Jane Barrager

“God has given me cause to laugh, and all who hear of it will laugh with me”

Genesis 21:6

Hello everyone! My name is Elizabeth Gerace, an aspiring librarian and music enthusiast. I am originally from Ocala, FL, and attended the city’s local two-year college, working part time as receptionist for a hydraulic company and going to school for vocal music. After receiving my Associate in Arts, I moved an hour to north and began the next part of my schooling at the University of Florida in Gainesville. I ended up receiving my bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Ethnomusicology, the study of world music and culture, from UF in 2021. Even though my time at the university was marked by COVID, I still made many important friendships and count that time as one of the most important eras of my life. Right before my graduation, I made the decision to cross into enemy territory and apply to FSU for my master’s degree, becoming one of many Gator-Noles (the horror!!)

Currently, I am working in Gainesville as a choir director at St Patrick Interparish School teaching 5^th-8^th grade students how to sing. I love to be able to share my love of music with the younger generations and am learning a lot about what it takes to be a positive influence in a student’s life. I also teach religious education at our local Catholic church and sing for weekend Masses, and often perform with our praise and worship band. Along with reading books and making music, you can usually find me hanging out with my fiancé, Cameron. Cameron is getting his PHD at UF in Biomedical Engineering, with the goal of becoming a professor. We’re getting married this July and are super excited start our brand-new life together

In terms of this class, I am excited to learn how to better make use of media that I already have access to in my personal and school devices. I plan to work in either school, academic, or professional librarian circles with the information I will learn in this class and degree. My dream is to find a way to work as a children’s literature librarian, perhaps taking advantage of my proximity to the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature at UF. I am so grateful to all the professors I have had already who have taught me invaluable lessons this past semester. I’m excited to learn even more in this class and get to know all of you!

Hey everyone! I am Annie Thomas living in Tampa, Florida, and originally from India where I pursued my under graduation in Information Technology. Earning a master’s degree has always been a dream for me and I am so glad and excited to wear the graduation cap, and gown end of this semester.

I am currently working for a Marketing Research Company as a Software Developer with more than 10 years of Industry experience. And I am sure The MSIT degree from Florida State University would not only allow me to chase my dreams but also help in the growth of my career.

Moving to Florida was one of the best decisions of my life, not just because of the sunny and warm weather throughout the year, but the people here are also warm and welcoming.

My area of interest includes dancing, cooking, photography, and spending time with my loving family, who are my pillars of strength always. Another important thing I love doing is worship and spending time in Religious activities. I am lucky to have a wonderful bunch of friends with whom I love visiting sunsets and beach walks. Capturing sunrise and sunset in time-lapse mode is one of my favorite things to do.

Love for photography is what made me choose this course. And I hope by the end of this course I would pro my editing skills!

About Me

Hello I am Keith Bennett and I currently live in Tallahassee Florida. I am originally from North Carolina where I experienced all four seasons every year. I enjoy being closer to the beaches and love warmer weather although Florida’s humidity truly beat you down, especially if your not from here. I currently attend Emerge Church which I have met some really awesome people and do life with. I am a very straight to the point kind of person, probably because I was raised by a military father who expected straight forward answers. Ironically that has helped me when I have to talk to senior leadership in my career. I currently work in IT security for Florida State University (FSU). I currently have a bachelors in business management, and a bachelors in information technology.

I am currently enrolled in the Master of Science Information Technology program and this is my last semester! I have loved the relationships and wonderful people I have met at FSU throughout undergraduate and graduate school. This has been quite the journey for sure, taken classes, working full time, and having a family. After I received my first bachelors degree, never in a million years did I ever think I would pursue a masters. I am truly thankful for the opportunity to be a first generation college graduate and soon to be a graduate of a advanced degree.

Hobbies

I am pretty chill and laid back but I do a few hobbies/activities that I like to do for fun. When I have time I really enjoy scuba diving which I have been a certified diver for some years. I also enjoy bowling and would love to obtain my pilots license one day. Learning to fly is just extremely expensive.

Come one, come all! Witness and be amazed by the many wonders of the world! In this very blog post, accessed only by those very few within this course, is the information needed to better understand just one of the many people you’ll meet in your life’s journey. Here, in this dwelling of words and images, dwells the Cynthia Moving – the “Cyndi”. Featured below is a recent image of Cyndi at the school librarian meeting grounds, serendipitously known as FAME Conference 2021.

Cyndi has been known to enjoy sunsets and sunrises, long walks on the beach, attempting to swim, and jogging. She has recently completed her first 5k. It only took her 45 minutes, so while not the most impressive time, it is still quite a feat! In her down time, she tries to catch up on all of her reading (be it for the job, her students, or herself). She is also a huge fan of the Pokémon franchise. As of December 2021, she has finally completed the Galar Pokédex, one of many childhood dreams come true (even if it isn’t the original one, it still counts)! An important side note: Cyndi is an avid, casual gamer. Pokémon happens to be the franchise that has consumed most of her attention (and possibly her life). She also plays Animal Crossing, Monster Hunter Stories, Skyrim, Tetris, and the Ace Attorney Series.

…Okay, enough posturing! Down to the facts! Cyndi holds an undergrad in English Literature from UCF. She has worked as an English teacher since 2014 until she stumbled hard enough to say, “I need a change!” Her current occupation is as a school media specialist at Osceola Science Charter School. It is her first exposure to the World of School Librarians and Media Specialists, and she sincerely wonders why she didn’t make the switch sooner. Ah, such is life. Cyndi lives in Orlando, FL with her partner in crime and their two-year-old calico cat, Curry.

It may be hoped for all intrepid readers to pass course LIS 5313 with flying colors. After all, digital media is an important and ever-growing aspect within schools. For a budding Media Specialist, it is all the more important for Cyndi to get a better grasp of what digital media is and how the lessons learned here could be applied towards her career. This class is also the last one needed for Cyndi to receive the all-important School Library Leadership certification. From there it might be just one more semester, upgrading from a Temporary to a Professional Educator’s Certificate, and graduation!

In between (and specifically on January 28th) there will be Pokémon.

Latasha. I was born and raised in Tallahassee and it is the only place I have ever lived. Sad I know, lol. I would like to travel and visit all 50 states one day, experiencing what each state has to offer. I would like to do something like diners, dives, and drive-ins because my family and I like to eat. The one place that is on my bucket list is to visit the “world’s first underwater villa.” at the Rangali Island Resort in the Maldives. I am working on my degree in MSIT graduating this spring. I decided to get my Master’s after my mom passed as I told her I would do it, with that GRE being waived, made it easy to finally do it. I worked for the state of Florida for the past 20 years, but with this degree, I will finally look to leave for greener pastures. I love sports, especially the Lakers and video games.

One of the things I am excited about learning in this class is the final project. I am really curious as to what I come up with.

This is a picture of my mom and me. I think I look just like her but my sister begs to differ.

Hi! My name is Sheryl Hamm. I was born and raised in Houston, Texas and graduated from Texas A & M University in 1990 with a degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis on reading and an ESL (English as a Second Language) Certification. I taught 2nd grade for 7 years and loved my school and the children! In 1998, I quit to stay home with our children and in 2005, we were transferred to Tallahassee for my husband’s job. Since we arrived here, I have been a volunteer in Leon County Schools and at our church, Trinity United Methodist Church, and I was a substitute in Leon County Schools for 13 years until COVID arrived.

In the picture above, you’ll see my family: My husband, Bob, is a civil engineer and works for a private consulting firm. Courtney is 23, graduated from Texas A & M University with a finance degree, and lives and works in Dallas, Texas. Kristen is 21 and is a junior at FSU. Her major is Recreation and Tourism Management in the Dedman College of Hospitality and she is very involved with Dance Marathon. Zac is Kristen’s longtime boyfriend and he is currently an assistant youth pastor at a Methodist church here in town. This picture was taken over the holidays in Texas while we visited family. We were at Mount Bonnell in Austin, Texas.

I have always wanted to be a librarian, so in the Fall of 2020, I joined the MSI program at FSU. This is my final semester and I am taking 3 classes. I will graduate in April – a year earlier than planned. I have accepted a job with the Leon County Library here in Tallahassee and will begin as soon as all the paperwork is completed. I will be an Information Professional in Youth Services. I am very excited to start my new career!!!

I am excited about this class and a little anxious about this class. As you can see, I’m older than the majority of college students. When I was in high school in the late 1980’s, I took 1 computer programming class and we programmed the computer to draw simple pictures. In college, I took a FORTRAN class and got an A with the help of people in the computer lab where I did all my work. I did not own a computer until I was married. So, I have been learning as I go all these years and I have never worked with producing digital media. The closest I have gotten to things we will be doing in this class is making books about trips we’ve taken and making gifts using Shutterfly. So, all of this is a little overwhelming but I know I am capable!! I hope to be able to take things I learn here and apply them to my job in the public library.

In my spare time, my husband and I love to travel!!! I also love to scrapbook, read and spend time with my whole family!