NJ Librarian Named State Teacher of the Year

Elspeth Corrigan Moore, a librarian at Memorial High School in West New York, NJ, recently became the fourth librarian in the nation to be named State Teacher of the Year, which puts her in the running for the National Teacher of the Year award.

Moore credits her success to hard work and flexibility. "I came in 27 years ago pushing books, and now I'm pushing the kids to use databases instead of the Web for research, too," she says. Moore's principal, Matthew Sinisi, wrote a letter supporting her selection.

Librarian Katherine Bassett, New Jersey's 2000 Teacher of the Year, says two Garden State librarians have been given this distinction because, in New Jersey, librarians are supported as part of the educational team (see September 2002, "A Measure of Respect ," pp. 56–58). "Our media association does a great job educating teachers and administrators about what we do," Bassett says.

John Quam, director of the 53-year-old national award program, says it's up to each state to decide whether it wants librarians to be eligible for the award. The other two media specialists named State Teacher of the Year have come from Rhode Island; and so far, no media specialist has been named National Teacher of the Year.

The Council of Chief State School Officers will announce the winner of the national award in March 2003, and President Bush will present the honor at a White House ceremony in late April.

Moore plans to take a six-month leave from her job, which the state traditionally awards its Teacher of the Year. During that time, she'll participate on educational panels, serve on a team that is revising the state's educational standards, and speak at various conferences and events across the state. "Elspeth's articulate and knows what education is all about," says Bassett. "She'll be great."