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This has been the single most difficult semester of graduate school. If I had to, though, I don’t think I could put my finger on exactly what has made it so hard. It has been difficult and it has been deeply pertinent. In just this semester my school has been entirely remote, then the hybrid model (students come on to campus 2 days a week and learn virtually 3 days a week), then a 2 week shift back to virtual learning because of a positive covid test (mine) and then a return to the hybrid model and a surprise announcement that we will be returning to 100% in-person learning at the end of March. Despite all of these transitions, what I have learned in this program has been invaluable. Last semester I took Search and the Information Landscape and learned about how useful databases can be. This semester, I introduced my students to the El Portal state library databases for their Genius Hour projects. I have really loved meeting with my mentor--it has been so nice to feel connected to someone who is in a similar position. I have loved attending office hours with special guests. I have struggled to keep up with discussions, but I feel like I am settling into a more sustainable rhythm. I do look forward to connecting more with each of you in the second half of the semester!

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In a word: SHARE. We all have varying levels of expertise and most likely something to share as we gain more knowledge and experience. We don't have to be experts to share what we've learned because, as Jennifer Gonzalez notes, if we've experienced a problem and can share how we solved it, that is potentially valuable. When I'm looking for guidance or mentorship, I don't want to just read general philosophy. Teachers probably don't either. As we attempt to establish relationships with teachers, sharing our work products and practical tips may be the conversation starter that leads to true collaboration. Also, as we consider our audience, sharing (in whatever form) makes us more reflective about our work and encourages personal growth as we open ourselves up to others' opinions.

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1. Student volunteers present endless possibilities.

The LMNET list of ideas for student volunteer tasks and our class discussion on library volunteers really opened my eyes this week.  There are so many creative ways to help students explore their passions while contributing to the library.  Volunteer clubs allow librarians to work with students directly, without having to rely on teachers’ willingness to collaborate.  Volunteers can be great ambassadors and advocates for the library as well.

2. MackinVIA is a fantastic free option for managing and curating digital resources from the open web and the library’s catalog.
MackinVIA has been a revelation for me.  Ever since building LibGuides for 530 and 515, I had wondered how to seamlessly include subscription database resources in my digital curation efforts.  I was glad to learn about Destiny Collections in 525, but knew that would only be helpful if I worked in a library that used Follett Destiny.  MackinVIA is free, untethered to any LMS, and can be used in public libraries as well as schools.  While I haven’t gotten the Deep Discovery Search to work yet (for conducting keyword searches in all databases at once), I have been able to add content from subscription databases to Groups and access it seamlessly thanks to MackinVIA’s single sign-on.

3. It is important to cultivate influence based on a clear understanding of your organization’s formal and informal power structures.

I was surprised at first to find discussions of power and influence in this class.  But in my field experience, I’ve seen how important these things are.  My FE librarian is an expert in this arena. She builds influence in many ways, such as plying teachers with food and free books; serving as an NJASL board member; and creating good publicity for the school and district whenever possible.  She uses her influence to negotiate great deals and funding for the library.

I learned yesterday how crucial it is to understand and operate within existing power structures--I unwittingly went over Ewa's head in communicating with administrators, and got nicely but firmly schooled.   I am glad to be thinking about these issues now, as I have never worked in a large bureaucratic institution before, and I’m sure there will be similarly hierarchical ways of doing things within the county public library system.

Edited to Add: Man, I'm feeling a little sheepish after reading all of your beautiful and profound reflections.  I was just trying to identify a few specific AHAs, but I also want to say how much I have appreciated this learning community.  It is such a privilege to study with all of you--your insights, feedback, and stories have enriched my learning this semester immeasurably.   Thank you!

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This semester has been flying by! So far, my biggest aha has been the importance of strategic planning and prioritization. We can't do everything at once, but if we look at our current situations, we can establish goals based on where we see the greatest need for improvement. Articulating these priorities will increase our effectiveness and help us focus on a few key projects at a time, rather than overwhelming ourselves by being pulled in all directions at once. The SMART goals have been another aha for me! I have had managers in the past who told me to set goals, so I would write a list of things I wanted to achieve, then promptly forget about it as soon as things got busy with day-to-day tasks. Sometimes I met some of my goals, but I don't think I ever met all of them. However, I love how SMART goals give you a roadmap to follow to help ensure success.

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My biggest takeaway from this semester so far is simply how very different each school library is. I find it both comforting and liberating to know that there is no perfect formula for running a school library because the needs and structure of each learning community is unique. What's most important is a librarian's attitude, the development of their professional toolkit, and their ability to assess the needs of their school and provide services accordingly (this includes making connections with faculty and admin). I've really enjoyed all the ideas and possibilities that I'm learning about from both the readings and everyone else's field experiences. Even if they're not applicable to my current school, I'm bookmarking them for potential future use. Over the course of the semester, I've really started itching to get my "own" library where I can truly take charge and implement the things we've been learning about. Back when I was trying to decide what kind of a career in education I wanted and was observing classes, a teacher told me that I would know that being a teacher was the right choice for me because I would feel a strong desire to run my own classroom. I think she must have been on to something because I definitely have that feeling towards the library.

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I appreciate that this course has brought together all of the major topics we’ve discussed in the program. It really feels like it’s the end of the program and we can take a deeper dive into the topics we’ve already been introduced to. My biggest aha this semester is that the school librarian has a variety of roles in the school community. While we are not administrators, we are still leaders in a different way. School librarians have the opportunity to create change through their collaborations with teachers. I think it’s so important to get teacher buy-in because teachers are often resistant to work with librarians. That said, a lot of a librarian’s work is forming connections with the community and introducing ideas slowly over time.

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Where to begin?? 575 has been very helpful in readdressing all the courses from this program, bringing the topics back, placing them into perspective, and elaborating upon them. From opening the course up with strategic planning in week 1, on the job relationships in week 3, to leadership and instruction in week 6. We’ve had these discussions before, but now they have become that much more meaningful. The weekly modules, the guest lecturers, and the class discussions, compounded by my field experience have really tied things together. Relationships are HUGE! Through our readings, I have seen differing opinions on who you focus your energies on. However, through my FE (and my professional past) I cannot see any greater power than that of relationships… and with EVERYONE. Dr Valenza always mentions bringing your chair to the table. Jennifer LaGarde told us to be brave and take risks. Nikki Robertson gave us tips about empowering voices. No matter who said it, there is always a common goal… the students. We have to create relationships in all departments, with all administration, in order to give everything we can to the learners. In the past two weeks my FE librarian has spoken at a parent program, created programming with teachers, worked with the principal, aided the custodians, empowered student organizations, held a retirement party, and prepared for a welcoming party! None of this would have happened, though, if she hadn’t taken the time and effort to connect with the staff. Her status in the school has been the culmination of years of continued efforts. Perhaps she makes it seem too easy, perhaps the district has a great sense of community. No matter what the reasoning is… it is something to aspire to… to create an environment where everyone feels not only welcome, but heard, seen and valued.

There are undeniably many other aspects of librarianship, such as curriculum and curation, but there has to be a starting point, and for me I think relationships are the key to building an informed, reading community.

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I was expecting this semester to drag (it’s my last one) but I can’t believe how quickly it’s gone! I once again find myself learning so many tips and tricks, new ways of looking at things, new apps to smash that I’m always a little amazed there’s even more out there to discover – now I just need to think of a way to curate my Post-its! I have appreciated the deep dive into AASL again; it’s given me some confidence that, even if I’m not a teacher-librarian, I am still making an impact on my community (hopefully a positive one). I’ve been more daring in reaching out to department heads to help them support curriculum – I spoke with our world languages department head yesterday and mentioned I’d like to get some books in the foreign languages we teach, and I think if it weren’t for distancing, she would have hugged me. She thought it was such a great idea, and she’s thinking of starting to add picture books for the lower level students and short story collections for the more advanced students. I felt good that I could offer that to her! I can’t wait until things get back to “normal” next year, both so I can have my space back, and so I can begin to implement more of the amazingness I’ve learned so far this semester.

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I can not believe we are at the halfway point, it has flown by! I have been really enjoying this class, and feel it has helped me be more confident in my Field Experience. I have had a maddening year so far personally, academically, and professionally so finding my balance amongst them has been a challenge,  but isn’t that all what life is about?

Each week I find myself noting a resource, article, discussion topic has positively  impacted me as a Librarian. I enjoy reading through the discussions, seeing the differing perspectives/ experiences, as well as learning from my peers through these experiences.

One of my biggest takeaways has been the importance of making connections but by doing so in a series of small steps that will lead to larger strides! Another aha has been inspecting  what it means to be a leader, and the varying scopes of what leadership opportunities look like. Another aha was the significance of conducting an environmental scan. I have been at this school for two years yet learned so much about the outside and school community by conducting one and assessing the needs they have.

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Last semester I took four classes...and it was SO HARD.  By the end of the semester I was burnt out.  It was a bad feeling to have because I questioned if I made the right decision pursuing this career.  Well, I guess I just needed a new semester of classes and some field experience to I know I did.  My biggest learning take-away this semester has been to embrace my PLN.  Prior to this semester, I did not see the use of a PLN.  However, over the course of this semester it has come in handy time and time again.  If we have an assignment and I am looking for resources, I make a Tweet and people are so quick to offer insight and resources.  This makes me proud that I work in a field where so many people want to help!  I also greatly enjoyed the week about radical change.  It opened my eyes to the importance of embracing change.  Finally, starting my field experience has given me the confidence I needed to start applying to jobs!  I was nervous to apply to jobs because I never applied anything I knew.  However, now after working with my FE librarian for even just a week I feel like I have so much to offer this field.  My knowledge of databases and search strategies has helped the librarian.  Even all the curating I have been doing on my Pearltrees since I started the semester has proven so useful!
-Kelsey Comerford

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The biggest thing for me so far has been the discovery of Jersey Clicks. It was really beneficial being able to access some of the databases that my school does not subscribe to. We have a limited amount of money to allocate to databases and Jersey Clicks was a great way for me to see what else is out there and have the discussion with my co-librarian if we want to refocus our meager database budget in a different direction.

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I have really enjoyed learning from and hearing stories from my classmates these past 8 weeks. This year has been very busy for me (personally, professionally, and academically), and I have at times struggled with finding the balance that would enable me to survive a semester intact (physically if not mentally). Hearing about different points-of-view and experiences from my classmates has helped give me some (fresh) perspective, and it's reassured me that although my current school library may not be experiencing the most promising or successful circumstances presently, the majority of school librarianship is impactful and appreciated. I did things a little backwards in becoming a library tech/para first and going to school for librarianship second, and I admit to developing some bad habits, so it's helped me more than I will admit to see what (I am doing wrong) could be doing better based on the ideas of my classmates and their first forays into practice. Thank you so much, Dr. V and classmates, for helping me become a better librarian for my students and for sharing your ideas and stories with me; logging on for class is a bright spot after a very long day during a very long year of in-person learning. Cheers!

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I have been really enjoying this class. What I find to be the most helpful is going through my coursework and the discussions as early in the week as possible so I can try and apply them to my work at my FE. My FE librarian is very open and helpful when it comes to asking questions and sort of integretiating her for information on topics we discuss that week in class. What I do realize so far half way through the semester is that it's something new every day when it comes to working in the school libraries. It is never the same thing one day after another. I also learned, in order to understand your school library it is truly important to understand the foundation of the school and/or its district itself! You want to know the community, numbers, curriculums, and even the learning environments of the school so you can use that information to your advantage when it comes to building your library's mission and vision. I found Assignment 1 to be an eye opening assignment when it came to learning more about my FE school and school library. There were still areas from the assignment I was not aware of about the school until I had to address them in my assignment. My FE librarian was a great source of information