AASL 2012 Elections

Director-Elect Region 5

Michelle McBenge Wilson

Current Position:

School Librarian since 2004, Jefferson County Board of Education, Birmingham, Alabama

Previous Positions:

School Librarian, North Highland Elementary, 2007-present

School Librarian, Pleasant Grove Elementary, 2004-2007

5th Grade Teacher, Pleasant Grove Elementary, 2002-2004

Degrees and Certificates:

National Board Teacher Certification in Library Media, 2009; University of Alabama, MLIS, 2005; University of Mobile, B.S. in Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education with a Spanish minor, 2002

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

Alabama School Library Association, President, 2010-2011

Alabama School Library Association, President-Elect, 2008-2010

Honors and Awards (library and non-library):

Jefferson County's Elementary School Library Program of the Year, 2010; North Highland Elementary Teacher of the Year, 2009

Major Accomplishments:

During my tenure as officer in the Alabama School Library Association, I coordinated four conferences that afforded quality professional development for hundreds of my colleagues around the state. I have also presented various webinars through our state department on topics such as the use of QR codes in school libraries, the use of social media for professional learning, and designing local Big Reads. In 2010 I was selected as part of a team charged with tailoring Educate Alabama (our state's new professional evaluation framework and standards) for the specific needs of school librarians. Serving my colleagues is the heart of my desire to hold the position of Director Elect of Region V.

Publications:

"Boom Town or Bust? A Wild West Adventure in Collaborative Planning and Coteaching," Knowledge Quest, Volume 40, Issue 4, 2012

Links for further information:

http://www.libraryvision.blogspot.com

http://www.knowingbooks.blogspot.com

Statement of Professional Concerns:

Many school libraries, and the librarians who live within them, are coming under fire across our region and nation in general. Despite our best efforts to preserve the vibrancy and integrity of our programs under incredible economic distress, we remain targets for misappropriation. Though school librarians are well aware of our greater purpose in our learning communities, far too often our spaces, talents, and training are squandered as holding tanks to provide teacher prep time or more blocks/study periods within the school day. Other earned school librarian units are spread over multiple schools used to provide additional administrative support. This is alarming for all the students we serve, but it is my belief that through strategic advocacy and strong core programs, school librarians can and will rightly take our place as vitally essential leaders and experts within the education field as a whole.

Member of ALA since:

2009