REFORMA de Florida is excited to announce the 2026 Pura Belpré Book Donation Grant recipients. Winners were selected based on why a collection of Latinx Young Adult or Children’s books is needed by the institution and its community, how acquiring this collection would help the institution better serve the children and youth of their community, and the effectiveness of the institution’s plan to make these materials available in their communities. Each winner will receive a collection of YA or Children’s books, created by Latinx authors and illustrators in 2025, which portray the Latino cultural experience.

  • Buddy Taylor Middle School / Kristine Smith

    Palm Coast, FL

    Young Adult Latinx books

  • Clay County Public Library  /  Kaylee Benner

    Fleming Island, FL

    Children’s Latinx books

REFORMA de Florida thanks the 2026 Pura Belpré Book Donation Grant Selection Committee:

  • Eric Gomez, Community Library Manager, Pembroke Pines Branch Library/Walter C Young Resource Center, Pembroke FL

  • Lucia M. Gonzalez, Library Marketing Consultant at Spanish Publishers LLC, Miami FL

  • Alejandra Rodriguez, Librarian, Kissimmee FL

  • Ximena Valdivia, MLIS, MA, Cataloging and Metadata Librarian, Florida International University, Miami FL

The Program Coordinator is Alma Ramos-McDermott, REFORMA de Florida Vice-President/President-Elect; 2025 Elizabeth Martinez Lifetime Achievement Award winner; REFORMA National Mini-Grants Committee Chair.

We thank everyone who applied for our 2026 Pura Belpré Book Donation Grant.

¡Felicidades a los ganadores!

REFORMA de Florida is a chapter of REFORMA National. REFORMA is committed to supporting programming for Latino and Spanish-speaking communities. Through our Pura Belpré Book Donation Grant, we aim to support the Latino cultural experience in the lives of Florida’s children.