Press Release

Fostoria Community Schools Library Media Specialist Receives INFOhio Leadership Award

COLUMBUS – INFOhio, the state’s virtual library and information network for PreK-12 public and nonpublic schools, recently presented Connie Carnicorn, Library Media Specialist for the Fostoria Community Schools, with the INFOhio Hugh Durbin Leadership Award for 2007.

Established in 2001, the award honors the memory of Ohio educator Hugh Durbin, who spent his career engaged in providing quality library media programs and resources for all students. It is presented annually to practicing library media center personnel who take an active leadership role in promoting the use of the technology and electronic educational resources available through INFOhio. Today, with technology being used to teach, motivate, captivate and transform ordinary classrooms into multi-dimensional learning experiences, students and teachers alike need to be aware of and know how to use all the tools available to them.

Ohio school libraries currently have more than 40 million books and non-print resources. INFOhio provides the standardized software to put school library card catalogs online. With this single, Web catalog, Ohio PreK-12 students and teachers can access their own school library as well as any other automated school library throughout the state.

According to INFOhio’s Executive Director, Theresa Fredericka, Carnicorn was recognized for her commitment to her students and teachers, as well as to INFOhio. “We commend you for your dedication to the Fostoria K-12 community, in particular by integrating INFOhio resources in your district's curriculum,” said Ms. Fredericka.

Carnicorn, who holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Bowling Green State University, has been an educator for 28 years at St. Joseph Central Catholic High School, Terra Community College and Fostoria High School. She chairs the School Improvement Plan Literacy Team and is a member of the Faculty Advisory Council. Carnicorn is District Instructor for Collaborative Observation, building representative of the teacher’s union and the advisor of the National Honor Society.

Outside of school, Carnicorn's passion is music. She sings in two choirs, Terra Arts Chorale and Terra Chorale Society. She is active with the music and children programs in her church.

Carnicorn says she became "a voracious reader at a very young age. The Birchard Public Library bookmobile would stop in the village where I lived and came to my elementary school. It was there that I established a relationship with the librarians working on the bookmobile. They would select books especially for me and bring them to the school. My senior year in high school I applied for a job at Birchard Public Library to work on that same bookmobile. The bookmobile librarians knew me and recommended I be hired. I spent the next five years working on the bookmobile during college breaks and in the summer. My career as a librarian had begun."

In her letter of recommendation, Catherine Bucher, English Department Curriculum Leader for Fostoria High School, noted Carnicorn's dedication to her students, colleagues and profession. "From the time Connie started in the building, she has gone out of her way to stay current in emerging technologies as they relate to library usage. She spends her time reviewing and familiarizing herself with new and updated resources, especially INFOhio," Bucher explained.

Fostoria High School teacher Sandra Reynolds adds praise for Carnicorn's work with faculty and students. "Connie's leadership roles with the staff of Fostoria High School are simply an extension of her very personal commitment to improving the education of students at Fostoria. [She] has a unique and fervent dedication to Fostoria Community Schools," Reynolds concluded.

The INFOhio Hugh Durbin Leadership Award was established in memory of an Ohio educator who spent his career engaged in providing quality library media programs and resources to students from pre-kindergarten children to adults in prison. He supported the professional growth of his colleagues through leadership in OELMA and by sharing his vision for the future of school library media programs in articles and presentations. His professionalism and personal commitment serve as an example for all in the field today.

INFOhio, established more than 10 years ago, is managed by the Management Council of the Ohio Education Computer Network (MCOECN). Its services are delivered through 23 Information Technology Centers using the existing school telecommunications infrastructure that links school libraries statewide. INFOhio allows every primary and secondary school in the state – regardless of size, location or fiscal resources – to access a core collection of electronic resources.

For additional information about this award and applications for 2008, contact:
INFOhio Central Office
2455 North Star Road, Suite 1
Columbus, OH 43221
Phone: 614-752-2941
Fax: 614-752-2940
E-mail: central@infohio.org
Web: http://www.infohio.org/LibraryStaff/grants.html