group, editor, review medium or organization for excellence in book reviewing and other media for libraries. The winner receives a citation.

Zora Neale Hurston Award honors an individual ALA member who has demonstrated leadership in promoting African-American literature. Sponsored by HarperCollins Publishers; the winner receives $1,250* supporting travel to the ALA Annual Conference, a beautiful plaque, two tickets to the United for Libraries author events: The Gala Author Tea and The Laugh’s On Us, and two complete sets of Zora Neale Hurston’s books and audiobooks.

ETS My Favorite Martian Award is a citation presented annually in recognition of excellence in service to the Emerging Technologies Section of RUSA. The winner receives a citation.

Genealogy / History Achievement Award Sponsored by ProQuest, is presented to a librarian, library or publisher, and recognizes professional achievement in historical reference and research librarianship. $1,500* and a citation.

RSS Service Achievement Award is presented annually to a member of the Reference Services Section (RSS) of RUSA in recognition of exceptional contributions to the section. The winner receives a citation.

Virginia Boucher/OCLC Distinguished ILL Librarian Award is given to an individual for his or her outstanding professional achievement, leadership, and contributions to interlibrary loan and document delivery. Sponsored by OCLC; $2,000* and a citation.

Travel awards to the ALA Annual Conference:

BRASS Student Travel Award presents funds to a student enrolled in an ALA accredited master’s degree program to fund travel the ALA Annual Conference. $1,250* and a citation. This award’s nomination deadline is Jan. 15, 2016.

BRASS Global Financial Data Academic Business Librarianship Travel Award is presented to a new librarian in the field of academic business librarianship in order to support attendance to the ALA Annual Conference. Sponsored by Global Financial Data; $1,250* and a citation.

Morningstar Public Librarian Support Award offers funds to a public librarian who has performed outstanding business reference service and who requires financial assistance to attend the ALA Annual Conference. Sponsored by Morningstar, Inc.; $1,250* and a citation.

STARS Atlas Systems Mentoring Award offers ALA Annual Conference travel assistance funds to a library practitioner who is new to the field of interlibrary loan/document delivery or electronic reserves, and who has involvement in the areas of borrowing, lending, document delivery, electronic reserves, material delivery or resource sharing. Sponsored by Atlas Systems; $1,250* and a citation.

Research grants:

Gale Cengage Learning History Research and Innovation Award is granted to an MLS degreed librarian from an ALA accredited school to facilitate and further research relating to history and history librarianship. Sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning; $2,500* and a citation.

BRASS Emerald Research Grant Award, is presented to an individual or group seeking support to conduct research in business librarianship. Sponsored by Emerald Group Publishing; $5,000* and a citation.

*Monetary award amounts are subject to change without notice and are contingent upon donor funding supplied at the time the award is presented.

Questions about these awards should be directed to the committee chairperson—access committee contact information by logging in at www.ala.org, then accessing the RUSA roster webpage—or to the RUSA headquarters staff.

More information about these awards, including nominating instructions, can be found on RUSA’s awards webpage.

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RUSA division level awards honor individuals, institutions and projects for excellence in reference services

RUSA has selected the winners of the 2015 achievement awards.Winners receive research and travel grants that recognize the profession’s most exceptional librarians, libraries and projects involving reference services today.

“RUSA’s Achievement Awards provide us the very special opportunity to recognize the most outstanding librarians, libraries and projects in the field. At this event we also highlight the successes of our future leaders on what they’ve worked so hard to achieve. These awards recognize important contributions and allow our next generation of leaders to gain further experience through attendance at the ALA Annual Conference and conduct further research,” said RUSA President Joseph Thompson. “I want to congratulate this year’s award recipients on their accomplishments. We look forward to celebrating with everyone in June at the RUSA Achievement Awards Reception in San Francisco — one of the signature events of the ALA Annual Conference. I would like to sincerely thank the members of our award committees for their invaluable volunteer work through the selection processes and our generous sponsors for their support.”

The RUSA division level achievement award winners are:

Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award, RUSA’s highest honor, sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, offers $5,000 and a citation to an individual who has made a distinguished contribution to reference librarianship. Denise Beaubien Bennett, engineering librarian, University of Florida, was selected for her instrumental shaping of the instructional program for thousands of students in many disciplines, with a reputation for inspired teaching and creation of many online and video tutorials and presentation of workshops nationwide.

Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Services, sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, offers $3,000 and a citation to a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique resource to meet patrons’ reference needs. Lauren Comito was selected for the development of the interactive database “Where in Queens?,” which uses GPS technology to help users connect to social services that are closest to where they are located at any given time.

NoveList’s Margaret E. Monroe Library Adult Services Award, sponsored by NoveList, which offers $1,250 and a citation to a librarian who has made significant contributions to library adult services. Neil Hollands, adult services librarian, Williamsburg Regional Library, was selected for being a leader in the Readers’ Advisory (RA) world. Holland’s development and advocacy of form-based RA has been a tremendous advancement in RA services.

Reference Service Press Award, sponsored by Reference Service Press, consists of $2,500 and a plaque which recognizes an author(s) of the most outstanding article published in Reference and User Services Quarterly (RUSQ), RUSA’s research journal, during the preceding two-volume year. Pauline Dewan, Laurier/Nipissing liaison librarian for the Brantford, Ontario campuses of Wilfrid Laurier University and Nipissing University was selected for her article, “Reading Matters in the Academic Library: Taking the Lead from Public Librarians.” Summer 2013, Volume 52, Issue 4. This article explores the idea of revitalizing academic libraries by reconsidering the place of pleasure reading in them.

John Sessions Memorial Award, consists of a plaque sponsored by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, and recognizes a library or library system that has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and by doing so has brought recognition to the history and contribution of the labor movement to the development of the United States. The Calcasieu Parish Library System was selected for its Southwest Louisiana (SWLA) Workforce Resource Guide. The guide offers essential step-by-step instructions for job seekers and providing contact information and guidance for where to go, who to call and what to say.

The RUSA Achievement Awards Ceremony and Reception will be held from 5-6:30 p.m. Sunday, June 28 at the ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco. All conference attendees are invited to the event. Additional event details will be available on the conference website in April.

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Confessions of a reference librarian

Ever wonder exactly what kind of work members of RUSA do, or maybe which courses they would recommend for students looking for a career in reference or user services? On October 28, RUSA will begin to run a series of week-long interviews with a different member each week.

Hosted on ALA Connect at the IAmRUSA Community – http://connect.ala.org/node/211629 ALA members will be given the opportunity to ask questions of participating RUSA members about their professional careers, their passions, and anything else that may come up involving librarianship.

Be sure to join in the community and if you are interested in participating as an interviewee, contact Kirk MacLeod at kgmcleod@ualberta.ca or Sarah Hammill at hammills@fiu.edu for more information.

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Call for nominations: John Sessions Memorial Award

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2014 John Sessions Memorial Award offered by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA).

The John Sessions Memorial Award recognizes a library or library system which has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and by doing so has brought recognition to the history and contribution of the labor movement of the United States.

Such efforts may include outreach projects to local labor unions; establishment of, or significant expansion of, special labor collections; initiation of programs of special interest to the labor community; or other library activities that serve the labor community.

To nominate a library or organization, download and complete the nomination form (PDF format), and follow the submission instructions therein. Questions should be directed to the committee chair, Laura Carscaddon, lcarscaddon1@gsu.edu, 404-413-2804.

The deadline for nominations is December 15.

The 2014 award will presented at the RUSA Awards Reception during the ALA Annual Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, June 26-July 1, 2014.

The Labor Archives of Washington was the 2013 recipient of the award.  The Labor Archives are notable for their work with the labor, university and local community. Work with local schools has helped encourage the teaching of labor history in the classroom. The Labor Archives also host online and traveling exhibits that focus on labor history, particularly that of the Pacific Northwest.

The award committee selected the Center for its efforts to educate the community on the accomplishments of labor through its public programs, publications, exhibitions, and oral history project.  These resources and the Center’s outreach efforts illustrate their commitment to preserving and highlighting the history of labor.

RUSA is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services, and collection materials they need. Learn more about the association at www.ala.org/rusa.