Page 1 of 1

ELEVATOR SPEECH

Pardon me, but I overheard your conversation on the elevator, and I thought that maybe this
would be a great time to inform you of the benefits and necessities of school librarians. Hello,
my name is Christy Loftis, and I am the information literacy technology specialist on my campus.
My job is to teach children, young adults, and adults how to acquire, inspect, and enjoy, reading
and technology. Basically, I am the knowledge curator in my community. I instruct students,
teachers, and the administrators in information literacy, accessing, analyzing, evaluating and
communicating information. I demonstrate new technology applications to the staff on my
campus. I provide students and teachers with an abundance of resources and advantages that
make a significant difference in their teaching and learning. For example, when the students in
4
th
and 5
th
grade conduct research, the first item of choice to search for information is the
internet. I have instructed my students on how to validate websites for reliable information.

I wear many hats on my campus. My students vary in age, maturity, and learning abilities.
Teachers and students rely on my expertise to instruct them on the latest technology to help
them work to their maximum potential. I not only teach students and adults and even parents
how to access and utilize the OPAC (online public access catalogue), but I teach them how to
search for information in books, online, how to research and critically evaluate information to
make sure that it is reliable and valid. Furthermore, I plan and collaboratively teach with the
staff to assure that our students will soar academically. I consider myself the spine of the
school. I play a major part in how all grade level teachers, student, and administrators function.
I support each entity on my campus by knowing and understanding the TEKS and how to gather
information to make classroom teachers and students productive, as well as ensure that the
campus goals are obtained. With support for me and the library program, I will have a
measurable impact on student achievement. In this information age of technology, I am a
sensible investment for any school.