Media Studies in the Library

Mahoney Middle School
In the fall of 2017, I developed a week of drop-in media studies sessions for students on topics such as media codes and conventions, satire, comic book adaptations, and intertextuality. In addition, I have created a Media Literacy online guide and led a faculty meeting focused on media literacy in the classroom. In spring 2018 and fall 2018, I developed new drop-in sessions on topics such as writing about video games, the Hero's Journey, emoji poetry, and media archaeology.

Cultural Exchange

Mahoney Middle School, Fall 2017
With funding from World Connect, sixth grade students at Mahoney Middle School students have had the opportunity to correspond with Year 7 students in Samoa. With the help of a Peace Corps Volunteer in Samoa, students have exchanged cultural artifacts, letters, drawings, and videos.

Idea Lab

Mahoney Middle School
​Idea Lab is based on the Genius Hour or 20% Time model developed by tech companies like Google, which allows employees to work on projects of personal interest. Idea Lab at Mahoney allows students to learn about personal interests and work on an idea or passion project. Ideas can come from any domain, and participating students have worked on:

Library Website

Mahoney Middle School
In early 2016, the South Portland School Department libraries adopted LibGuides as a platform for all library websites. I created guides to support both class projects and engage student interests, such as: LGBTQ Education, Linguistic and Cultural Diversity, LGBT History, Comics and Graphic Novels, and Media Studies. My Star Wars guide was featured on the LibGuides Community Site and as a model guide on SpringShare's SpringyLib site. I collaborated with Casey Brough, librarian at South Portland High School, to create a "Fake News" guide, which received over 1,000 views in the first four days it was active.

Library Revitalization

MC School, 2014
The small library space which served nearly 500 students had been long neglected. I led the revitalization of the library space and program by:
  • Discarding out-of-date books and other items stored in the library with help from the library aide and other MC support staff.
  • Rearranging the library space to allow for better access and lighting.
  • Reorganizing books for ease of access.
  • Automating the library with Follett Destiny. (Although 5,390 items were cataloged by Follett, over 2,000 had to be cataloged manually.)
  • Implementing weekly library classes for pre-K to grade 5.
  • Collaborating with middle and high school teachers to integrate research and information literacy skills into class projects.

LGBTQ Inclusion Project

Melrose High School, 2013
In 2013, I developed proposal for the Melrose Education Foundation Innovation Grant to support LGBTQ curriculum inclusion. The project aimed to ​help teachers implement a more LGBTQ inclusive curriculum and allow LGBTQ students see themselves reflected in their learning and encourage respectful behavior, critical thinking and social justice. 

To meet this goals, the project:
  • Purchased LGBTQ professional development materials.
  • Purchased LGBTQ nonfiction resources to support curriculum.
  • Purchased other LGBTQ resources such as pamphlets and posters.
  • Invited Greater Boston PFLAG to speak to the freshman class.
  • Offered a half-day workshop for teachers and an additional session for department chairs on LGBTQ inclusion.

Get On The Bus 2012

Amnesty International Local Group 133, 2012
​Get On The Bus is an annual day of human rights education and activism that brings as many as 1,200 students and activists from throughout the northeast region to New York City. In 2012, I coordinated one of the featured cases on behalf of Papuan prisoner of conscience Filep Karma by:
  • Inviting guest speakers, Papuan human rights activist Octo Mote and cultural anthropologist Eben Kirksey.
  • Writing case materials for the information packet for participants.
  • Leading the delegation to met with officials at the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Indonesia to the United Nations.
After the event, I worked with Octo to translate and subtitle a video of the 2004 speech given by Karma which lead to his arrest and imprisonment.

Sili Primary School Library

Peace Corps Samoa, 2009-2010
The school had allocated a full-size classroom to their library and had large, sturdy shelves, but the collection was very small. I led the library project by:
  • Organizing and labeling books, with help from students and teachers.
  • Soliciting book donations, increasing collection by nearly 300%.
  • Creating library reference guides and posters, including the Dewey Decimal system in English and Samoan, fiction and non-fiction, understanding call numbers, and parts of a book.
  • Establishing regular library classes for Year 4 through 8.
  • Developing bilingual resource guides with lesson plans and tips for maintaining a school library program.
  • Leading a district-wide workshop for primary school teachers, coordinated by the school principal and the district school review officer.

Lotofaga Primary School Library

Peace Corps Samoa, 2008
School leaders and teachers expressed a interest in improving their library, which was a locked room housing some aging books.  Through a program under the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture (MESC), I arranged for library-teacher trainees to visit the school and help revitalize the library. After the visit from MESC, school leaders discovered four large boxes of books which had been forgotten in the store room. 

Another teacher, a group of students, and I came in over a holiday break to organize the library. By working together, we finished the large project in just a few days. By helping, the students learned all about books and how the library was organized. The students also gained a sense of community ownership of the new school library.