Some educators at a White House gathering said they were hesitant at first to bring new technology into their classrooms. Austin's Eanes school district librarian Carolyn Foote said her attitude has always been, "Why not?" Foote said the "aha moment" where she understood the importance of iPads was while working with a disabled student. He didn't have the fine motor skills to turn the pages of books, but he could flip through pages on an iPad. It gave the student a level of independence he never had before, and Foote wanted to share that independence with all students.
Foote received her school librarian specialization through the iSchool's Standard School Certificate Librarian (SSLC) Program.
President Barack Obama honored Foote at the White House for sparking interest in bringing iPads to all Eanes ISD students. She was honored with nine other educators, for creatively using technology to help students to learn, and also participated in a short panel discussion with four of those honorees. The group was honored as "Champions of Change," a federal program that "highlights extraordinary work people are doing in their communities," said a White House spokesman. As a grateful recipient of that award--and the sole school librarian in the group--Carolyn Foote feels even more inspired to bring librarians and educators together online.
Foote has been with Eanes for 21 years and serves as head librarian at Westlake High School. "Westlake is very lucky to have her working with our students and teachers on a daily basis," Westlake High principal John Carter said. "Her extensive knowledge of technology and how to make the best use of it in the research and learning process helps to keep everyone current." Foote was featured in a January 2014 issue of the School Library Journal.