COMMUNITY NEWS: 2025 ALA Youth Media Award Recipients
The American Library Association (ALA) announced their 2025 Youth Media Award winners this January, which included and celebrated five VCFA voices in five award categories.
MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults alumnx Donna Janell Bowman (WCYA ’17), Madeline Claire Franklin (WCYA ’18), Sidura Ludwig (WCYA ’21), Karen Kane (WCYA ’16), and faculty Cynthia Leitich Smith (on leave), all received distinguished recognitions for their work in the field of children’s literature.
The ALA is the oldest and largest library association in the world, and is home to some of the most time-honored awards for writers of children’s literature: the Caldecott, Coretta Scott King, Newbery, and Printz awards. The entire VCFA community congratulates the authors recognized by the 2025 Youth Media Awards.
Learn more about the amazing VCFA honorees and their writing below.
Donna Janell Bowman (WCYA ’17), Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award
Wings of an Eagle: The Gold Medal Dreams of Billy Mills, co-authored by Billy Mills and Donna Janell Bowman (WCYA ’17), received a Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award. The Sibert Award and Honors are presented annually to authors and/or illustrators who publish the most distinguished informational book for young readers in the United States, in English, in the preceding year. The picture book Wings of an Eagle tells the remarkable true story of Billy Mills, the first American to win Olympic Gold in the 10,000-meter event and the second Native American in history to win gold in any track and field event.
Madeline Claire Franklin (WCYA ’18), William C. Morris Award Finalist
The Wilderness of Girls, Madeline Claire Franklin’s (WCYA ’18) debut young adult novel, was named a William C. Morris Award Finalist. The William C. Morris Award is presented to a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens. The Wilderness of Girls follows main character Rhi has she stumbles upon a pack of wolves protecting four girls holding a secret that will change Rhi’s life forever.
Sidura Ludwig (WCYA ’21), Sydney Taylor Book Award Silver Medal
Rising—written by Sidura Ludwig (WCYA ’21), illustrated by Sophia Vincent Guy, and published by Candlewick Press—was awarded a Sydney Taylor Book Award Silver Medal. This award has been given annually by the Association of Jewish Libraries since 1968 to exceptional children’s literature that authentically portrays the Jewish experience. Rising by Ludwig tells the story of a mother and child as they make challah.
Karen Kane (WCYA ’16), Schneider Younger Children Honor
Monster Hands—a picture book written by Karen Kane (WCYA ’16) and Jonaz McMillan and illustrated by Dion MBD—recieved a Schneider Younger Children Honor. Schneider Family Book Awards are given to books “…that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience.” In Monster Hands, two friends use ASL to overcome their fear of the monster under the bed.
Cynthia Leitich Smith (Faculty, On Leave), Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) Children’s Literature Lecture
Cynthia Leitich Smith will deliver the 2026 ALSC Children’s Literature Lecture. The ALSC Children’s Literature Lecture is an annual event in the field of children’s literature that hosts the lecture of a distinguished author, critic, librarian, historian, or teacher of children’s literature. Smith is The New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, and is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books.