Purpose:
To recognize exemplary achievements of a Kentucky librarian who has made outstanding contributions to the development and promotion of public library service at any level of librarianship.
Criteria:
● The nominee must be an individual or institutional member of the Kentucky Public Library Association (KPLA) and hold certification from the State Board for the Certification of Librarians. Any level of certification is acceptable. This award is not limited to library directors.
● The librarian so honored will have made an impact locally, regionally, and/or statewide. If an individual’s service is unusually outstanding on one level, then the nomination can rest on that area alone.
● Nominee should demonstrate evidence of significant professional achievement in Kentucky libraries within the past two years.
● Nominees must have made substantial contributions such as (but not limited to):
○ Demonstrates the value of libraries or creating partnerships within the community to benefit library services;
○ Promoting an accessible and positive climate in the library;
○ Developing and implementing new library programming or services;
○ Achievement of community support or professional recognition;
○ Active involvement in professional or staff development
Rules:
● Nominations may be made by anyone in the library field (staff, trustees, Friends).
● Nominations should be concise, responding to the criteria above. Submit no more than two pages of narrative, with no more than three pages of supportive material (newspaper clippings, photos, etc.).
○ The written nomination statement should support two or more of the applicable contributions above.
● Nominations should include a minimum of two testimonials and a maximum of four. Testimonials should be limited to no more than one page. One testimonial must be provided by a library trustee from the nominee’s board of trustees or the library director. Other testimonials may be provided by colleagues, library staff, Friends, community leaders, or others as determined to be appropriate to
demonstrate the above criteria.
● The information and the quality of the application shall be the sole basis of selection. Any application not meeting the criteria above will be disqualified.
● The KPLA Awards Committee will make the selection based on the above criteria.
● The KPLA Awards Committee may choose to make no award in any given year if the quality of the nominations is not determined to be satisfactory