Winner of the 2025 EBSCO Information Services Library Staff Development Award

CHICAGO — The American Library Association is pleased to announce that the Library Freedom Project (LFP) is the 2025 winner of the EBSCO Information Services Library Staff Development Award for their program “March for Libraries." The award consists of $3,500 and a gold-framed citation. It is given to a library organization whose application demonstrates the greatest merit for a staff development program which furthers the goals and objectives of the library organization.

The Library Freedom Project (LFP) is a network of value-driven librarians working together to build an information democracy. The LFP serves all librarians (school, public, academic, professional, legal, and private) throughout all three regions of the United States. Their program is to expand the reach and impact of the annual March for Libraries event which offers professional development opportunities, community engagement activities, and statewide advocacy initiatives in Tennessee.

The target audience for this program includes library professionals, library supporters, community members, and students. The project goal is to offer a full day of professional development surrounding library advocacy with March for Libraries taking place in the morning and Library Legislative Day taking place in the afternoon. March for Libraries serves the purpose of fostering community, promoting library advocacy, and providing professional connections to librarians seeking to not only demonstrate their First Amendment rights but also champion in a public forum for intellectual freedom and information justice.

The 2025 EBSCO Information Services Library Staff Development Award will be presented at the ALA Award’s Program on Sunday, June 29, during the 2025 ALA Annual Conference in Philadelphia.

Members of the 2025 EBSCO Information Services Library Staff Development Jury are: Chair Jihye Lee, Electronic Resource Cataloging Librarian III, Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center; Kimberly Copenhaver, Director, Anne T. & Robert M. Bass Library and Director, Access & Public Services, Yale University Library; Stephanie Murphy, Executive Director, St. Joseph County Public Library; Ellen Ruffin Curator Emerita, The De Grummond Children’s Literature Collection, University of Southern Mississippi; and Bryan J. Sajecki, Social Sciences, Student Support, & Instruction Librarian, SUNY University at Buffalo

The EBSCO Information Services Library Staff Development Award is sponsored by EBSCO Information Services. EBSCO is a leading provider of online research content and search technologies serving academic, school and public libraries; healthcare and medical institutions; corporations; and government agencies around the world.
About the American Library Association

The American Library Association (ALA) is the only non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated entirely to America's libraries and library professionals. For almost 150 years, ALA has provided resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. The ALA serves academic, public, school, government, and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library's role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit www.ala.org.