'NYT' Singles Out Three Outstanding Media Specialists, YA Librarian

By Rocco Staino -- School Library Journal, 12/10/2008 7:21:00 PM

A media specialist in Harlem who mA media specialist in Harlem who makes his small library feels like the center of the school; a librarian from Michigan who knows the true meaning of collaboration; and a tech wiz from Alabama are among 10 winners of this year’s I Love My Librarian Award.

Sponsored by the New York Times, the American Library Association (ALA), and the Carnegie Corporation, this year marked the first time that school librarians were eligible for the award—and they managed to walk away with three.

Paul McIntosh, a media specialist at Harlem’s Wadleigh Secondary School for the Performing and Visual Arts, was singled out for making his small room feel like the “center of the universe," say those who nominated him.

With a measly $4,000 book budget for his 700 students, McIntosh still managed to get kids exciting about reading—by immersing them in books and poetry and inviting a slew of interesting guest speakers, from politicians and doctors to celebrities, such as American Idol contestant Ruben Studdard. Winning the award “was an affirmation of the community where I live and work,” McIntosh told SLJ.

It’s been said that Margaret “Gigi” Lincoln, a media specialist at Lakeview High School in Battle Creek, MI, has an “immeasurable impact on students and the learning process.” How does she do it? By actively collaborating with her teaching colleagues and bringing exciting programs—not only to her school—but to the community at large. Students, for example, participated in the Stand Up! Speak Out! Lend A Hand! program, which involved a series of videoconferences with Holocaust survivor Gerda Weissman Klein.

At the awards ceremony in New York on December 9, Lincoln said, “This is a wonderful occasion not only for individual accomplishment but for a celebration of all library media specialists’ collaborative relationships and their commitment to the school library media program.”

Jennifer Lankford Dempsey, the librarian at Wrights Mill Road Elementary School in Auburn, AL, was the driving force behind the transformation of her school into a 21st century learning community. Take her innovative program Tech-Know Expo, which invited students to present an area of technology that they felt they were “experts” in. “The Expo empowered the students to become the teachers and to interact with interested participants of all ages,” say those who nominated her. Dempsey says she feels “blessed to be part of a school community that is so supportive and enthusiastic for the library media program.”

The children of Alameda County Library, Juvenile Hall in San Leandro, CA, are fortunate to have Amy Cheney in their library—someone who was recognized for literally inspiring thousands of detained youth to read. Her program gives those—some of whom have never read a book—a truly positive experience with literature.

Cheney arrived at the facility five years ago to help run the Alameda County Public Library’s Write to Read literacy program and also coordinates with the probation department, schools, and visiting authors. Nikki Giovanni and Ishmael Beah (who showed students his gunshot wounds) are just some of the many authors who have visited the facility.

“Amy has almost single-handedly transformed this potentially dismal environment in to a halcyon of literacy,” say those who nominated her.

Winners were selected by six judges who chose from 3,200 nominations across the country. Annalisa Crews, a media specialist at Homewood High School in Alabama was selected as a judge after completing the ALA Emerging Leaders Program.  “Reading the applications was much more inspiring than I could have imagined,” she says of the experience.

The awards were presented in New York City at the Times Center with Janet L. Robinson, President and CEO of the New York Times, Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation, and ALA President Jim Retting attending. Each winner receives a $5,000 cash award and a plaque.