Awards Committee

The Awards Committee is charged with soliciting applications for RMRT awards (currently Gadfly and the Norman Horrocks Awards), reviewing applications and selecting the awards recipients.

Norman Horrocks
Ruth Gordon Gadfly award

2025 Award Winners

Norman Horrocks Award

Nann Hilyard
Fifty years ago (May 1, 1975) Nann Hilyard began her professional career in Brenham, Texas. Over the following 39 years she was the public library administrator in Brenham; Pittsburg, Kansas; Auburn, Maine; Fargo, North Dakota; Lake Villa, Illinois; and Zion, Illinois. She retired in 2014.

Since joining ALA in 1982 Nann has been an active participant at the governance, division, and round table levels. She was Maine Chapter Councilor from 1987-1990 and subsequently served three terms as Councilor-at-Large and one term on the Executive Board. In PLA she was active in the Small and Medium-Sized Libraries Section and the Public Libraries journal advisory committee. She co-edited the Perspectives column for the Public Library journal for ten years. She successfully guided the University Press Books Committee from PLA to RUSA. She was the PLA representative to the United for Libraries board and served on several ALTA/UFL committees.

Following her retirement Nann has been actively involved with RMRT board, including a term as chair. She was the RMRT liaison to the Freedom to Read Committee. She convenes RMRT’s online Fifth Sunday Book Club.

Nann is an avid quiltmaker. She is the chair of the ALA Biblioquilters who contribute quilts to the Scholarship Silent Auction at every annual conference. Since 2000 the quilts have raised more than $35,000 for the Christopher Hoy Scholarship sponsored by the Exhibits Round Table.

Ruth Gordon Gadfly Award

Martha Simpson
Martha has been a member of ALA and ALSC since 1991 and recently joined RMRT. She was the Head of Children’s Services at the Stratford Library in Stratford, CT and retired in 2022 after 28 years. During that time, she served on many local committees, including as co-chair of the Connecticut Library Association’s Children’s Section, and won several awards for her services and programs.

At ALA, she served on several ALSC committees, including the John Newbery Medal, and chaired the Library Service to Special Population Children and Their Caregivers Committee and the ALSC Notable Videos/Carnegie Award Committee, among others. Since her retirement, she has been volunteering at the Congregation Mishkan Israel library in Hamden, CT and has been active in the Association of Jewish Libraries, including as chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award committee.

Martha is also a published author. In 1992, McFarland & Company published Summer Reading Clubs, the first book ever written on the subject. She published four more library reference books with them, including Bringing Classes Into the Public Library (2007.) She has also published four picture books, including A Ring For a King: A Tale of King Solomon (Wisdom Tales, 2025.) When she is not reading or writing, Martha enjoys going to UConn Women’s and Connecticut Sun basketball games and travelling around the world. Read about her adventures on her website: www.Martha-Seif-Simpson.com.

2024 Award Winners

Norman Horrocks Award
Lisa Kippur
Lisa has been a member of RMRT since 2021 and a member of ALA since 2016. Although she is not a librarian, she did work in libraries for 4 years up until her retirement from the University of Colorado, Boulder where she was the Executive Assistant to Jim Williams, a long-time ALA member and Dean of Libraries at the University. Lisa received the SAGE Award from United for Libraries for her work with the Friends of the Libraries at CU Boulder. Lisa is currently the RMRT Membership Chair and Webmaster. During the first 6 months of her Chair position, she was able to increase RMRT membership over 10%. Lisa still works part time for the University and enjoys Yoga, Rock Climbing, Running, Reading, Knitting, Painting, Jewlery Making and spending time with her friends. She is involved in volunteering for Yogapod, CU Boulder Alumni Association and the College of Arts and Sciences, City of Lafayette, Dairy Center for the Arts and the Arts Hub. She is a member of the University of Colorado Heritage Society.

Ruth Gordon Gadfly Award
Carla Larsen
Carla retired as an elementary school LIbrary Media Specialist for South Washington County Schools, Cottage Grove, MN in June 2020.

Since then, she has been an active member of ALSC and AASL, serving on both the ALSC Education Committee and the Sara Jaffarian School Library Humanities Program Award Committee.

In 2022, Carla was selected for the Bill Morris Seminar for Book Evaluation Training, and currently she is on the ALSC Notable Children's Books Committee.

When not reading, Carla loves to travel, garden, and spend time outdoors with family and friends.