NOMINATE A SCHOOL LIBRARIAN - COMMEND THEM FOR EXCELLENCE
In 1979, the Maine Association of School Libraries (MASL) began recognizing excellence in school library work with the Maine School Library Media Specialist of the Year Award. In 2000, MASL decided to honor Walter J. Taranko, Coordinator of School Library Services at Department of Education/Maine State Library (DOE/MSL) by renaming the award the Walter J. Taranko School Library Media Specialist of the Year.
Walter was a friend of school librarians: mentoring new school librarians, helping to clarify their roles in schools, and streamlining the certification process. He was a strong advocate for having certified school librarians in all schools. Walter was the driving force in bringing the Clarion University and the University of South Carolina programs to the state. Many, many of the librarians in Maine are beneficiaries of these programs. We all owe a debt of gratitude to the foresight and leadership of Walter J. Taranko.
The WJT Award is given in recognition of excellence in school library work within the state of Maine. It is given to honor a school librarian who embodies the qualities that Walter represented. We recognize and value: mentoring, outreach, collaboration, advocacy - all of which were traits that Walter Taranko represented and embodied in his 35 years as the State Library liaison to DOE. Walter valued the benefits that membership in professional organizations and was a strong supporter of MASL - back in the time when it was called Maine Educational Media Association (MEMA).
Timeline:
Award given at Annual Meeting: Spring Fling - often the third Saturday in April.
Nomination process: Fill out the nomination page below and send to: masl@gwi.net
Nomination page for the Walter J. Taranko Award (at this point, please copy and paste into the word doc of your choice)
I would like to nominate ________________
MASL member Yes ____ No_____
Active in local, community, state and national organizations. (which ones) ________
School where currently employed _________________
How long at this school?__________
How long have you known this person? ____________
The qualities that (nominee)______________ possesses:
(You may not know about all areas, please note if you “have not observed”)
Teaching Information Literacy:
Leadership within the school community:
Leadership within the library community:
Mentoring students and coworkers:
Knowledge and advocacy for Information Literacy and Ethical use of information:
Community Involvement within the school community: (clubs, PTO, etc)
Other
