Leadership
Students understand the role of teacher librarian in staff development and professional development.
Throughout my career as an educator, professional development has been essential to my growth, helping me become a better teacher and learn new, effective strategies while networking with other educators. Before transitioning to my current role as a Teacher Librarian, I taught high school English for six years and was actively involved as a Teacher Consultant for the San José Area Writing Project (SJAWP). Leading workshops and participating in the Invitational Summer Institute (ISI) program significantly shaped my teaching practices, enabling me to build a robust toolkit focused on social-emotional learning (SEL), project-based learning (PBL), culturally responsive teaching (CRT), and universal design for learning (UDL).
Bringing this knowledge with me, I committed to seizing opportunities for professional development and joining organizations dedicated to enhancing best practices in school librarianship. While collaborating on a district-wide library initiative with Amanda Turkie, County Librarian for Santa Clara County, I was invited to present at Library Camp in August 2024. There, I shared effective programming ideas and resources for school librarians. This led to the creation of a "passive" programming toolkit, which I first showcased at a professional development event for Library Media Assistants (LMAs) and Teacher Librarians at Santa Clara Unified School District. Expanding this toolkit has been a rewarding experience, as it has strengthened my ability to support school librarians with accessible programming ideas. I look forward to presenting my work at the California School Library Association (CSLA) Conference in February 2025, continuing my goal of providing open access to resources for school librarians.
In addition to presenting at professional development events, I have been accepted to Stanford University’s National Board Resource Center support program for National Board candidates. This unique two-year online program offers resources and professional development for candidates completing the four components required for National Board Certification. Being the only candidate in this Bay Area support group pursuing National Board Certification for Library Media, I am honored to deepen my understanding of effective school librarianship guided by the Five Core Propositions:
1.) Teachers are committed to students and their learning.
2.) Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students.
3.) Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning.
4.) Teachers think systematically about their practice and learn from experience.
5.) Teachers are members of learning communities.
Currently, I am working on Components 1 and 2 and attending weekly information sessions and biweekly workshops with my cohort. Being part of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) facilitation groups have granted me access to valuable workshops and resources that have expanded my knowledge and practices. I've participated in sessions on Artificial Intelligence literacy, Place-Based Learning, Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, and improving students' literary analysis skills. My goal is to attend as many webinars as possible to continue acquiring knowledge and tools that will enhance my teaching practices and position me at the forefront of innovative library programming and services.
Professional Development (PD)
Explanation of Evidence
Evidence #1
Presentation at Library Camp Hosted by Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE)
Inspired by the work of school librarians like Professor Kelsey Bogan, Jennifer Zimny, Melissa Corey, and Katrina Deliramich, I was invited by Melissa Lehman, the former District Librarian TOSA of Santa Clara Unified, to a professional development event in May 2024. At this event, Melissa shared an incredible resource that Jennifer Zimny had created for her CSLA presentation on passive programming. This resource sparked my interest in exploring additional activities, workshops, and ideas, which ultimately led to the first workshop I presented at Library Camp. Offering a free toolkit of program ideas for educators has motivated me to further expand this resource.
Evidence #3
Stanford National Board Resource Center (NBRC) Candidate Support Group — Library Media
Every other week, I meet with my Stanford NBRC cohort and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) facilitation group to work on my portfolio for National Board Certification. For Component 2, I will be collaborating with Kylee Gonzalez, a Sociology teacher at Silver Creek High School, to develop project-based lessons and workshops on conducting Community Ethnographies for her students. This collaboration will allow me to integrate the twelve Library Media Standards into my work for certification.
Evidence #2
PD Presentation for TL and LMA Team at Santa Clara Unified School District (SCUSD)
The incredible help and support that my mentor, Amanda Turkie, has provided in facilitating the exchange of ideas and resources with other librarians within her network has been essential to my development and growth as a Teacher Librarian. I was invited to present my session on interactive programming at a SCUSD district-wide PD for Teacher Librarians on October 4, 2024. During this presentation, I shared two free toolkits that contained the materials and resources needed for TLs and LMAs to recreate the interactive library programming, displays, and workshops I've created to engage student participation and collaboration.
Evidence #4
Innovation Session Presentation at the 2025 California School Library Association (CSLA) Conference
The interactive programming toolkit I’ve developed includes DIY, budget-friendly displays, creativity stations, games, activities, and mini-workshops focused on poetry and art creation. Topics and themes range from environmentalism and climate change to cultural heritage and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion through engaging book displays. With this toolkit, my goal is to reach more school librarians and inspire them to incorporate interactive programming into their libraries.
Artifacts and Evidence
My goals of increasing student engagement with library resources and fostering a sense of community led me to create an interactive programming toolkit using Canva. This toolkit equips school librarians with activities to transform library spaces into dynamic informational and community-centered hubs. It includes stations, games, activities, and workshops designed to promote student interaction, learning, and discovery. Since implementing these interactive programs at my two school sites, we’ve observed a 35% increase in circulation and a 42% rise in student visits. Data supporting this impact was gathered through sign-in sheets during open periods (1st and 7th), student surveys, and circulation and patron statistics from Follett Destiny reports. I initially presented this toolkit at a PD event in SCUSD and was encouraged to submit a proposal for the 2025 CSLA Conference, which has now been accepted!
Artifact for Evidence #2:
Evidence #5: Site Staff Development
Over the summer, both principals at Silver Creek High School and William C. Overfelt High School approached me to lead a professional development session at the start of the school year on the benefits of teaching students how to navigate and use Information Retrieval Systems (IRS). When I began my role as a Teacher Librarian for ESUHSD, I conducted a school-wide survey to gauge students’ confidence and experiences with IRS. The results showed that 78% of participants had never been taught how to use IRS, and 47% of 11th-grade students reported never using academic databases.
Having collaborated extensively with English and Social Sciences teachers over the past year to teach students how to use academic databases, our library catalog system (Destiny Discover), and Google Search, I developed a short presentation. My goal was to share insights from this experience and underscore the importance of IRS skills, which support student learning, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
Evidence #6: District PD for TL Team
A growing concern among educators and administrators in my district is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in education. While ESUHSD currently has no district-wide policy on AI, I felt it was important to address this topic with my Teacher Librarian Team and create a professional development workshop on teaching AI to students, emphasizing responsible and effective use. In our first PD session of the year, I presented practical applications of AI, discussed current and potential challenges of AI in education, and explored ways to use AI to enhance student support and learning. To make the session interactive, I included an activity where each participant researched AI tools relevant to school librarianship and provided justifications for incorporating these tools to enhance student learning.
Following the presentation, I shared my work with our new Director of Instructional Services, Kyle Kleckner, who has since invited me to expand the presentation for our next district-wide PD in January.