{"id":12892,"date":"2024-11-25T11:32:51","date_gmt":"2024-11-25T16:32:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=12892"},"modified":"2024-12-02T11:14:43","modified_gmt":"2024-12-02T16:14:43","slug":"vbcps-librarian-receives-statewide-honors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/vbcps-librarian-receives-statewide-honors\/","title":{"rendered":"VBCPS librarian receives statewide honors"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Great Neck Middle library media specialist Stephanie Baker was named the 2024 \u201cSchool Librarian of the Year\u201d by the VAASL.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Cindy Butler Focke<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Stephanie Baker was recently named the 2024 \u201cSchool Librarian of the Year\u201d by the Virginia Association of School Librarians (VAASL).<\/p>\n

The Great Neck Middle School library media specialist said she was honored and grateful.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love helping the students find just the right book at just the right time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Students should feel comfortable interacting in a safe space outside the classroom, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s really important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baker said she\u2019s always been a reader. \u201cI loved sitting in comfy chairs reading at the public library,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Great Neck Middle\u2019s library media center features a variety of activities for students, including a chess table and a space for students to write thank you notes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The First Colonial High School graduate earned a college degree in biology and elementary education from William & Mary.<\/p>\n

She seriously considered a career studying the depths of the ocean.<\/p>\n

But that changed during her first year at Princess Anne Elementary as a first-grade teacher. She loved teaching reading and admired how the school librarian, Kristin Hildum, creatively piqued students\u2019 interest in reading.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt looked like she was having so much fun,\u201d Baker said. She shadowed her as suggested by their principal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when I knew for sure I wanted to be a librarian.\u201d<\/p>\n

She earned a master\u2019s degree and school library certification from Old Dominion University.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>In 2008 she became librarian for Salem Middle School and four years later moved to Great Neck Middle.<\/p>\n

The approximately 1,000 students have access to thousands of books in myriad genres.<\/p>\n

Great Neck Middle principal Paige Scherr described the school\u2019s library media center as \u201ca hub of activity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn any given day, you will see students playing chess, working puzzles and engaging with peers in the makerspace,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Scherr said Baker has ensured the library media center is a place where all students feel valued and included.<\/p>\n

Baker was chosen as citywide \u201cLibrarian of the Year\u201d in the fall of 2023 and then selected to represent the local region, made up of 20 area public school districts. One from each of seven regions in Virginia was considered for the statewide VAASL award.<\/p>\n

The organization is recognized as the voice for excellence in Virginia\u2019s school libraries and promotes lifelong learning and academic success for all students.<\/p>\n

VAASL Awards and Scholarships Committee Chair Dr. Jessica Thompson said candidates were considered in part by their cooperative program planning, promotion of library services within the school and community, and participation in professional leadership organizations.<\/p>\n

Baker has participated in workshops such as the National Endowment for the Humanities program on Saipan\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
These unique pieces of art were created in a space designated for community coloring in the Great Neck Middle library media center.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thompson praised her for sponsoring multiple student activities, including \u201cBattle of the Books\u201d teams, a contest sponsored by Virginia Beach Public Library. She is also vice president of membership for the Virginia Beach Library Association.<\/p>\n

Baker oversees Great Neck Middle\u2019s daily live morning broadcast by the student \u201cMedia Team\u201d and has sponsored the school\u2019s \u201cLunch Bunch\u201d book clubs, newspaper club and National Junior Honor Society.<\/p>\n

The \u201cAcademic Challenge\u201d team under her leadership made it to the championship match in 2023.<\/p>\n

During the recent VAASL conference in Williamsburg, Baker was presented with a crystal flame-shaped award and $500 for professional development.<\/p>\n

\u201cHer commitment to literacy and education is evident in her work with student clubs, technology integration and her role in managing library resources and advocating for diverse materials,\u201d Thompson said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cindy Butler Focke Stephanie Baker was recently named the 2024 \u201cSchool Librarian of the Year\u201d by the Virginia Association of School Librarians (VAASL). The Great Neck Middle School library […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":12893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12892"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12921,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12892\/revisions\/12921"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}