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Notes From the Field: Across the Libroverse - 2024 North Texas Teen Book Festival


Originally published August 1, 2024

 


As I watch the sun set from the train’s window seat and the gently rolling hills of the Texas Hill Country are replaced by the flatter terrain of the Prairie and Lakes Region, I mentally inventory my utility belt in preparation for the adventure ahead—serving as a moderator for the Get Graphic track at the 2024 North Texas Teen Book Festival (NTTBF). NTTBF was founded in 2012, and after more than two years of preparation, the inaugural event was hosted in the spring of 2015. Free to the public, the two-day festival is comprised of a day of professional development for educators and a teen book festival with dedicated programming for middle grade readers. Not only does this feat of derring-do connect its reading community by adding dimension to their reading experience, but it’s also a model of collaboration across the libroverse—special, public, school, and academic library environments.


Special Library Underwriting: The Origin Story

As part of their planning and fundraising, festival founders secured three sequential Special Projects Grants from the Texas State Library and Archives Commission totalling just under $198,000 in funding that was disseminated over three years. Being awarded these funds was critical to the event’s growth and success. With that support, creative fundraising, and an investment by the City of Irving and Sam Houston State University, the festival steering committee has been able to develop NTTBF into a sustainable event that’s attended by thousands each year.


Public and School Library Collaboration: The Dynamic Duo

The North Texas Teen Book Festival’s steering committee is largely composed of public librarians from the Irving Public Library System and neighboring cities as well as a number of school librarians from multiple school districts throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Although NTTBF is largely planned and executed by an extensive team of adults, these public and school libraries help ensure that teen voice is centered in the planning process. For example, area schools that bring students to the festival have organized book clubs and worked together to plan their group’s day at the festival. In addition, the South Branch of the Irving Public Library hosts regular meet-ups for teens to serve in an advisory capacity—offering programming suggestions, reviewing the festival's schedule, and assisting in executing the immense number of tasks needing to be done.


Academic Library Partnership: The Super Friends 

Recognizing that not all library workers have the ability to attend the Texas Library Association’s annual conference, event co-founder Rose Brock’s goal is to remove barriers to such professional development and “provide an engaging and fun day focused on new books and libraries for all.” Thus, an essential focus of Educator Day at NTTBF is to “help educators improve their knowledge of contemporary literature for youth and assist them in diversifying their classroom and school libraries by introducing attendees to new voices writing middle grade and young adult literature.” To that end, working in partnership with Sam Houston State University’s College of Education, the educator day provides free professional development sessions for hundreds of teachers and librarians. Furthermore, the college’s Library Science Department faculty collaborates with the Texas Education Association’s Educational Service Centers to facilitate programs that focus on relevant topics in education and literacy for those working with youth.

***

Armed with this context on the steps of the Irving Convention Center, my participation in the tenth anniversary festival day took on new meaning. I would be eyewitness to the heroes throughout the multiverse of library environments who donned the cape of partnership to serve their communities.





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