The United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) is a national section of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) committed to bringing books and children together.
The United States National Section of the International Board on Books for Young People, USBBY, was established in the early 1960s by the American Library Association (ALA) and the Children's Book Council (CBC). It was incorporated as “Friends of IBBY” in 1979 and was headquartered at the Children's Book Council in New York City at that time. The name was changed soon thereafter, and USBBY was hosted by theInternational Reading Association (IRA), now the International Literacy Association (ILA) in Newark, Delaware from 1985 until the end of 2008. From 2009 the USBBY Secretariat has been located at the Center for Teaching through Children's Books in Skokie, Illinois. USBBY is chartered as a non-profit corporation serving to promote and develop excellence in books for children and young people. The structure of USBBY consists of a board of directors, with a president, president-elect, past president, treasurer, secretary, and 12 directors, plus the executive director. Members include librarians, teachers, university professors, authors, illustrators, publishers, and students. Membership categories range from individual, to organizational, and patron membership (currently the American Library Association, Children's Book Council, International Literacy Association, (then the International Reading Association) and National Council of Teachers of English). USBBY's regular activities include: a biannual USBBY Newsletter, a biennial regional conference, and sessions at ALA, IRA, and NCTE annual conferences and the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting. USBBY committees recommend US nominees for the Hans Christian Andersen Award, the IBBY-Asahi Reading Promotion Award, and Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities, as well as for USBBY's own Bridge to Understanding Award that is presented annually.[1]
USBBY is governed by a board of directors that includes four elected and eight appointed board members who represent the USBBY membership as well as USBBY's patron organizations—the Children's Book Council, the American Library Association, the International Reading Association, and the National Council of Teachers of English. USBBY is managed by its board of directors, the USBBY general secretary, and a variety of member committees. The executive director (who is an ex officio non-voting member of the board) is the administrative officer of the organization. The USBBY board of directors meets three times annually. The organization also convenes an annual meeting for its members, which is held either at the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Annual Convention, or at the biennial IBBY Regional Conference. Specifics on the board's activities is available via the USBBY Manual online.[2]
The Outstanding International Books (OIB) list was first started by USBBY in 2006 . The OIB list is intended to introduce American children to exceptional artists and writers from other countries, recognizing that books connect people who live in different places, during different times, or with different interests. All of the titles originated or were first published in a country other than the United States and were subsequently published or distributed in the U.S.[3] These books not only represent the best in children's literature from around the globe, but also introduce American readers to other perspectives.[4] The list is showcased each year in the February issue of School Library Journal. The goal is to create more awareness of, and demand for, books from other countries, so that US publishers will be encouraged to offer more books from diverse countries to young readers in America[5] Their originality and appeal, and the quality of the presentations support most library collections of children's literature.[6]
The Bridge to Understanding Award formally acknowledges the work of adults who create programs that use children's books to explore cultures around the world in order to promote international understanding among children. Winning programs are based on a broad understanding of culture as ways of living and being in the world, and go beyond the surface features of a culture, such as food, fashion, folklore, famous people, and festivals.
This award was established in memory of Arlene Pillar, an educator who served USBBY as newsletter editor from 1984 until her death in 1990. Organizations eligible for the award include schools, libraries, scout troops, clubs, and bookstores. The program may be a one-time event, or an ongoing series of events, that serves children ranging in age from kindergarten through tenth grade. The award carries a monetary prize of $1000 and a certificate.[7]
In February 2007, the USBBY Board of Directors approved creating a Special Projects Fund to be used specifically to fund worthy projects, both domestic (U.S.) and foreign (IBBY related projects) that merit USBBY support. Applications are judged on urgency of the need, the quality of the proposed project, short term and long term benefits, and compatibility with IBBY and USBBY's mission and goals. No more than $4,000 will be awarded annually to any one project. The deadline for application submission is August 1 each year.
In 2013, USBBY sponsored the poster design for IBBY's International Children's Book Day (ICBD). Illustrator Ashley Bryan and poet Pat Mora created the poster. [8] In 2021, USBBY will again sponsor the poster design for the international event, this time featuring the poetry of Margarita Engle and the art of Hans Christian Andersen Medalist Roger Mello. The USBBY Secretariat maintains a blog with library programming ideas related to ICDL.
The biennial IBBY regional conference takes place in the fall of each off-numbered year. Organizing and hosting the conference is an opportunity to assume a leadership role in the field of children's literature and make connections with authors, illustrators and colleagues in support of USBBY's mission to promote international understanding through children's books.
USBBY publishes Bridges, a semi-annual newsletter for its members that reports on conferences and co-sponsored sessions, as well as general news related to international literature for children and young adults. The editor considers email announcements, manuscripts, and press releases related to national and international children's literature. Deadline for submissions are Aug. 15 for the fall issue and Feb. 15 for the spring issue.[9]
Bridges to Understanding is a series of annotated bibliographies of outstanding international literature for young people. The individual volumes are published by Scarecrow Press, a division of Rowman & Littlefield and include:Children's Books from Other Countries (1998) edited by Carl M. Tomlinson;The World Through Children's Books (2002) edited by Susan Stan;Crossing Boundaries with Children's Books (2006) edited by Doris J. Gebel;Envisioning the World through Children's Books (2011) edited by Linda Pavonetti; and Reading the world's stories : an annotated bibliography of international youth literature(2016) edited by Annette Y Goldsmith, Theo Heras, and Susan Corapi