John Cotton Dana Library Public Relations Award

Your library does not have to be big with lots of money to spend on public relations in order to win the $5000 John Cotton Dana Award. This award cuts across type-of-library lines to select libraries that have distinguished themselves by their public education and public relations efforts.

"Everyone needs to remember," said John Cotton Dana Committee Chair Kim Terry, "that the judges don't look at how much the project costs, but at how creative or effective it was."

In 2001, the Dr. Eugene Clark Library in Lockhart, Texas, won for ‘Up On the Roof With the Loony Librarian,’ for which a librarian camped on the library’s dome for a week to raise funds for a renovation project.

In 2005, the Maricopa County Library District in Phoenix, AZ, developed ‘The Mystery Club of Luna Drive,’ an online young adult novel that gave teens an opportunity to solve a mystery using puzzles, ciphers and critical thinking.

One of the most innovative projects of recent years came out last year from Hackney Library at Barton College, in Wilson, N.C. in 2010. They created a “Band Book Tour,” a music festival centered on a fictional band that “stopped” at literary locations in controversial books. Giveaways of tour t-shirts and “all-access” lanyards and wallets continue to provide the library with exposure to this day, as students are frequently seen on campus with their tour gear.

“The size of your budget doesn’t matter,” Terry added, “so be sure to enter and share your great ideas with the rest of us.”

For an entry form, checklist, guidelines and tips, visit www.hwwilson.com/jcdawards/nw_jcd.htm.