Dezurick-Badran wins stipend to attend YALSA’s 2010 symposium

Contact: Stephanie Kuenn


Communications Specialist


312-280-2128


skuenn@ala.org

NEWS


For Immediate Release


March 30, 2010

CHICAGO — Emily Dezurick-Badran, an enquiry assistant at the Southend Central Library in Southend on Sea, Essex, United Kingdom, won the 2010 Young Adult Literature Symposium worker stipend from the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). The stipend provides Dezurick-Badran with up to $1,000 to attend the 2010 symposium, to be held Nov. 5-7 at the Albquerque Marriott in Albuquerque, N.M.

Dezurick-Badran plans to pursue a master’s degree in library science, with the intention of serving teens in the UK and in the United States. In particular, she felt attending the symposium would provide her with professional development focused on young adults.

“At present there are no organizations within the United Kingdom that directly address young adult library services, so attending the symposium would provide a rare and important opportunity, allowing me to discover methods to improve existing services for young people at Southend Library,” Dezurick-Badran wrote in her application.

Supervisor Philip Gough highlighted Dezurick-Badran’s service to youth in their community, noting that she selects the library’s YA materials and runs the library’s teen reading group.

“Attending this conference would be of great assistance to Emily,” Gough wrote in her supporting statement. “She will gain the opportunity to exchange ideas about how services to young adults are currently delivered elsewhere in the world which will be of benefit both to herself and to the way in which she conducts services to our community.”

The Young Adult Literature Symposium will be held at the Albuquerque Marriott, Nov. 5-7, with a theme of “Beyond Good Intentions: Diversity, Literature and Teens.” The symposium is funded in part by the William C. Morris Endowment. Details about the symposium, including registration rates and housing information, are available at
www.ala.org/yalitsymposium.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos, and audio books for teens. For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to
www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists, or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or e-mail,
yalsa@ala.org.