AASL 2012 Elections

President-Elect

Gail Dickinson

Current Position:

Associate Professor, 2004-, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia

Previous Positions:

Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, 2000 - 2004

Library Supervisor, Union-Endicott School District, Endicott, NY, 1987 - 1996

School Librarian, Cape Charles Public School, Cape Charles, Virginia, 1977-1981

Degrees and Certificates:

University of Virginia, PhD, Educational Administration, 2000

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, MSLS, 1987

Millersville State University, B.S in Education, 1977

ALA and/or ALA-APA Activities:

ALA Committee on Organization, member, 2010 - 2012

ALA, Representative to the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, 2003 -

ALA, Library Education Assembly, AASL Representative, 2002-2003

ALA Membership Committee, Membership Promotion Task Force, Division Liaison, 1997-1998

ALA Membership Committee, Membership Promotion Task Force, Division Liaison, 1992-1993

AASL, Research & Statistics, Chair,  2011 - 2012

AASL, Nominating Committee, member, 2010

AASL, L4L State Coordinators, member, 2009-2014

AASL, ELMSS, Chair, 2008-2009

AASL, Learning Standards Task Force, Co-Chair, 2006-2007

AASL Awards Committee, 2005-2006

AASL National School Library Program of the Year Committee, 2005-2006

AASL Bylaws & Organization Committee, member, 2004-2006

AASL AASL Vision Expansion Special Committee, 2002-2004

AASL, NCATE Guidelines Revision Task Force, Co-Chair, 2002-2003

AASL Leadership Forum Planning Committee, Chair, 2001-2003

AASL, Affiliate Assembly Chair, 1994-1995

AASL, Board of Directors, Affiliate Assembly Representative to the Board, 1994-1997

AASL, Membership Committee, 1992-1993, Chair

Offices held in the ALA-APA, state, & regional library associations, and other associations:

School Library Media Section/New York Library Association, President, 1995-1996

School Library Media Section/New York Library Association, AASL Representative, 1993-1995

Honors and Awards (library and non-library):

Old Dominion University Service Award, 2007

New York Library Association Dewey Fellow, 1994

Major Accomplishments:

I have two major accomplishments:  The first was facilitating the AASL Celebrate Conferences.  It was fun, sometimes a bit wild, but it seems to me looking back that it was the epitome of why we go to conferences.  We go to represent our state and our library, to step out and engage in conferences activities, to learn, to grow, and to create great memories.  The second accomplishment is the AASL Learning Standards for 21st Century Learners.  As a task force we worked hard and worked together, and the standards are better than what we thought they were.  I take great pride in seeing how they are implemented, and how their use is starting a new conversation for  how school librarians teach and assess to create effective users of ideas and information.

Publications:

Co-author, "The Access Gap:  Poverty and Characteristics of School Library Media Centers" The Library Quarterly, Volume 81, Number 2, 2011, P. 143-160

Author, "Tough Choices (column)", Knowledge Quest, Volume 35-36.

Author, Achieving National Board Certification for School Library Media Specialists; A Study Guide.  Chicago: ALA,  2006.   

Statement of Professional Concerns:

"A wild patience has taken me this far" -- Adrienne Rich

It’s not about libraries. It’s about learning. The challenge of our profession is to ensure that each child has what we want for all children; the thrill of walking into a strong school library where learning awaits, the confidence of knowing a skilled librarian is always there to feed that learning, and the unfettered access to tools for the using, producing, and sharing of the world of resources.

I have been a K-12 building level school librarian, a library supervisor, and am now engaged in preparing others for the profession. I have lived and worked in four states; Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York, and North Carolina. One constant in all of those jobs and places has been my commitment to AASL, both as an organization and as a community of members striving to redefine school librarianship for the 21st Century.

Member of ALA since:

1985