Ernie Cox, doctoral student at the School of Information and Library Science (SILS) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and media specialist at St. Timothy's School in Raleigh, has been selected as a "Mover & Shaker" by the Library Journal.
The Library Journal published its annual list of "Movers & Shakers," or those who are making an impact in the library and information science world, in its March 2010 issue.
Cox was selected in the category of "Community Builders" for the work he's done at St. Timothy's School where he has been a school librarian for five years. He has been working with teachers to form professional learning communities based upon models used by many schools nationwide. His unique contribution has been to expand the school librarian's role within these collaborative learning teams.
"This recognition would not be possible without the intellectually engaging and supportive environment of the SILS community," said Cox. "Specifically I want to thank Dr. Hughes-Hassell who is a vital partner in creating connections between scholarly research and professional practice."
"It's such a delight to see Ernie recognized for the great work he's doing at St. Timothy's," said Dr. Barbara B. Moran, interim dean of SILS. "The ability to build community is an important skill that we encourage our students to develop. To see it put into action in an innovative manner is exciting. We applaud Ernie's accomplishments and the recognition he's received by the Library Journal."
Cox is one of 50 professionals being acknowledged as those shaping the future of libraries. For his interview in the Library Journal, please visit this Web site.
In addition to being inducted into the "Movers & Shakers" of the Library Journal's community, Cox's research focuses on reading comprehension and the Web, educational leadership and collaboration, children's and young adult literature and services and outreach to pre-service teachers. Cox is currently researching the use of anthropomorphism in Newbery winning books under the supervision of Dr. Brian Sturm, associate professor. He is also conducting an action research project with middle school language arts teachers exploring the use of student directed literature studies and the use of library space.
His doctoral research will consider adolescent engagement with multimodal stories.
Cox and Hughes-Hassell recently completed an analysis of board book publication patterns. The results will be published in an article entitled "Inside Board Books: Representations of People of Color," in the July 2010 issue of Library Quarterly. Cox is co-writing the book, Professional Learning Communities and the School Library Media Specialist with Hughes-Hassell and Debbie Dupree. Publication is expected later this year.
