Valarie Hunsinger, Teacher, Hyde Leadership Charter School

Valarie Hunsinger is a passionate library media specialist at Hyde Leadership Charter School in the South Bronx. For the past nine years, Ms. Hunsinger has been dedicated to both literacy and technology opportunities for her students ranging from experiential book clubs, empowering millionaire readers (reading over a million words in a year) to using Google Classroom for research and even virtual reality. Developing global citizens is also very important to her; especially looking for different ways students can learn about cultural diversity, build awareness, and global issues. One of her favorite events was bringing students together from schools in the community to discuss Malala Yousafzai's book and her courageous work. She also serves as Library Director for the Bisila Bokoko African Literacy Project, where she builds and manages libraries all over Africa including Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Uganda. She is a member of AASL and a member of the ALA International Relations Committee—Africa Subcommittee. She was a recipient of a Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program Scholarship. She has written for School Library Monthly, Knowledge Quest, and International Leads. She is also an executive committee member for the Day of Knowledge Conference in the Dominican Republic. Ms. Hunsinger has a BA in International Affairs from Lewis & Clark College and an MA in Education and School Library and Information Technology from Mansfield University.