NEW YORK: The Children's Book Council, Every Child a Reader, and the Library of Congress today announced the appointment of Jacqueline Woodson, four-time Newbery Honor Medalist, Coretta Scott King Book Award-winner, former Young People's Poet Laureate and National Book Award Winner for her memoir-in-verse Brown Girl Dreaming, as National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.
The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature program, established by the three organizations in 2008, highlights the importance of young people's literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education, and the development and betterment of the lives of young people.
Woodson will travel nationwide over the course of her two-year term promoting her platform, READING = HOPE x CHANGE (What's Your Equation?), which encourages young people to think about - and beyond - the moment they're living in, the power they possess, and the impact reading can have on showing them ways in which they can create the hope and the change they want to see in the world.
Woodson succeeds beloved and esteemed authors Jon Scieszka (2008-2009), Katherine Paterson (2010-2011), Walter Dean Myers (2012-2013), Kate DiCamillo (2014-2015), and Gene Luen Yang (2016-2017) in the position.
The inauguration ceremony, to be presided by the 14th Librarian of Congress Dr. Carla Hayden and attended by both Woodson and Yang, will take place on Tuesday, January 9 at 10:30 a.m. in the Members' Room of the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building at the Library of Congress, 10 First St. S.E., Washington D.C. Tickets are not required for this event, which is free and open to the public.
"I think the work ahead of me is challenging," says Jacqueline Woodson, "I don't believe there are 'struggling' readers, 'advanced' readers or 'non' readers. I'd love to walk away from my two years as Ambassador with the qualifiers gone and young people able to see themselves beyond stigma or oft-times debilitating praise. Martin Luther King Jr. said people should not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. In that regard, I think young people should not be judged by the level of their reading but by the way a book makes them think and feel. By the way it gives them hope. By the way it opens them up to new perspectives and changes them. I'm excited to have these conversations with some of the best conversationalists in our country - our young people."
"We are delighted that Jacqueline Woodson has agreed to be the new National Ambassador for Young People's Literature," said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. "I have admired Jacqueline Woodson's work for years, especially her dedication to children and young-adult literature. The Library of Congress looks forward to Jacqueline's tenure of encouraging young readers to embrace reading as a means to improve the world."
Nancy Paulsen, President and Publisher of Nancy Paulsen Books, says: "We think Jacqueline Woodson is the perfect Ambassador for our time because of her commitment to making sure all children have access to all kinds of books, and are sure to see themselves portrayed in those books. This is exactly what's needed to appeal to today's readers and to grow the next generation of book lovers."
Carl Lennertz, Executive Director of Every Child a Reader and the Children's Book Council, added, "We couldn't be more pleased with the selection of Jacqueline Woodson as the next ambassador. She embodies everything that we look for in this position and we can't think of a more passionate advocate for young people and for reading over the next two years."
The National Ambassador is selected for his or her contributions to young people's literature, the ability to relate to kids and teens, and dedication to fostering children's literacy in all forms. The selection, made by the Librarian of Congress, is based on recommendations from an independent committee comprising educators, librarians, booksellers, and children's literature experts.
The 2018-2019 selection committee for the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature:
•DeAndra Beard, CEO and founder of Beyond Borders Language Learning Center, Kokomo, IN
•Sarah Park Dahlen, Associate Professor in the Master of Library and Information Science Program at St. Catherine University, St. Paul, MN
•Earl Dizon, Bookseller at Green Bean Books, a children's bookstore in Portland, OR
•Travis Jonker, Elementary school librarian in Michigan and SLJ blogger
•Starr LaTronica, Director of the Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro, VT
•Ellen Ruffin, Curator of the de Grummond Collection, U. of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS
•Gene Luen Yang, Printz Award-winning author, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, 2016-2017, Berkeley, CA
The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature program is administered by Every Child a Reader.
