ISTE Elections: Yes, I've Got My Running Shoes On!

Isn't this a face and cartoon you can trust to
represent you in the PK-12 for ISTE Board of Directors?

I want to thank my good friend, mentor, and Maryland buddy Ms. Brenda Anderson for nominating me for a position on the ISTE Board. At first, I didn't know the etiquette for revealing the person who nominated you - whether it was a secret kinda thing (as in don't blame them! LOL) but then slept on it and realized how silly! ....so Thank YOU dear amazing Brenda for not only believing in me but taking the time and effort to encourage me to step up and try and make a difference.

I also want to thank my good friend and mentor Joyce Valenza for supporting me in her award-winning recent Never Ending Search blog. She asked me to write up my goals and my vision for leadership within ISTE. I'm gonna repost that here:

I was amazed and honored to be nominated for the board of directors of ISTE. I truly believe it's time for a teacher librarian, library media specialist, or school librarian - or whatever we're calling ourselves this week - to step up in the PK-12 Schools Representative Position and represent our tribe and our schools.

Now more than ever, I passionately believe that we need to be seen as vital to our schools and the technology education of our most important customers - our kids. I also think that as a teacher librarian we “see the forest “ and not just the trees in our schools. Though I very much respect my subject area colleagues, as Media Specialists (and often times the Technology leader in our schools), I think we are in a great position to see how to advance technology integration, digital citizenship, and helping our students create a digital footprint they can be proud of.

Innovative professional change is very important to me while nurturing and maintaining our traditional librarian values. I believe we need to support the effective use of technology in education to better the learning experience of the teachers and students while building and maintaining our library collections. I don't think that technology is a replacement for books but is a vital enhancement.

I am also enthusiastic to bring in new members to the association and to foster those new members to contribute, participate, and join personal learning networks to create a more involved community of learners. Collaboration, innovation, approachable leadership, and building community bridges are central to my vision of leadership if I am elected to the board.

If you're reading this blog that means you're already committed to your own professional growth, and you're probably a change agent for your school and county, and I'm "preaching to the choir." For years I've been active with ISTE locally but meeting and working with Joyce Valenza and the geek squad has inspired me to step up and try and make some changes for us and for our profession - changes for the BEST!

Oh, and in the above paragraphs I realize there were WAY too many "I's" for my liking - But hey, it's not easy to write about one's vision of leadership without them...but if elected I promise that it will be about the we, us, and about the you. Thank you for your time and consideration! Cheers!

If you are a member of ISTE I really would appreciate your support....and though I am a teacher-librarian I am very appreciative and supportive of all my other subject area technology education colleges, related arts, and support staff! - If you teach in a PK-12 School - I would be honored to be your voice to ISTE and am very approachable for any concerns you have - you would have an eager advocate in me!
Here's where you can find out more information and can vote.
ISTE Board Elections March 11–April 12

Voting for the 2010-2011 ISTE Board of Directors will begin March 11 and end April 12, 2010.

~Gwyneth Jones