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Each year the Newbery Medal
is awarded by the American Library Association ;for
the most distinguished American children's books
published the previous year. However, as many
persons became concerned that the artists creating
picture books for children were as deserving
of honor and encouragement as were the authors
of children's books, Frederic G. Melcher suggested
in 1937 the establishment of a second annual
medal. This medal is to be given to the artist who
had created the most distinguished picture book of
the year and named in honor of the nineteenth-century
English illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott. The idea for
this medal was also accepted enthusiastically by
the Section for Library Work with Children of
ALA and was approved by the ALA Executive Board.
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The Caldecott Medal "shall be awarded to
the artist of the most distinguished American Picture
Book for Children published in the United States during
the preceding year. The award shall go to the artist,
who must be a citizen or resident of the United
States, whether or not he be the author of the text.
Members of the Newbery Medal Committee will serve
as judges. If a book of the year is nominated for
both the Newbery and Caldecott Awards the committee shall decide
under which heading it shall be voted upon, so that the
same title shall not be considered on both ballots." In
1977 the Board of Directors of the Association for
Library Service to Children rescinded the final part
of the 1937 action and approved that "any book published
in the preceding year shall be eligible to be considered
for either award or both awards." Separate committees
to choose the Newbery and Caldecott Awards were
established in 1978 and began with the
1980 selection committees. |
The Randolph Caldecott Medal |
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In 1937 René Paul Chambellan designed the Caldecott Medal.
The bronze medal has the winner's name and the date engraved
on the back. When the Caldecott Medal was accepted
in 1937, the Section for Library Work with Children invited the School Libraries Section
to name five of its members to the awards
committee each year. For this reason the Caldecott Medal
inscription reads, "Awarded annually by the Children's and School Librarians
Sections of the American Library
Association." This is a combination and simplification of the actual
names of the sections. The wording continues even though
several ALA reorganizations resulted in 1958 in the present divisions, including
the Children's Services Division, now the Association for Library Service
to Children, which now has sole
responsibility for administering the award.
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Caldecott Honor Seal |
From the beginning of the awarding of the Newbery and
Caldecott Medals, committees could, and usually did, cite other
books as worthy of attention. Such books were referred to as Newbery or
Caldecott "runners-up." In 1971 the
term "runners-up" was changed to "honor books." The new terminology was
made retroactive so that all former runners-up are now referred to as Newbery
or Caldecott Honor Books. |
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