Education
- Master of Library and Information Science (2006)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL. - Bachelor of Arts, Honors: Egyptian Archaeology (2002)
The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Experience
Head Librarian
Al Raja School, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain 2012--present
Library and Information Literacy Instruction
- Provide weekly English-language library lessons for classes in pre-K through grade 2, bi-weekly lessons for grades 3 and 4
- Provide book-talks, library, research, and information-literacy lessons for all levels through grade 12
- Provide staff-development training in using library and web resources
Curriculum Support
- Maintain consistent communication with academic departments about curricular plans and needs, provide supplemental resources to English, Science, Math, History and Economics departments
- Collaborate with teachers to tailor lesson plans and library materials to student needs
Library Management
- Coordinate English and Arabic- language staff-development, book displays, school-wide reading promotion, and curriculum support.
- Benchmark pre-K through grade 12 school library to AASL best-practices
- Draft grade-specific student achievement goals and curriculum for library
- Manage a full-time library assistant and all volunteers
- Coordinate library budgets for a Pre-K through grade 12 school library with dual Arabic and English language collections.
- Coordinate library fundraisers
Collection Development and Management
- Draft and implement long-term collection development plan for both English and Arabic library materials
- Purchasing for and comprehensive weeding of English-language collections
- Original and copy cataloging: Creating MARC records for both new and existing library materials, completing transition to the computerized system (Follett ILS)
Youth Services Librarian
Villa Park Public Library, Villa Park, IL 2008—2011
Plan and execute programming, including:
- Storytimes for babies; infant-5 years; all ages; family storytimes with craft projects
- After-school program for grades 3—5
- Programs, library tours, and bibliographic instruction for visiting school groups and pre-school groups
Collection Development, incuding:
Provide reference and reader's advisory services for patrons of all ages
Volunteer Coordinator, Youth Services Department (2010)
Managed all performer scheduling and planning, Youth Services Department (2009)
Organize, plan, and assemble book and curio displays in Youth Services Department
K-12 Substitute Teacher
Queen Bee Schools, District 16, Glendale Heights, IL 2007—2008
Performed all duties of teacher in classrooms when teacher was absent
Youth Services Librarian, School Outreach Coordinator for Grades 3-5
Glenside Public Library District, Glendale Heights, IL 2006—2007
Outreach Coordinator for 3rd, 4th and 5th grades
- Visit local schools to deliver Author-talks, Book-talks and storytelling
- Provide teacher book bags ofage- and subject- specific materials for classroom use
- Collaborate with local school librarians, teachers for curriculum enrichment
- Planning and leading a variety of after-school library programs for grades 1—5
Plan and lead a variety of after-school library programs for grades 1-5
Manage Juvenile Paperback collection weeding and acquisitions
Provide reference and reader’s advisory services for YS patrons
Researcher
American Council of Learned Societies, Urbana, IL 2004
Contributed information for a report on the present state of cyber-infrastructure in the humanities.
Freelance Researcher
2003—2004
Primary Literacy Tutor
Fiske School and University of Chicago Neighborhood Schools Program, Chicago, IL 2000—2002
- Worked one-on-one with socially disadvantaged children ages 5-9
- Adapted instruction to deal with a range of behavioral and learning disabilities
- Designed personalized literacy curricula and activities
- Assisted full-time teacher with classroom duties
- Presented original primary literacy initiatives at May 2002 round table on "Initiatives in Improving Education in Chicago"
Skills
- Research: Extensive practical knowledge of print and on-line systems of organization, including digital libraries, databases (command-line as well as graphic interfaces), rare, archival and museum materials, familiarity with OCLC
- Cataloging: Coursework and work experience with AACR2-standard original and copy cataloging in MARC
- IT: Proficiency with Windows, OSX, Linux; Microsoft Office (including Excel, Publisher, Power Point, Word, etc.), Open Office, Print Shop, software and hardware installation, networking basics, HTML basics, website creation, Word Press
- Languages: Fluent French, Mid Egyptian Hieroglyphs, some Spanish, currently studying Arabic (Gulf)
Memberships
- ALA Member (2004—present)
- AASL: American Association of School Librarians (2012--present)
- ALSC: Association for Library Service to Children (2004--present)
- EMIERT: Ethnic and Multicultural Relations Round Table (2012--present)
- IRRT: International Relations Round Table (2004--present)
- Prairie State Story League (2011-present)
Community Service
Lombard Mennonite Church (2010, 2011-2012)
- Sunday School Teacher for ages 2 & 3, K-gr. 1
- Hospitality Committee Member
Islamic Foundation School Annual Literacy Lock-in (2011)
- Volunteer Treasure Island reader for grades 8-12
Literacy Volunteers of DuPage (2007-2008)
- Tutoring adult English language learners in English language and literacy
Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School Library Volunteer (2005)
- Cataloging, shelving, inventory and weeding
- Assisted with lesson and check-out for fourth, fifth grade classes
University of Chicago Library Society (2003)
- 2003 Brooker Prize for Undergraduate Book Collecting Selection Committee Member
Chicago Tribune Annual Printer’s Row Book Fair (2003)
- Panel Member: panel discussion on book collecting (2003)
