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RUSA Awards

RUSA offers awards for both professional achievement and outstanding fiction and reference works.

Achievement Awards

ABC-CLIO Online History Award

The ABC-CLIO Online History Award is offered every other year beginning in 2005. It consists of $3,000 donated by ABC-CLIO, a publisher of reference materials in the field of history, and a citation. The award recognizes the accomplishments of a person or a group of people producing (1) a freely available online historical collection, or (2) an online tool tailored for the purpose of finding historical materials, or (3) an online teaching aid stimulating creative historical scholarship.

Virginia Boucher-OCLC Distinguished ILL Librarian Award

The Virginia Boucher-OCLC Distinguished ILL (Interlibrary Loan) Librarian Award is an annual award consisting of $2,000, sponsored by OCLC, and a citation. It recognizes a librarian for outstanding professional achievement, leadership, and contributions to interlibrary loan and document delivery through recent publication of significant professional literature, participation in professional associations, and/or innovative approaches to practice in individual libraries.

BRASS Standard & Poor's Award for Outstanding Service to Minority Business Communities

This award of $2,000 (up to half of which can be used to cover expense of attending ALA Annual Conference to receive award) that recognizes one librarian who, or library that has created an innovative service for a minority business community, or has been recognized by that community as an outstanding service provider.

BRASS Public Librarian Support Award

This award of $1,000 is to support the attendance at Annual Conference of a public librarian who has performed outstanding business reference service and who requires financial assistance to attend the ALA Annual Conference.

BRASS Emerald Research Grant Award

The Emerald Research Grant Award will be awarded to individuals seeking support to conduct research in business librarianship. The funds may be used at the discretion of the award recipients.

BRASS Gale Cengage Learning Student Travel Award

Established in 1992 and sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, this $1,000 cash award is given to a student enrolled in an ALA accredited master's degree program to fund travel to and attendance at the ALA Annual Conference and a one-year membership in the Business Reference and Services Section (BRASS) of RUSA. Applicants should have demonstrated interest in a career as a business reference librarian, and a potential to be a leader in the profession as demonstrated by activities that may include (but are not limited to) coursework, internships, jobs, special projects, and publications.

Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Business Librarianship

Established in 1989, the Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Business Librarianship presents a citation and $3,000 cash award to an individual who has made a significant contribution to business librarianship.

Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Services

Established in 1990, the Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Library Services is a citation and $3,000 cash award presented to a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique resource to meet patrons' reference needs.

Genealogical Publishing Company Award

Established in 1992 and sponsored by Genealogical Publishing Company, this award presents a citation and $1,500 cash to a librarian, library or publisher and recognizes professional achievement in historical reference and research librarianship.

Margaret E. Monroe Library Adult Services Award

Established in 1985, the Margaret E. Monroe Award is citation presented to a librarian who has made significant contributions to library adult services. The individual may be practicing librarian, a library and information science researcher or educator, or a retired librarian who has brought distinction to the profession's understanding and practice or services for adults.

Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award

Sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, the Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award was established in 1958. It presents a cash award of $5,000 and a citation to an individual who has made a distinguished contribution to reference librarianship.

Reference Services Press Award

Established in 1985 and sponsored by Reference Services Press, this award constitutes a plaque and $2,500 cash. It recognizes the most outstanding article published in RUSQ during the preceding two-volume year.

John Sessions Memorial Award

Established in 1980, 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 to the development 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.

Louis Shores/Greenwood Publishing Group Award

Established in 1990, this award recognizes an individual reviewer, group, editor, review medium or organization for excellence in book reviewing and other media for libraries.

STARS-Atlas Systems Mentoring Award

Sponsored by Atlas Systems, Inc., this award offers $1,000 to fund travel expenses associated with attending ALA’s annual conference. The recipient will be a library practitioner who is new to the field of interlibrary loan/document delivery or electronic reserves, and who has daily, hands-on involvement in the areas of borrowing, lending, document delivery, electronic reserves, material delivery, or resource sharing.

Zora Neale Hurston Award

This annual award, founded in 2008, is given to an individual RUSA member who has demonstrated leadership in promoting African American literature.

Book and Media Awards

The Sophie Brody Award

The Sophie Brody Award was first awarded in 2006, and includes a medal for the winner, as well as citations for selected honor books. It is funded by Arthur Brody and the Brodart Foundation, and is given to encourage, recognize and commend outstanding achievement in Jewish literature.