About the Librarian Who Owns and Monitors This Website...
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Professional Credentials
I graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Master's Degree in Library Science and Teacher Certification. In 2006, I achieved National Board Certification in Library Media, which I renewed in 2016. I am an active member of the Wyoming Library Association (WLA) and the School Library Interest Group (SLIG) of WLA, including serving as past-chair. In Wyoming, I am also a member of the Cody Reading Council and the Wyoming State Literacy Association.
I am also active in my American Association of School Librarians (AASL) membership. I am currently the AASL President-Elect, which means that next year I will be President of the only national organization for professional school librarians. I have previously served on several committees for AASL, including the Board of Directors.
I am also active in my American Association of School Librarians (AASL) membership. I am currently the AASL President-Elect, which means that next year I will be President of the only national organization for professional school librarians. I have previously served on several committees for AASL, including the Board of Directors.
I present sessions regularly at the Wyoming Library Association Conferences, and I am a member of the planning committee for Information Power, a summer conference for school librarians in Wyoming (at which I also present). I have also presented two sessions at AASL conferences: CCSS My BFF: One Librarian's Journey in Advocacy with the Common Core (2013) and Welcome to the (De) Construction Zone: Digging into Standards to Pave the Way for Learning (2015). I have also lead a series of webinars about the 2018 National Library Standards, viewable on the Wyoming State Library's YouTube channel.
Other Work Information
I have been a school librarian since 2002, but before that I worked at university libraries for 7 years. I worked at my college library, and I even worked at the public library in town while I went to High School! As a little girl I used to organize my books just like a library. I guess I was always supposed to do this!
I haven't always been a librarian, though. In college, I also taught Chinese practice classes. I studied Chinese for three and a half years. During the summer of 1994, I got a chance to go to China to teach English to middle school teachers in Yichang, which is a big city on the Yangtze River. It was one of my favorite jobs! Another favorite job was my first one (not counting babysitting). When I was 13, I managed an ice cream parlor owned by my family!
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On a more personal note...
Although a lot of my life seems to be about my jobs and career, I also have interests outside of work. I am the mother of a wonderful 7 year old little boy, and I call myself mommy to three dogs: Achilles, Nestle, and Snickerdroodle. I like to hike, camp, watch movies, play games, and (big surprise!) read. My favorite genre is fantasy. I am also a pseudo-professional storyteller.