ALSC/YALSA Reunification FAQs
What is happening with ALSC?
After many years of effort by ALA and members of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), YALSA remains financially unsustainable, with 8 of the last 10 years running in an operational deficit. Consequently, ALA is pursuing the reunification of YALSA with the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). This means that YALSA will be dissolved from a governance perspective and member activities will be transitioned into ALSC.
While ALA remains committed to meeting the needs of practitioners in the field of children’s and teen services, we know that this news will come with many questions from ALSC members.
Please see the FAQs below for more details and to learn how to submit your feedback to the ALSC Board and staff as we work towards the reunification of ALSC and YALSA.
How was reunification decided upon?
ALA has been in conversation with ALSC and YALSA’s Executive Committees discussing possible options to reunify the divisions, since historically, teen and children’s services were housed under one division (read more on ALSC’s History here and YALSA’s History here). The parting had been amicable and recognized the growth of teen services and the expanded member work in dedicated teen spaces in their libraries, but this is no longer a sustainable model.
Through the recent conversations, ALSC leadership resolved that ALSC is open to including teen services in the spectrum of the division's programming. Both divisions have considered many ways to define this new relationship, and both agree that “reuniting” is a strong path forward, given that ALSC and YALSA were a combined unit many years ago. Reuniting ALSC and YALSA is an integral part of the ALA Forward initiative, an effort that aims to optimize how we work together, align our structure with strategic goals, and empower ALA to deliver even greater value to members and libraries.
How will this reunification be a benefit to ALSC?
There are clear advantages to this reunification process, including:
- Cost savings to members who currently hold both ALSC and YALSA memberships (roughly a 30% overlap);
- More expansive benefits of membership to drive new members and retain current members;
- Combining staffing resources while still maintaining a distinction between teen and children’s services and familiarity with the programs, services, awards and other projects unique to each division.
ALA understands that ALSC has had a strong financial position within ALA. ALA is committed to ensuring that reuniting the two divisions does not negatively impact ALSC’s financial position, and instead, provides a wider range of benefits to members.
What is the timeline for reunification?
The proposal for the dissolution of YALSA and reunification with ALSC has already been submitted to ALA’s Committee on Organization (COO), and we have an aggressive but optimistic timeline:
- Mid-June 2025 - COO submits final proposal to ALA Council
- End of June 2025 at Annual Conference - ALA Council votes twice to approve proposal
- September 1, 2025 – August 31, 2026 will be a transition year inclusive of:
- Collecting member input to determine priorities of both divisions. This will include opportunities for members to give feedback via a survey, membership meetings at ALA Annual conferences, community forums, and focus groups;
- Aligning staffing with ALSC and YALSA division priorities;
- Managing transitions on internal systems (finance/budgeting, membership databases, etc.);
- Building the FY27 budget to reflect planned projects, activities, and current endowments.
- August 31, 2026 - Dissolution of YALSA effective
- - September 1, 2026 – Reunification effective
Will ALSC be rebranded to reflect its new commitment to teen services?
Reuniting will require discussions on how best to brand and promote the reunited unit. A timeline for this work has not been determined.
Membership and Dues
What will happen to my ALSC membership after dissolution?
After the dissolution of YALSA on August 31, 2026, your ALSC membership will remain active. No changes will happen to your access to member benefits or logins for memberships that are active at least through September 1, 2026.
What will happen if I am a member of both ALSC and YALSA?
After the dissolution of YALSA on August 31, 2026, your ALSC membership will remain active – however, your YALSA membership will cease to exist.
We are still determining what this will mean in terms of access to past member-only YALSA materials and other resources. ALA will not be providing prorated memberships or rebates for YALSA memberships, even if the timeframe in which you become a member of YALSA or renew YALSA membership is less than the typical one-year cycle.
Will membership dues change for the reunified division?
Membership dues will be reviewed by the ALSC and YALSA boards during the transition year.
ALSC's Programs, Awards, and Committees
What is happening with the YMAs?
The Youth Media Awards (YMA’s) will be held in person on January 26, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. CST in Chicago, IL at the Hilton Chicago. Registration to attend the in-person announcements will be required and made available in December 2025. The announcements will also be livestreamed for those who are unable to attend in person.
Through August 31, 2026 ALSC and YALSA awards will continue to operate out of their respective independent divisions. As of September 1, 2027, all awards will operate out of the newly reunified division.
All programming for both ALSC and YALSA is being examined during this transition year. The awards are an integral part of both divisions and ALA. We anticipate that many of the awards will continue to be conferred going forward.
How reunification will affect policies and procedures for awards, including whether in-person attendance will be required for deliberation, will be determined prior to the start of 2028 awards work.
If you have been appointed to a 2027 awards committee and have questions about how reunification will affect your work, please contact your committee chair.
How will reunification affect ALSC's committees?
Through the 2025-2026 committee term, ALSC and YALSA committees will continue to operate under their respective divisions. Much of the committee work will be focused on developing content for existing outlets (blog posts, journal articles, webinars) and contributing input on reunification efforts. Additionally, during this time, ALSC and YALSA staff, member leaders, and the Reunification Working Group are considering opportunities to reorganize ALSC and YALSA committees, including sunsetting committees that no longer meet the needs of the newly reunified division and combining committees that serve similar purposes. More information will be available in the upcoming months.
I've heard about work surrounding ALA Forward - what is it?
As you may have heard, ALA is embarking on a new strategic initiative – ALA Forward – to ensure the sustainability of the organization. ALSC and YALSA reunification is part of this work, as well as a wider assessment of all ALA programs and products, and the organizational structure within ALA. ALA will provide updates on ALA Forward work, as they become available.
How can I be involved and submit my feedback?
We know that this news is a lot to take in, and we understand this may come as a surprise. Please be assured that ALA leadership and your division leadership are cognizant of the benefits and challenges of this new relationship, and we are all committed to ensuring the priorities of both divisions are upheld.
Additional steps for reunification will include opportunities during the transition year for members to give feedback via a member survey, during membership meetings at Annual Conferences in 2025 and 2026, virtual community forums, and virtual focus groups.
The full year transition through 2025-2026 is built in to address the deliberate efforts to seek member input and to expand the work within ALSC in a way that is least disruptive to existing programming, activities, and staff capacity. ALA is committed to supporting the transition work by providing additional staff support from across other ALA units, including the Membership, Finance & Accounting, IT, and Communications offices.
ALSC & YALSA Reunification Town Hall (October 2025)
This is a recording of the initial reunification town hall, led by the ALSC & YALSA Working Group, responding to member feedback, concerns, and questions, and outlining next steps in the reunification process.
