The New Jersey Association of School Librarians, the professional organization for school librarians in the state of New Jersey, is pleased to announce that Jean Stock, Library Media Specialist at Larchmont Elementary School in Mt. Laurel, has been selected to participate in the American Library Association’s 2014 class of Emerging Leaders.
The ALA Emerging Leaders program is designed to enable talented new library professionals to bring their talent, energy and new ideas and approaches to the library community. The 2014 class of Emerging Leaders consists of just 56 people from across the United States. The program is designed to prepare participants for professional leadership by giving them an opportunity to collaborate at the ALA Midwinter Meeting, transition to an online learning community, and prepare a group project to present at the ALA Annual Conference in June. Stock will join four other librarians from across the US to work on a project to be used by school librarians nationwide that will focus on the elements of effective school library programs and school librarian evaluation.
Jean Stock is in her second year as the Library Media Specialist at Larchmont Elementary School. Previously, Stock was a part-time library assistant at Tabernacle Elementary, when she was inspired to become a school librarian. Stock went back to school and earned her master of information and library science with a specialization in school library media from Rutgers University in May of 2012. Stock is married with two children and lives in Tabernacle.
“The Emerging Leaders program is an example of the collaborative spirit that is an essential part of being a school librarian. I am honored to be a participant and hope to facilitate media specialists across the US in becoming advocates for their indispensable roles in the school community,” Stock said.
Ms. Stock also serves on the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey Association of School Librarians. NJASL advocates high standards for librarianship and library media programs in the public, private, and parochial schools in New Jersey to ensure that students and staff become effective users of information.