Goals for my Career

When informing people of my goal to become a children's librarian, I have had a variety of responses; everything from "that's so cool!" to something along the lines of "how long do you think libraries will be around?".  While I agree that libraries are certainly having to change and adapt to the digital age, I believe that they will be around as long as they remain relevant.  It is this theory that lead me to library science, and encourages me to continue exploring ways in which the library can remain relevant to the communities of the present and the future.

As I mentioned, I would like to become a children's librarian.  I envision myself working in a public library, or perhaps in a school library once I obtain my media specialist certificate.  I have a background in Special Education and Elementary Education and hold a teaching certificate in Pennsylvania (I should have one in Michigan shortly, once I pass my licensing exams).  I enjoy working with children, and cannot wait to make reading and literature come alive for them; similarly to how the librarians in my local library helped to nurture my love of reading as I grew up.  I believe the children's section of the 21st century library will, and should, look very different than that of a library in the 1990's, but there are timeless elements that I believe will always remain important (for example, story time).

Through the MLIS program, I look forward to being exposed to best practices related to librarianship, as well as a variety of literature; especially that geared towards children.  I plan to learn about different aspects of technology and to consider what other services the community library can offer.  Additionally, I hope to learn all I can about what keeps a library running on a daily basis.

I expect that some of this knowledge will come from my classes and fellow classmates at the school, some from my own research and experience, and some from experiences I seek outside of class such as internships.  I know that in order to become the best librarian I can, I will need to be actively pursuing the knowledge and resources that will help me to best benefit those seeking services.