YALSA Membership Recruitment Action Plan

Presentation for YALSA Membership Recruitment

YALSA is ALA's fastest growing division, with a membership of over 5,000. Recruiting new members means more dues, more programs, and more impact on services for teenagers in libraries across the country. Now that YALSA is no longer receiving ALA’s small division subsidy, earning more revenue is even more important.  We need to recruit all kinds of librarians, graduate students, educators, trustees, and others to ensure young adults receive quality library service. This script is a suggested presentation for this purpose. Please adapt it to your own style and situation.

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Early Bird Activity:

Put the handout called “Take the YALSA Challenge” on each seat in the room. As people arrive, encourage them to fill in the handout. Tell them that you’ll collect them at the end of your presentation and draw a winner from the pile of completed entries. Give that person a token or prize. This activity could also be done at the end of the presentation instead of as a precursor to it, if you prefer.>

Introduction:

Thank you so much for having me here today! I am both pleased and proud to talk with you about the Young Adult Library Services Association, or YALSA, which is a division of the American Library Association, the oldest and largest library association in the world. I have been a YALSA member for _______ years, and membership in this association has benefited me in many ways.  But why should you consider becoming a YALSA member?

Here are some important facts to think about:

  1. Did you know that 23% of all the patrons who walk into the public libraries are teens between 12 and 18?
  2. Did you know that only 11% of the public libraries in the country employ young adult specialists?
  3. Did you know that by the year 2008 there will be 42 million teenagers, and an increase of 13% in the number of students in grades 9 through 12?
  4. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 32% of 8th graders scored at or above the proficient level in reading in 2003.
  5. According to a recent study by the Nielsen Norman Group, teens are less proficient than adults at navigating the Internet. Teens performed poorly due to insufficient reading skills, less sophisticated research skills, and less patience.
  6. Between 2010 and 2020, 45% of today’s librarians will reach age 65.

These statistics indicate that there is an urgent need for school librarians and young adult specialists to be prepared to meet the needs of today’s growing teen population. Librarians of all kinds, regardless of specialization, will need all the help they can get, and the place to find that help is YALSA! YALSA's goal is “to advocate, promote and strengthen service to young adults as part of a continuum of total library service.”

Here are some important YALSA facts to know:

Facts for Students:

Others: feel free to add something you feel will appeal to your audience

Presenter's Testimonial: It’s important to balance facts and figures with your personal story. Give a brief testimonial about how you’ve benefited from YALSA. Describe briefly what YALSA has done for you, either professionally or personally, or both. Illustrate your comments with specific examples and/or a personal anecdote.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

I belong to YALSA because:

Excample #1:  It provides me with a network of fellow youth advocates in libraries and publishing for support and affirmation.  (“I’m the only person in my library who works with teens, so this network is important to me.”)

 

Example #2:  I find many opportunities for individual growth and professional development.  The ALA Annual Conferences always have interesting programs.  (For example, “This year I attended a program about adult books for teen readers, and it helped me with collection development for this age group.”)

 

Example #3.I've served on committees in which I expanded my knowledge about the profession and developed important skills. (“As a member of the Youth Participation committee, I helped to publish a youth participation manual and develop guidelines for youth participation at the national level.”)

 

Example #4.  I learned I could be a leader in my profession on a national level and at home in my own library.  YALSA is small enough for a person to be offered opportunities to lead the association.  ("I was elected to the board and developed skills that allowed me to voice my opinions, influence others and make decisions.")

 

Take the YALSA Challenge:

Collect the papers you handed out earlier.   Once they’re all collected, go over the correct answers, then draw a winner.

 

Concluding Remarks:

I strongly recommend that you consider joining YALSA so you can take advantage of the many opportunities it offers you to grow as an individual & to be an agent for change in the profession.

 

I've brought along membership brochures and information about YALSA’s different initiatives and programs.  Please pick up these valuable resources before you go.  We’re also on the web at www.ala.org/yalsa if you would like to look us up after you leave.  Are there any questions I can answer? (allow wait time—count to 5).  Thank you for having me here today and for the opportunity to share my thoughts about YALSA with you.

Need more information or assistance to help you plan your program? Contact the YALSA Office at 1 (800) 545-2433 x4390 or email yalsa@ala.org . We’d be happy to help!\

MEMBERSHIP RECRUITMENT MATERIALS ORDER FORM

Membership recruitment items can be ordered (at no cost) for your presentations.  Fill out the form below and send it by email or fax to the YALSA office: yalsa@ala.org or (312) 664-7459.

 

# of copies      Item    

 

_____              Membership forms

 

_____              You Don’t Need to be on a Committee to be Involved with YALSA flyer

 

_____              Publications brochure

 

_____              New Competencies for Librarians Serving Youth brochure

 

_____              Guidelines for Youth Participation handout

 

_____              YALSA Grants and Awards flyer

 

_____              YALSA Electronic Lists and Web Sites flyer

 

_____              YALSA Fact Sheet

 

_____              Teen Read Week Fact Sheet

 

_____              Printz/Edwards/Alex Awards Flyer

 

_____              Teens’ Top Teen information sheet

 

_____              YALSA Booklists information sheet

 

_____              YALSA’s Licensed Institutes flyer

 

_____              Take the YALSA Challenge! activity sheet

 

_____              Member Benefits

 

Your Name:

 

Email &/or phone:

 

Name of Organization:

 

Address to send materials:

 

Date of Workshop/Program (important):

 

Signature:                                                                 Job Title:                                                 


Take the YALSA Challenge! 

 

Your name: _________________________________            Email: ________________________

 

TRUE or FALSE

 

  1. ________ Student membership in YALSA costs $140 per year.

 

  1. ________ YALSA produces an annual booklist called Quick Picks for Reluctant Young  

                              Adult Readers.

 

  1. ________ YALSA has over 30 committees for members to serve on.

 

  1. ________ YALSA offers online courses as an alternative to face-to-face workshops.

 

  1. ________ YALSA sponsors a national literacy initiative called Teen Read Week, which

                         is held the third week of each October.

 

CIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER

 

  1. What print journal does YALSA publish?

 

VOYA                          Young Adult Library Services                         American Libraries

 

  1. What literary award does YALSA sponsor?

 

Printz                                        Newbery                                              Coretta Scott King

 

  1. About how much money in grants and awards does YALSA administer each year?

 

$10,000                                   $20,000                                               $30,000

 

9.      YALSA-BK, an online discussion list about teens and reading, has about how many 

      subscribers?

 

      1,000                                       1,700                                                   2,500

 

  1. YALSA publishes several books, one of which is called:

 

Do it Right!                              Sizzling Summer Reading Programs               Teen Scene

 

 


Take the YALSA Challenge Answer Key

 

  1. False
  2. True
  3. True
  4. True
  5. True
  6. Young Adult Library Services
  7. Printz
  8. $30,000
  9. 1,700
  10. Sizzling Summer Reading