Honors and Awards 2025-2026

Honors and Awards 2025-2026
Please consider nominating your staff or coworkers for their valuable work to your library. Self-nominations are also encouraged.

Deadline for Nominations: Saturday, November 30, 2025

Questions? Contact conference@njla.org

Supporting materials? Send to kathleen@piscatawaylibrary.org unless otherwise noted.

The Awards Reception will be held at the NJLA Annual Conference the evening of Wednesday, February 18.

Criteria for all of the awards can be found at njla.org/honors-and-awards
Nominator's Information
Nominator's full name*

First NameLast Name
Nominator's email address.*
example@example.com
Nominator's title*
Nominator's library or organization*
Nominator’s library or organization’s address (street, city, zip code)*
Nomination Selection
For which category are you submitting a nomination?*

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion AwardInnovative Program AwardIntellectual Freedom AwardJournalism AwardsNJ Academic Librarians (NJAL) Awards: Distinguished Service, Research, Technical Services, Outreach in Academic Libraries.Public Relations AwardsService and Librarian Awards: Rising Star, NJLA/NJASL Amy Job Partnership Award, Librarian of the Year, Champion Award, Trustee Award, Service AwardsRetired Members Section Lifetime Achievement AwardSusan G. Swartzburg Preservation Award

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award

The award will recognize and honor outstanding contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion by an institution or individual in the last twelve months. The recipient(s) of the EDI Award will be selected by the Honors & Awards Committee, in accordance with the guidelines and definitions adopted by the ALA Council, recommended by the ALA Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Questions? or Supporting Documents send to: conference@njla.org
Nominee’s full name*

First NameLast Name
Nominee's library or group affiliation and address*
Nominee’s phone number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Nominee’s email address*
example@example.com
Statement/letter of nomination following the established award criteria. (set sharing to allow anyone with a link to access)*
Additional supporting materials (set sharing to allow anyone with a link to access)
Additional comments

Innovative Program Award
This award recognizes a program or program series that engages its community or meets a community need in an innovative and creative way. It is open to New Jersey academic, public, school and special libraries, and consortia. All New Jersey libraries are encouraged to participate regardless of size, budget, or technological limitations.

The program or at least one part of the series must be presented during the last twelve months.

This award judges the program content only. Any marketing for the program can be submitted for the Public Relations Award. Libraries can submit nominations for both awards.

NOTE: If necessary, additional supporting materials accompanied by a print copy of your online submission form may be mailed to:

Piscataway Public Library
attn: Kathleen
500 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854
Budget Category - Branch libraries' entries should be submitted under main library budget guidelines. Total operating budget includes staff salaries.*

Up to $1,000,000$1,000,001 - 4,000,000$4,000,001 & up
How much did your program cost, excluding staff time? (We will take the cost into consideration when deliberating.)*
Statement/letter of nomination following the established award criteria. (please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access)*
URL of submission, if available
Additional comments

Intellectual Freedom Award

This award recognizes and honors outstanding contributions to intellectual freedom by an individual or a group in the last 12 months. The Intellectual Freedom Committee selects the recipient of this award. Questions or Supporting materials may be sent to conference@njla.org
Nominee’s full name*

First NameLast Name
Nominee's library or group affiliation and address*
Nominee’s email address*
example@example.com
Nominee’s phone number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Keeping in mind the established criteria, add an one-page statement describing in detail what the nominee has done to deserve this nomination. Link to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access*
Please also share copies of supporting materials, such as newspaper articles, letters of recommendation, and other evidence of support from local, state, and/or community organizations.. Link to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access*
Additional comments

Journalism Award

NJLA recognizes the power of the press and media. These awards are given in recognition of exceptional journalistic coverage of libraries and library issues during the last twelve months.Submissions may be editorials, op-ed pieces, blogs, articles or series of articles, television, radio, podcasts, and online stories and multimedia coverage, including school & university publications.Questions? Contact conference@njla.org
Nominee's full name*

First NameLast Name
Nominee’s publication/company/organization and address*
Nominee’s email address*
example@example.com
Nominee’s phone number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Please add a copy of entry here. (Link to document files should be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
Statement/letter of nomination following the established award criteria (Link to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
URL of submission if available
Additional comments

NJ Academic Librarians Awards
Click here to read or download the specific guidelines for each of these awards: https://www.njla.org/honors-and-awards

Supporting Materials for the Research Award may be sent to:

Catherine Baird
Harry A. Sprague Library, Room 101
1 Normal Ave
Montclair, New Jersey 07043
Category*

Distinguished Service AwardResearch AwardTechnical Services AwardOutreach in Academic Libraries Award
Nominee’s full name and present position*

First NameLast Name
Nominee’s library or group affiliation and address*
Nominee’s phone number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Statement/letter of nomination following the established award criteria (Link to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
If necessary, upload any supporting materials. Please Include here CV for Distinguished Service Award. (Link to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).
Additional comments

Public Relations Award
This award is open to New Jersey academic, public, school, and special libraries, as well as consortia. All materials must have been produced during the last twelve months. Entries not following the specified directions will be disqualified. Materials produced by Friends of the Library groups may be submitted in the appropriate category. No library may win in the same category for two consecutive years. All submissions become the property of NJLA and will not be returned.

This award judges only the marketing/PR of the program. For the content, apply to the Innovative Program category. Libraries can submit entries in both categories.

NOTE: If necessary, additional supporting materials accompanied by a print copy of your online submission form may be mailed to:

Piscataway Public Library
attn: Kathleen
500 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854

Questions? You may contact conference@njla.org
Budget Category - Branch libraries' entries should be submitted under main library budget guidelines. Total operating budget includes staff salaries.*

Up to $1,000,000$1,000,001 - 4,000,000$4,000,001 & up
Award category (limit of one item per category):*

Information Literature, such as program announcement, newsletter, brochure, poster, etc.Public Relations Campaign: an ongoing, coordinated effort to promote library initiatives. Examples include fundraising campaigns, summerSurprise us with your creative publicity! If you have something that doesn’t fit into one of the above categories, including imaginative uses of interactive, web-based technology, submit it for our consideration.
Please add an electronic copy of the entry (Links to document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
URL of submission if possible
Please add a brief paragraph describing how this public relations material delivered its message to the appropriate audience and produced satisfying results:*
Additional comments:
I'm sending additional physical materials to Piscataway Public Library attn: Kathleen 500 Hoes Lane Piscataway, NJ 08854*

YesNo

Susan G. Swartzburg Preservation Award

This award honors the memory of a librarian whose leadership in New Jersey inspired and influenced many others in our profession, particularly in the areas of preservation of library materials, archives, and the book arts.
Criteria for the Award:

Leadership. Has demonstrated support for funding of conservation projects; promoting education of conservation issues; and increasing the visibility of archival/history materials.

Creativity. Has developed new and interesting methods of interpretation through exhibits, programs, lectures and publications.

Commitment. Has built an impressive body of work at one or more institutions in the areas of conservation, archives and/or historical fields; has a strong record of participation in NJLA; and has exhibited knowledge of and concern for the basic principles of preservation over time
Nominee’s full name*

First NameLast Name
Nominee’s library and address*
Nominee’s email address*
example@example.com
How does the nominee meet the criteria of the award? (Link to longer responses / document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
What are the outstanding characteristics of the nominee? (Link to longer responses / document files may be pasted in answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with link to access).*
List relevant positions held by nominee, e.g. library, archives, historical, curatorial, professional, or educational, but not elected political offices, with dates if known.(Link to longer responses or resume may be pasted in the answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with the link to access.)*
List supporting documents, such as publications, by or about the nominee. (Link to longer responses or resume may be pasted in the answer box - please change sharing access to allow anyone with the link to access.)*
Should be Empty:

Honors and Awards 2025-2026

Nominator's Information

Nomination Selection

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award

Innovative Program Award

Intellectual Freedom Award

Journalism Award

NJ Academic Librarians Awards

Public Relations Award

Service and Librarian Awards

Susan G. Swartzburg Preservation Award