iSchool professor named chair of National School Library Program of the Year Award committee

Posted by Amy Farnum Patronis on
Dr. Nancy Everhart
Dr. Nancy Everhart

Nancy Everhart, a professor at Florida State University’s School of Information, has been appointed chair of the American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) National School Library Program of the Year Award committee for the 2014-15 academic year.

Everhart served as president of the AASL in 2010-11 and was a member of the National School Library Program of the Year (NSLPY) Award committee in 2004.

Established in 1963, the NSLPY Award honors school library programs practicing their commitment to ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and information, as well as exemplifying implementation of AASL’s learning standards and program guidelines. The award recognizes exemplary school library programs that are fully integrated into the school’s curriculum.

The program is sponsored by Follett, which awards the recipient school or school district $10,000.”

“It is probably the biggest award given out to individual school library programs in the United States,” Everhart said.

The NSLPY Award recognizes school library programs that meet the needs of the changing school and library environment. Exemplary school library programs ensure that the students and staff are effective users of ideas and information. These programs empower learners to be critical thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers and ethical users of information.

The school librarian must be a personal member of AASL and fill out a thorough written application.   Applicants are judged on the following criteria:

  • Building the Learning Environment
  • Teaching for Learning
  • Building Collaborative Partnerships
  • Advocacy and Outreach
  • Leadership in a Global Society

The five-person committee uses a rubric to score applications and narrow down the group of nominees.

“One of the reasons it is so much fun to be on this committee is because you get to visit some of the nominees,” Everhart said.  “For those who rise to top, we do site visits to see if what they said on their application is confirmed through observations and interviews of students, teachers and administrators.”

Winners for the 2015 award will be announced at the annual convention in San Francisco next June.  The last program from Florida to win the award was Dade County Schools in 1965.