Library Media Specialist- Library Media Department Aug. 2008-present
Webmaster 2011-2019
Wolcott Elementary School, West Hartford, CT
Library Media Specialist Aug. 2007-June 2008
Har-Bur Middle School & Lewis S. Mills High School, Burlington, CT
Webmaster 2011-2019
Wolcott Elementary School, West Hartford, CT
- Manage a K-5 library that serves a Title I, international population of 355-530 students from over 30 countries
in a driven, detail oriented, and culturally inclusive and equitable manner on a fixed schedule - Completed rigorous requirements in first year of eligibility to achieve National Board Certification in Early Childhood through Young Adulthood/Library Media and successfully mentored a National Board candidate.
- Develop engaging lessons connecting to all areas of library and classroom curriculum- e.g., intellectual
property, leading to more than 85% of students correctly citing image sources on 4th grade projects in 2021 - Teach and assess information and device literacy, digital citizenship, and foster a culture of reading for
enjoyment for a wide range of students from Special Education to English Language Learners. - Use and support technologies such as Google Workspace for Education, SeeSaw, Clever, Flipgrid, Microsoft
Office, WeVideo, Screencastify, EdPuzzle, Padlet, Wakelet, Nearpod, and many more. - Create a positive and welcoming library learning environment by:
- Hosting visiting author programs, summer reading contests, book fairs, and read-a-thons.
- Refreshing and reorganizing the collection, layout, signage, and furniture to better utilize materials and space
including the creation of browsing bins and displays for high interest topics. - Develop a culturally responsive collection that meets curricular and personal needs of patrons.
- Implement research experiences via collaboration with grade levels or individual teachers.
- Supervise daily library activities performed by library assistant and volunteers (students & parents).
- Provide technology leadership within school and department & hold biweekly meetings with building IT staff.
- Evaluate, promote, and use technology to support teaching and learning where students in grades 2-5 are
1:1 on Chromebooks and grades K & 1 use iPads. - Maintained school website using the Finalsite & SharpSchool platforms- managed two website migrations
- Connect with and support families in the school community by attending, participating, and presenting at
school functions such as curriculum night, open house, and PTO meetings/events (fundraisers & socials). - Readily participate in other professional duties such as presenting at curriculum night and PTO meetings, attending and assisting with PTO events, and attending open house.
- Collaborate with children and teen public librarians on summer reading, author visits, and outreach programs
in school library such as visits to all kindergarten classrooms and lunch-time book clubs. - Wrote and awarded grants to purchase audiobooks, STEAM/coding equipment, & Grace Lin author visit.
Support school/district staff in grant writing and brainstorming grant ideas. - Serve on school/district committees such as: Library Automation (evaluate and select new automation
software), Mentor Texts ELA/Social Studies Committee (generate lists of mentor texts for curriculum), Library
Department Curriculum Writing and Review, Library Policy Manual Writing, and Technology Review - Manage an annual library budget ranging from $6,800-$12,000 to include book and subscription acquisitions.
- Triage teacher/student technology support requests on Windows, Chrome OS, and iOS devices.
Library Media Specialist Aug. 2007-June 2008
Har-Bur Middle School & Lewis S. Mills High School, Burlington, CT
- Collaborated with classroom and technology teachers in planning, implementing, and assessing information
literacy instruction via a grade level research project in grades 5-8. Provided instruction on MLA formatting
for research essays, in-text citations, and works cited pages (bibliography).
- Assessed, developed, and weeded collection to meet the curriculum and personal needs of students and staff for library serving grades 5-12.
- Promoted reading, technology, and information literacy through daily 5th grade library instruction.
- Served on district library policy manual and information literacy curriculum writing committees.
- Provided in-service technology training for school staff.
- Adviser for Har-Bur Middle School yearbook.