SILS alumna wins New York Times Librarian Award

The New York Times has named University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Information and Library Science alumna Jennifer Duvernay (MSLS ’96) as one of 25 winners of the 2006 New York Times Librarian Awards.

Duvernay works as the coordinator of Instruction, Outreach and Marketing at Arizona State University Libraries in Tempe, Ariz.

According to The Times, the Librarian Awards program “honors librarians from around the country who have provided outstanding public service and have had a strong and positive impact on their nominators.” The awards, now in their sixth year, carry with them a $2500 prize and a commemorative plaque from The Times.

Previously, only public librarians had been eligible to receive a New York Times Librarian Award. The program expanded in 2006 to include librarians working in colleges and universities, and Duvernay was one of only three academic librarians to earn an award in the new category.

The New York Times Librarian Award is Duvenay’s second major honor in as many years. She was highlighted as one of the Library Journal’s “Movers and Shakers” in 2005 when she worked as a Science Reference Librarian at Arizona State.

Duvernay received her New York Times Librarian Award at a Dec. 13 ceremony.