YALSA names 2020 Volunteers of the Year Award recipients

CHICAGO —The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), has selected the following recipients for its 2020 Volunteers of the Year Award:

• Tegan Beese, individual YALSA member
• Tina Lerno, Chair of YALSA’s Great Graphic Novels Blogging Team Committee
• The Michael L. Printz 2020 Award Committee

The award acknowledges the contributions of an individual YALSA member, YALSA Chair or Team Lead, and YALSA group who have demonstrated outstanding service to the mission, goals and work of YALSA during a given service year. Each recipient will receive complimentary membership to YALSA for one year.

Tegan Beese was “very touched to receive this honor. Being a member of YALSA is a wonderful experience. [She has] gained so much by being a part of this organization and is happy to give back by volunteering.”

“I’m touched that you’re honoring me with this award,” said Tina Lerno. “I’ve had so much fun volunteering for YALSA! It’s been the best way to share my love of librarianship with an organization I really value.”

Any official YALSA group or individual appointed to an official YALSA group is eligible for consideration for the Volunteers of the Year Award. For more information or to nominate someone, visit the Awards and Grants section of the YALSA website. Nomination forms are due no later than Dec. 1.

Members of the Volunteer of the Year Award Jury are: Chair Andrea Vernola, Kalamazoo Public Library, Kalamazoo, MI; Rebecca Baldwin, Garfield Heights, OH; Heather Colby, Homer Township Public Library District, Homer Glen, IL; Hattie Garrow, Suffolk, VA; and Melanie Wachsmann, Lone Star College/Harris County Public Library, Cypress, TX.

The mission of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is to support library staff in alleviating the challenges teens face, and in putting all teens ‒ especially those with the greatest needs ‒ on the path to successful and fulfilling lives. For more information about YALSA or to access national guidelines and other resources go to www.ala.org/yalsa, or contact the YALSA office by phone, 800-545-2433, ext. 4390; or e-mail: [email protected].