FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Toronto (December 3, 2015) – The Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) and Sylvan Learning are thrilled to announce that they will be partnering to present the Amy Mathers Teen Book Award. Beginning in 2016, Sylvan Learning will be sponsoring the award, which the CCBC will continue to administer. Honouring excellence in teen/young adult fiction, the $5,000 prize is awarded annually to a Canadian author.

Sylvan Learning is the leading North American provider of personal learning for students in Kindergarten through Grade 12. With its deep experience in education, strong relationships with schools and educators, and robust presence throughout Canada, Sylvan truly supports families through every stage of the academic journey, helping children to learn to read and taking advanced readers to the next level for over 35 years. “We are very excited to support Canadian authors and the advancement of Canadian literature. Our Sylvan centres work with students across this country every day, helping with reading and a variety of subjects to ensure personal success. This award and partnership help both of us showcase the importance of loving to read and honouring the writers bringing great books to our teens,” stated Amy Przywara, Chief Marketing Officer for Sylvan Learning.

The Amy Mathers Teen Book Award is one of eight Canadian children’s literature awards organized and administered by the Canadian Children's Book Centre, a national, not-for-profit organization founded in 1976 to encourage the reading, writing and illustrating of Canadian books for young readers. “The Book Centre is elated about this new partnership with Sylvan Learning—with all the wonderful work they do to advance literacy in Canada, we are very excited to be working with them. We think they are a great fit for helping us bring national recognition to the great Canadian authors writing for teen audiences,” says Charlotte Teeple, Executive Director at the Canadian Children’s Book Centre.

The Amy Mathers Teen Book Award was presented for the first time in Toronto on November 18, 2015 to Marthe Jocelyn for her novel What We Hide. The award was established after a year-long fundraising effort by CCBC volunteer Amy Mathers, who decided to honour her passion for reading and Canadian teen literature, while working around her physical limitations, through a campaign called Amy’s Marathon of Books. Mathers read and reviewed a Canadian teen book every day for a year in order to bring more visibility to Canadian authors and to raise funds for the new award. This exciting new partnership will allow the CCBC to present the award for more years to come.

About Sylvan Learning With more than 35 years of experience and more than 650 locations throughout North America, Sylvan Learning is the leading provider of personal learning for students in Grades K-12. Sylvan is transforming how students learn, inspiring them to succeed in school and in life. Sylvan’s proven tutoring approach blends amazing teachers with SylvanSync™ technology on the iPad® for an engaging learning experience. Sylvan also leads the way with Sylvan EDGE—STEM and accelerated courses and Sylvan Prep —university and test prep courses. For more information, visit www.SylvanLearning.com or SylvanLearning.com/blog.

About the Canadian Children's Book Centre: The Canadian Children's Book Centre is a national, not-for-profit organization founded in 1976. We are dedicated to encouraging, promoting and supporting the reading, writing and illustrating of Canadian books for young readers. Our programs, publications, and resources help teachers, librarians, booksellers and parents select the very best for young readers. For more information, please visit www.bookcentre.ca.