Spotlight On: RMS Library

This is a new series highlighting RMS staff and departments, organized by RMS parent Hazen Sewell. Our next spotlight is on the RMS Library and our librarian, Ms. Cloues.

What is the vision of your department? What would you like RMS parents/caregivers/community to know about your department?)
SFUSD has a very strong Libraries department, with up-to-date libraries and teacher-librarians in every school! That is thanks to SF voters, who voted to allocate city money to SFUSD Libraries. 10 years ago, when I came to Roosevelt, I created this mission statement for our library: "The mission of the RMS Library is to inspire curiosity, build critical thinking skills, facilitate information literacy and research, support and advance curricular themes, and nurture life-long readers." I'd also add that our school library serves as a bridge between students and the larger public library system. 

What was your favorite class or subject when you were in middle school?
I grew up in Colorado, and my middle school offered Russian language (that was pretty unusual!). I took Russian and Spanish as my two electives, and I loved both of those classes. I continued studying those languages in high school and college.

Do you have a hobby you’d be willing to tell us about?
I love to backpack, hike, bike, and generally be outside--and in the mountains. Inside, I enjoy cooking, baking bread and dessert, and I also play the violin. I like playing complicated board games with my husband and our teenage son, too.

What do you like most about your job?
I love interacting with students in the library! Every day is a little different, and I have the resources and flexibility to do special projects and to support students and classroom teacher colleagues. Connecting students to books they may like is a really special and satisfying part of my job. I host a student book club, where we have cookies and tea and talk about a particular book each month, and that is always a wonderful day. 

What inspired you to pursue teaching?
I thought I was going to be a scientist. I've always loved science. In college I was taking an ecology class at one point, and the professor mentioned the importance of teaching people about caring for our environment; that really inspired me. Years later I decided to be an elementary teacher. I taught 4th and 5th grade for 8 years before I went back to graduate school and shifted to being a teacher-librarian. 

If you had one important piece of advice you’d like to pass along to all RMS students, what would it be?
Take a break from the screens and read some books. Seriously! Reading builds critical thinking skills, fosters empathy, and helps us understand the world. It can provide rigor and build stamina when that is needed, or be relaxing and fun when that is needed. I really truly believe that reading makes us better people. 

What is one thing you wish people knew about you, either as a teacher or in your life outside of RMS?
I spent 3 months backpacking through Oregon and Washington on the Pacific Crest Trail, and then over two years living in Honduras as a Peace Corps volunteer! Those were both transformative experiences for me after college. They helped me figure out who I am in the world.

How can RMS caregivers best show support for RMS teachers?
I think when families spend time talking with their children about school, it shows that school and learning is important. It's hard to know what students are working on sometimes, especially since so much schoolwork is digital, but your students are learning interesting things every day. Hopefully you can get them to share some of it with you!