Chris Harris

Christopher Harris is the Coordinator of the School Library System of Genesee Valley BOCES serving the school libraries of 22 small, rural districts in Western NY. In addition to his blogging at Infomancy, he blogs and writes for School Library Journal. Christopher is an avid gamer as well as a dedicated reader. He lives with his wife, an elementary librarian, in Le Roy, NY.

Allison Zmuda

Allison Zmuda began her work in education as a public high school social studies teacher in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. Zmuda's focus is to help every educator create a competent classroom—a learning environment where all participants believe it is possible for them to be successful—in which what teachers and students are expected to know and be able to do is challenging, feasible, and worthy of the attempt. Her first book, The Competent Classroom, launched her work as a national education consultant. Her second book, High Stakes High School: A Guide for the Perplexed Parents, welcomes parents into the conversation about standards, assessment, and high-stakes testing.

A new area of focus for Zmuda is her work with Library Media specialists and leaders in the field to reestablish the significance of the library as central to the mission of 21st century schools. This is the subject of two articles she has written for School Library Media Activities Monthly (September 2006, September 2007) as well as a new book project under development with Vi Harada due out in late Spring 2008. Zmuda works with the Association for the Supervision and Curriculum Development as a Faculty member in the Understanding by Design cadre, with Education Connection in Litchfield, Connecticut as a staff consultant, and independently through her own consulting firm The Competent Classroom, LLC. She has presented at workshops and conferences across the United States as well as in Canada, Japan, and Russia.

Sara Kelly Johns

AASL President Sara Johns has been the 6-12 library media specialist at Lake Placid Middle/High School since 1999 (supervising a K-5 elementary building for the first two years) and taught at Beekmantown (NY) Middle/Senior High School before that.  Since 1990, she has been an adjunct professor for the Library Research Methods through Technology course at SUNY Plattsburgh and won the Excellence in Teaching Award for Adjuncts as well as the sixth annual Award for Excellence in Library Service from the North Country Reference and Research Resources Council.  Her professional contributions include being a member of the writing team for the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Library Media Committee, Chair of the Educational Leadership for the School Library Media Section of the New York Library Association, Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Saranac Lake Free Library, member of the Regents Advisory Council on Libraries and an associate editor of Knowledge Quest, the journal of AASL.

Meredith Farkas

Meredith G. Farkas is the Distance Learning Librarian at Norwich University in Northfield, VT. She is the author of the book, Social Software in Libraries: Building Collaboration, Communication and Community Online (Information Today, 2007) and writes the monthly column "Technology in Practice" for American Libraries. Meredith also is the author of the blog, "Information Wants to Be Free" and is the creator of "Library Success: A Best Practices" Wiki. In March 2006, she was named a Mover and Shaker by Library Journal for her innovative use of technology to benefit the profession.

Charles Fadel

Charles Fadel is Global Lead for Education at Cisco Systems, and the Cisco board member of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills where he co-chairs its Standards, Assessments and Professional Development committee. He served on the advisory board of AIMS Multimedia (Discovery Channel).

Charles has responsibility for the stewardship of the Education vertical (Schools, and Higher Education).  He has engaged directly, or via proxies, with education ministries/boards, and has transacted business in more than 35 countries. He has been quoted numerous times or authored articles in publications such as Technology & Learning, Education Week, University Business, and many others.  Charles has expertise in video technology, and has been awarded five patents. He holds a BSEE and an MBA.  He has autodidactically learned cognitive sciences disciplines (evolutionary psychology, comparative linguistics), as well as classical history, and bio- and nano-technology.

Brian Kenney

Brian Kenney is the editor-in-chief of School Library Journal.  He enrolled in library school three weeks after graduation from VassarCollege (with, yes, a degree in English) and spent the next two decades working in New York area libraries. Before joining SLJ he was the Technology Editor and Executive Editor of Library Journal. He is also a doctoral candidate in information science at the University of North Texas. A native of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Brian spends most of his free time on Cape Cod.

Maureen Ambrosino

Maureen Ambrosino is currently the Youth Services Consultant for the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System.  She has worked in libraries from New York to Texas, with babies, preschoolers, teens, and adults.  Her favorite teen authors are Rick Riordan and T.A. Barron.

Barbara Andrews

In December, 2004, I established Andrews Consulting to provide comprehensive programming, training, and library automation services to the library community.  Since that time I have presented hundreds of programs in the areas of software applications, Internet searching, computer operating systems, troubleshooting, online databases, and new technology. Programs have been presented for librarians at schools and public libraries, regional library systems, and for the general public at local libraries.

Susan C. Babb

Vickie Beene-Beavers

Since April 2005, Vickie Beene-Beavers has been providing workshop and consulting services to members as the Assistant Administrator for Youth Services for the Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Library System (SEMLS). Prior to coming to SEMLS, Vickie was a Young Adult Librarian and a former children's and assistant branch manager with the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System. While there, Mrs. Beene-Beavers' financial literacy program, Invest Wisely...READ! received recognition by VOYA as a MVP award nominee in 2003. Vickie 's "Teen Investment Week" program was also featured in More Teen Programs That Work edited by Rosemary Honnold (Neal-Schuman, 2005.) Vickie has a Masters of Library and Information Science from Clark Atlanta University and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Michigan.

Jennifer Brown

Jennifer Brown is the Library Information Specialist at The Governor’s Academy and has held this position for two years.  Prior to this she worked as the Reference Librarian at The Governor’s Academy for five years.  Jennifer has worked in Youth Services at both the Stoneham and Amesbury Public Libraries.
                                                                                    

Susan Chase

Susan Chase has spent ten years at the Carl A. Pescosolido Library at The Governor’s Academy, eight as the Library Information Specialist and two as the Director. Previous to that she was the librarian at the Rupert A. Nock Middle School in Newburyport for 10 years. 
     

Sara Ciaburri

Sara Ciaburri is an Instructional Librarian at the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library at Phillips Academy in Andover, MA.  She is a recent graduate of the School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College.  She is the subject liaison to the Art, Music, Theatre and Dance departments and manages the library Facebook account and is the editor of the newsletter blog.

Connie Champlin

Connie Champlin is an independent library and instructional technology consultant. Her work in education covers a variety of areas: classroom teacher, school library media specialist, district administrator, library consultant, staff development coordinator, and author. Connie is the author of Storytelling with Puppets, ALA, and has worked cooperatively with Dr. David Loertscher to write Sharing the Evidence, Raise a Reader, Indiana Learns and Reinventing Indiana’s School Library Media Programs in an Age of Technology and with Kathy Lowe to write Massachusetts Power. Connie has presented workshops across the United States, as well as in the Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand.

Valerie Diggs

Valerie Diggs has been a member of the the MSLA Executive Boardfor 4 years as co-chair of the Standards Committee. She also served for four consecutive years on the Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System’s (NMRLS) Executive Board, the last two of those years as treasurer. Serving on the board of a multi-type regional library system gave her the opportunity to learn and grow as a school library teacher while simultaneously beginning to understand and observe the world of other library types: public, academic and special.  In addition to her work with MSLA, she is also a doctoral candidate at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell in the Leadership in Schooling Program.  In support of the future of our profession, she also teaches at Simmons College in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science. Professionally, she is the director of libraries for the Chelmsford Public School District, a district comprised of one high school, two middle schools, and five elementary schools, with a student population of approximately 6,500.

Patsy Divver

I have been in the Millis Middle/High School library for the past six years, with an additional five years in the elementary school library. Over these years, I’ve enjoyed a strong working relationship with the Millis Public Library, and have coordinated two book groups, a storytelling group, and reference workshops. Within the school, I serve on the Curriculum and Assessment Committee, the Technology Committee and the School Library Advisory Committee. Currently, I am co-editor (with Paula Byrne) of the MSLA newsletter, “The Forum”, and serve on the Executive Board in this capacity. I am also a member of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, as well as the Nobscot Reading Council and the Foundation for Children’s books. In developing a school library program, my focus is to provide the knowledge and resources for students to become information-literate lifelong learners. This can best be achieved through a cooperative and collaborative effort of administration, faculty and the public library.

Susan Hargrave

Susan Hargrave is an Instructional Technology Specialist at the Massachusetts Department of Education. In her nine years with the Department, Susan has developed technology-related publications and dissemination materials, including annual reports on technology in Massachusetts schools, a multimedia technology toolkit, and a guide to assistive technology. Susan also coordinates the Department’s assistive technology initiatives and serves as the NIMAS Coordinator. Her previous experience includes twelve years of consulting in the educational publishing industry, where she developed professional development materials and curriculum resources. A former elementary school teacher, Susan holds an M.Ed. in Educational Media and Technology from Boston University and a C.A.S. in Technology in Education from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education.
 

Robert Kelly

Robert Kelly is an adjunct faculty at UMB with prior experience in teaching and designing courses for the Instructional Design Department. He is also a trainer/analyst for MassONE, an educational portal sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Education. He was a project coordinator for the Superintendents’ Academy; an online professional development program created at UMB and intended for K-12 school administrators. Prior to working at UMB, he was an educational television producer for TEAMS Distance Learning, a nationally recognized organization that pioneered the use of satellite television in public education. Working as a freelance videographer for ESPN highlighted his early career as a television producer, and as a director for the Orange County News Channel. His lifetime passion about examining the effects of technology on communication and education led him to graduate school to attain a master’s degree.

Pat Keogh

Graduate of the Center for the Study of Children’s Books, Simmons College. Weston Elementary School Librarian, retired, Instructor in Children’s Literature- Worcester State College and Framingham State College, Lecturer in Children’s Literature.  

Connie Louie

Connie Louie is the Instructional Technology Director at the Massachusetts Department of Education. She oversees all instructional technology programs in the state, which includes state and local technology planning, all technology grants programs, distance learning, assistive technology, and setting guidelines/standards for instructional technology. She also supervises MassONE (Massachusetts Online Network for Educators), the state’s instructional portal. Connie was a classroom teacher in Hong Kong and the states before she joined the Massachusetts Department of Education. She received her Masters degree in Media Specialist/Technology Instruction at Boston College, a Masters degree in History of Education at the University of Toronto, and a Bachelors degree in History at the University of Hong Kong.

Heidi McCann

Heidi McCann is a Reference and Instructional Services Librarian at Mt. Wachusett Community College Library in Gardner, Massachusetts. Before working at Mt. Wachusett, she worked at a number of libraries in Western Massachusetts including the University of Massachusetts Amherst DuBois Library, Amherst College's Frost Library, Holyoke Community College Library and the Jones Public Library. Heidi has also worked in many different capacities within libraries such as Serials Cataloger and Weekend Circulation Supervisor. She has an MSLS from Simmons College and is a May 2003 graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst School of Management, having earned a Masters of Business Administration.

Sharon Shaloo

Sharon Shaloo is the founding executive director of the Massachusetts Center for the Book, assuming her position in November of 1999.  She brings to the Center a background in teaching (English at the university level) and publishing as well as experience as a writing program director and community reading series coordinator.   She holds degrees from Rutgers and Indiana universities and has taught at the U of Kent in Canterbury, U Mass Lowell and Wheaton College (Norton, MA). She lives in Arlington with her husband and two children ages 18 and 12.

Bonnie Shapland

Bonnie Shapland has worked as a Library Media Specialist at all grade levels for the past 30 years and retired in 2004 as Library/Media Coordinator, Grades K-12 for the North Middlesex Regional School District.  She is currently a Reference and Instructional Services Librarian at Mt. Wachusett Community College Library in Gardner, MA.  Bonnie has served as a Director of the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System, served as President and Treasure of the Massachusetts School Library Media Association, served on the Massachusetts Department of Education’s committee to create certification standards for the Instructional Technology Specialists Certificate, served on the K-12 Advisory Council for the John Joseph Moakley Center for Technological Applications at Bridgewater State College, initiated and taught successful cross-curricular teaching units with classroom teachers and specialists, served on NEASC visitation teams, organized award winning author visits and conference calls and wrote and received local and national grants.

Sarah Sogigian

Sarah Sogigian is the Trainer/Consultant for Youth Services at the Metrowest Massachusetts Regional Library System.  She previously worked as the Young Adult Librarian and in other positions at the Shrewsbury Public Library in Shrewsbury, MA where she started working as a teenager.  Her favorite teen author is Anthony Horowitz.

Sue-Ellen Szymanski

I offer a diversity of thirty years of public library experience and management skills as a reference librarian, library director and supervisor of youth services. Also, as a long-time member of NERTCL and MLA and as a member, secretary of the Youth Services Section and liaison to MSLA, I seek to provide and empower youth services professionals with the tools and support needed to enhance their roles as leaders in literacy for kids and their families. I served on the Central Mass Regional Library System Interim Planning Committee and summer reading planning committees. My career achievements include building and sustaining partnerships with local school administrators and librarians, public safety personnel, the local youth center and Family Network agencies, as well as grant writing. My focus is to continue to communicate, collaborate and coordinate on library, education and literacy issues.

Randy Testa, Ed.D.

Randy Testa holds a master’s degree in Reading Education and a doctorate in Teaching, Curriculum, and Learning Environments, both from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Testa began his educational career teaching third grade. He is the former Director, Elementary Teacher Education, at Dartmouth College. Testa is co-editor of two literary anthologies (with Robert Coles) and author of two books on the Amish community of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He is the 2005 Recipient of the President’s Award from the Florida Council of Teachers of English, and the 2007 Recipient of the “Celebrate Literacy Award” from the Colorado Council of the International Reading Association. Testa is on the National Advisory Council of the Alliance for a Media Literate America (AMLA).

Elisabeth Tully

Elisabeth Tully has been the Director of the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library at Phillips Academy for six years.   She serves as the subject liaison to the English, Religion and Philosophy Departments and oversees collection development.  She is currently consulting with librarians and teachers at four schools in Karachi, Pakistan, and is teaching an online course to Andover alumni.  She serves on the Academic Committee on Technology, and is the coach of Andover’s Debate team.

ROOM DEMOS: VENDOR SPEAKERS

Alexandria/Big6 Turbo Tools

Stephen Kunzler is a trained Alexandria and Big6 Turbo tools presenter.  He has been involved with the Alexandria and Big6 for 8 years.  Stephen has an MBA from Utah State University.  He is in his eighth year with COMPanion Corp. and has overseen hundreds of software implementations successfully.

SirsiDynix

Kenneth Peterson is the Coordinator of Services to Libraries for the Boston Regional Library System. His position involves the promotion of the services of the Boston Public Library and Commonwealth of Massachusetts through the development of continuing education programs and automated network services for the Metro-Boston area. Ken’s latest projects include the launch of the first city-wide implementation of SchoolRooms and furthering the adoption of technology at the Boston Public Library.  He received his B.A. in Sociology from the University of New Hampshire and M.S. from Simmons College.

PROQUEST

Mike Chmelewski, K-12 Field Account Executive, began his career as a teacher. In 1989, he entered sales and management when he joined Clement Communications Publishing as Government Accounts Manager. After nine years with Clement, Mike began in educational sales with Infonautics. With the formation of bigchalk, he was established as the Virginia, Maryland, and Washington D.C. sales representative, eventually earning a promotion to eastern regional sales manager. Today, Mike represents ProQuest products in PA, NJ, RI, CT & MA schools. Mike earned his degree from West Chester University, Pennsylvania, and is still a West Chester resident today.

ABC-CLIO

Alice Yucht has been an educator for over 40 years, as a teacher, librarian, curriculum consultant, conference planner, professional development provider, writer, editor, life coach, and stand-up comic.  She's written two books for school librarians, and her articles on information literacy skills and survival strategies for K-12 educators have been published in professional journals such as Knowledge Quest, Library Media Connection, and Teacher-Librarian.  Her FLIP it!Ô framework for problem solving has been utilized as a working strategy in both educational and business settings.  An adjunct faculty member of Rutgers University (NJ) Graduate School of Communication Information and Library Studies, Professional Development Program, she teaches online courses on critical issues in school librarianship and information fluency.  She is also a consultant and chief resourcerer for the CyberSmart! Education Company, a national leader in the field of educational technology and online learning for K-12 educators.

Alice has mentored multitudes of fledgling teachers and frazzled school librarians in both formal educational settings and spontaneous moments of mutual desperation. She is also a frequent presence on LM_NET and several other educational cyber-forums. A popular speaker at professional conferences and staff development workshops throughout the U.S., Alice¹s pragmatic presentations are frequently cited for their mix of wit and wisdom about the realities of our professional lives and responsibilities. In 1996 she was honored with the coveted Carlin Award from the Rutgers University Professional Development Program, as "the instructor who most successfully employs humor to enlighten and educate."