BACKGROUND
The Award will be given to a
Friends of the Library group for outstanding community service. All Friends’
groups who are members in good standing of FOCAL are eligible to enter.
The judging will be conducted
by FOCAL. The award will be announced at the FOCAL Annual General Meeting. One
prize will be awarded to the chosen Friends group to receive the equivalent
of $500 for equipment and supplies from BRODART for the library it supports.
The selection of equipment and supplies will be made in consultation with the
Friends library.
Please read the FOCAL /
BRODART Award Entry Rules and provide all required
information so that your entry can be fairly assessed during judging.
Document your Friends’ activities which exemplify outstanding community
involvement. Please attach pertinent supporting material.
Applications
must be received each year no later than March 31.
The FOCAL SELECTION COMMITTEE
will judge the entries and select the winner. An official announcement will be
made at the FOCAL Annual General Meeting.
The winner will be notified by FOCAL’s President. The Chair of
the FOCAL / BRODART Award Committee will contact the President of the winning
Friends group in writing to arrange a date, place and time for presentation of
the award and to ensure efforts are made to contact local media. BRODART will
be notified of the event and invited to attend.
Where possible, the presentation of the award will be made by a
member of the FOCAL Board or by a designated representative.
ENTRY RULES
-
Applicants must be a Friends’
group in good standing in FOCAL for the year judged.
-
Entries will be judged on a Friends’ group’s outstanding
community service. Consideration will be given to the range of creative
endeavors carried out by Friends which establish connections with the
broader community.
The Chair of the FOCAL/BRODART Committee’s name and address
is listed on the Application form, as well as below, and is the designated
contact and the person to whom all documentation for the Award Entry should
be sent.
Applications will be judged on one or more
initiatives related to the following:
-
Community Partnerships
-
Community Outreach
-
Advocacy
-
Impact on Community Life
I.
Community Partnerships
-
Identify key
organizations and stakeholders in your community with whom Friends have
created partnerships
-
Describe beneficial
working relationships between the Friends and community leaders, groups
and agencies
-
Clearly outline the
Friends involvement and areas of responsibility for the project or
activity and those of the partner organization
-
Demonstrate benefit to
library community
-
Clearly outline the
Friends’ involvement and areas of responsibility for the
project/activity and those of the partner organization
May include areas such
as:
Funding/sponsorship
Service enhancement
Special programming
Resources collection
II. Community Outreach
Describe the Friends’
participation in events and programs such as:
-
Special library events
-
Municipal
events/Declared Days (Library Week, Senior Citizens, etc.)
-
Sponsor community
programs relevant to the library and community partners (educational,
cultural, arts)
-
Celebrate the
community’s cultural diversity
-
Public relations
opportunities the Friends utilize to make public aware of library
services
III. Advocacy
Friends advocate on behalf
of libraries and citizens who depend on them.
Describe your successful
advocacy project(s) such as:
-
Strengthen political support in consultation with the library (i.e. City
Council budget deliberations, political forums, election campaigns,
etc.)
-
Assist
library to create a public awareness campaign on the Library’s
importance to the community (arts, culture, education, literacy,
entertainment, socio-economic fields)
IV. Impact in Community
Life
Describe a community project where the
Friends made a difference through support of community services.
Possible examples:
-
Serve persons with disabilities, older
adults, and persons with special needs
-
Support literacy programs to improve reading and literacy skills
-
Demonstrate a positive effect on lives
of community residents
-
Identify opportunities for development of services or collections
through a needs assessment or strategic planning process in consultation
with the library
-
Applicants must submit a
short, typed narrative of specific information requested in the Entry Rules
regarding Friends community service. Applicants will submit information
required on the award application found on the FOCAL website (www.friendsoflibraries.ca)
or in copies of the FOCAL newsletter.
-
Applicants must submit a
minimum of two letters including - one from a community group familiar with
the Friends’ contribution; and one from the Friends’ Library CEO/Director.
-
Provide any supporting
materials such as press releases, media coverage and promotional material.
-
No material will be returned.
Entries and supporting materials become the property of FOCAL and may be
used in FOCAL publications.
-
The BRODART award order will be made to the Friends group,
with selection of equipment/supplies left to the discretion of the library.
Applications must be received each year no later than March
31.
Please send entries
to:
Nicholas Spillios
Chair, FOCAL / BRODART AWARD COMMITTEE
8308 - 134 St.
Edmonton, Alberta T5R OB4
FOCAL/BRODART/Award
Application
(please type)
Name of Friends’ Group _____________________________________
President
___________________________________
Mailing Address
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
E-Mail Address
__________________
Telephone
______________________
Library Contact __________________________________________
Address __________________________________________
__________________________________________
E-Mail Address ___________________
Telephone _____________________
