A child stepping into Desislava Kouzeva’s school library might be looking for an adventure, an answer to a question or simply a quiet place to spend time. Her first task, she says, is to listen.
“The library is not only about shelves with books. It’s about how they make us feel,” said Kouzeva, the librarian at Dubai International Academy, Emirates Hills. “I ask them what’s important to them.”
That approach has earned her the 2026 School Librarian of the Year award in the private school category. The Emirates Literature Foundation presented the award at a ceremony at Dubai’s Museum of the Future on Monday, September 28.
Kouzeva is the only librarian at a school of almost 3,000 students, serving children from the age of three through to their final year before university. The library has sections for different ages, but she says each student arrives with their own interests, fears and questions.
“Each kid, when they enter, enters into a completely different world from their classmates,” she said. “Each of them is a unique person with their own dreams, fears and personality. We’re just there to open the gate.”
Kouzeva has been a school librarian for three years. Her team nominated her for the award last year, when she reached the final 10. This was her second nomination.
She also challenges the idea that young people have stopped reading. Older students may read fewer printed books, she said, but they encounter stories and information through audiobooks and digital media while managing busy school schedules.
“They are readers, but on many levels,” she said. “It’s just the way they do it is different from us.”
The challenge, in her view, is helping students find moments of quiet in which they can read for pleasure. “That’s why we are there, to open these small pockets of time for the little things that truly matter,” she said.
Dania Droubi, chief operating officer and director of education initiatives at the Emirates Literature Foundation, said school librarians have a role that extends well beyond managing books.
“They are part of the ecosystem of the student,” she said. “They are part of the literacy progress of the students. They are the ones who support the teachers in their learning journey with the child.”
Salma Al Helali of Al Taqadom School in Abu Dhabi received the School Librarian of the Year award in the public school category. The awards, organised by the foundation in partnership with the Executive Council of Dubai, also recognised librarians for their use of resources, innovation and community involvement.
Since the award began, it has received around 1,000 nominations and recognised more than 60 school librarians, according to the foundation.
Source: Khaleej Times