The media specialist at Jones Middle School in Buford, Maile Steimer, has been named the 2022 Georgia Library Media Association Metro Region Library Media Specialist of the Year.
Steimer was chosen for the region honor among district-level media specialists of the year in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Forsyth, Fulton and Rockdale counties. As a regional winner, Steimer receives a $100 prize and a plaque commemorating the honor. She will now move on to the state competition, where she is a finalist for the Georgia Library Media Association and the Georgia Association of Instructional Technology Georgia School Library Media Specialist of the Year award.
“The award recognizes K-12 library media specialists with dynamic, innovative programs and whose instructional collaborations foster student engagement and achievement,” a news release from Gwinnett County School System states.
Under Steimer’s leadership, Jones Middle School was recognized as the Georgia Library Media Association’s Exceptional Media Program in 2017.
According to Gwinnett County Public Schools, “Ms. Steimer promotes reading through displays, digital book trailers and reading challenges. Her philosophy is ‘Libraries are for Everyone’ and she adds books to the school’s collection that reflect her students, while also providing them with opportunities to read different viewpoints and understand the feelings of others.”
The state award will be announced at GLMA’s Summer Institute on June 7. Winners receive $300, a plaque commemorating the state honor and a one-year membership to the Georgia Library Media Association and the Georgia Association of Instructional Technology.
FEATURED PHOTO: Pictured from left are Mary Barbee, director of Media Services and Technology Training for Gwinnett County Public Schools; Maile Steimer, media specialist at Jones Middle School; and Lin Wilkins Thornton, principal at Jones Middle. Photo courtesy of GCPS.
