The American Library Association (ALA) is thrilled to announce this year’s ten recipients of the coveted I Love My Librarian Award. Serving communities across the nation, the 2025 honorees are exceptional librarians from academic, public, and school libraries who community members nominated for their expertise, dedication, and profound impact on the people in their communities. Among the honorees is Jamar Rahming.
Jamar Rahming
Wilmington Institute Free Library, Wilmington, Delaware
In just six years, Wilmington Institute Free Library in Delaware has gone through a transformational rebirth thanks to the efforts of its executive director Jamar Rahming. From establishing partnerships with local barbers to stock bookshelves for children inside barbershops, to hosting “Pitch or Ditch” competitions for minority-owned small businesses, to housing a diaper bank and community closet on its second floor and more, the library under Rahming’s leadership has revitalized the community and has attracted a growing and diverse slate of prolific voices and cultural icons to speak at library programs, including LeVar Burton, Jenifer Lewis, and Dolly Parton.
“Librarians nationwide make positive impacts on their communities every day, and the inspiring stories from this year’s I Love My Librarian Award recipients prove how transformative their efforts can be to the lives of their patrons,” said ALA President Cindy Hohl. “From Alabama to Alaska, from the Bronx to Maui, the vital services these librarians provide reinforce what we all know: that libraries everywhere are an essential public good, and the people who power them serve to inform, connect, educate, and empower their communities.”
ALA received nearly 1,300 nominations from library users for this year’s award, demonstrating librarians’ breadth of impact across the country. Nominations focused on librarians’ outstanding service, including expanding access to literacy and library services, outreach within their communities, supporting the needs of the most vulnerable, and more. This year’s award recipients include four academic librarians, three public librarians, and three school librarians.
Honorees will each receive a $5,000 cash prize as well as complimentary registration and a $750 travel stipend to attend ALA’s LibLearnX event in Phoenix. The award ceremony will take place during the LibLearnX welcome reception beginning at 6 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, and will stream live on YouTube.
