Books
IRA/CBC Children’s Choice Award for More Than Meets The Eyes, Bantam.
IRA/CBC Children’s Choice Award for Not Just Party Girls, Bantam.
Books for Young Adults Award and IRA/CBC Children’s Choice Award for Sweet Sixteen and Never… Bantam.
Books for Young Adults Award, Between Us, Scholastic, Inc.
IRA/CBC Children’s Choice Award for Valentine Blues. Bantam.
Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children, National Science Teachers Association/Children's Book Council, for SMILE! How to Cope with Brace, Knopf.
Lifetime Achievement Award, Hamilton School at Wheeler, 2004
Scripts
Cable Ace Award Finalist for Stacy Takes A Stand, HBO.
Cine Golden Eagle; Bronze Apple Award; Emmy nom for Best Children’s Script for ABC After School Special, Tattle.
Commendation Award, American Women in Radio and Television; Mentor Award, National Association for Youth; Emmy nom, best picture for ABC Emmy nom for Outstanding Children's Special for ABC After School Special, Supermom's Daughter.
National Psychology Award for Excellence in the Media, American Psychological Association; Nancy Susan Reynolds Award, Center for Population Options; Humanitas Certificate; Emmy nom for Outstanding Children's Special for ABC After School Special, Teen Father.
Humanitas Certificate; Humanitarian Award, Los Angeles Council on Assaults against Women; Emmy nominations for Best Children's Script and Outstanding Children's Special for ABC After School Special, Don't Touch.
Emmy nom for Outstanding Children's Special for ABC After School Special, I Want to Go Home.
More About Jeanne
Reviews
Betancourt (the Pony Pals series) balances the fanciful and the real throughout—the thrill of Ava's wishes coming true versus her pangs of longing for her parents…kids will embrace this bighearted novel and its thoughtful, resilient narrator.
Publishers Weekly
Young readers will find simple sentences, straightforward chronology and Dominguez’s black-and-white illustrations to reinforce and break up the text, but Betancourt slips in some narrative challenge, leaving them to wonder: Does Ava really have such power or is it all coincidence? This sophistication, Ava’s unusual situation and the realistic depiction of young people carrying on after a terrible loss set this book above the usual chapter-book fare.
Kirkus Reviews
Using the common three-wishes setup could lead to a predictable lesson about being careful what you wish for, but Betancourt allows Ava to learn from her choices without the intrusive I-told-you-so voice of the adult. The first-person story is an easy read, just right for the new reader, but the fully realized secondary characters and the poignancy of Ava's longing for her parents give it depth. Since author Betancourt is an old hand at series fiction, I hope my wish for more stories about Ava will come true.
The Horn Book