Mary Alice Anderson
School of Education
University of Wisconsin-Stout
140E Voc Rehab Bldg
Menomonie, WI 54751
Phone: (507) 452 1180 after 4:00 p.m. CST
E-Mail: andersonmary@uwstout.edu
Mary Alice Anderson teaches Innovations and Opportunities for Media Specialists and Digital Classroom: Teaching Information Literacy with Primary Sources.
She is the District Media Specialist-Lead Teacher for Winona Area Public Schools, Winona, Minnesota. She works with teachers and media staff district wide, is on the district technology committee and has extensive experience planning and conducting workshops for teachers. She has worked with media staff and architects to plan three new media centers and is the co-webmaster for the district web site. Mary Alice has worked for the Winona School District since 1985. From 1985-2005 she was the media specialist at Winona Middle School.
While at Winona Middle School she was a "early adopter" of technologies such as library automation, online encyclopedias, the Internet and school web pages. She worked with her principal and teachers to develop a school media/technology program well known for its technology rich environment and high degree of technology integration throughout the curriculum. The program was the recipient of the National Gale DISCovering/Multimedia Schools Information Technology Award. Mary Alice and her principal also received state awards from the Minnesota Educational Media Organization (MEMO). She also chaired many of the district's technology staff development initiatives including an annual summer technology staff development academy for educators in Southeast Minnesota.
In 2006 she received a Top Online Educator recognition from Walter McKenzie's Surf Aquarium.
She speaks frequently at conferences and writes the "Media Center" column for Multimedia & Internet @Schools. She also contributed articles to School Library Journal, LMC Connection, and other professional journals. Among her book publications are a chapter on staff development in the Educational Media Technology Yearbook 2000 (Libraries Unlimited) and Skills for Life: Information Literacy for Grades 7-12 (co-editor, Linworth 1999). She has contributed to several other publications such as Collaborating to Meet the Standards 7 - 12 (Toni Buzzeo, Editor. Linworth, 2002) and "Whole School Library Handbook, (Blanche Woolls and David V. Loertscher, editors, ALA, 2005).
In 1999 Mary Alice was a Library of Congress American Memory Fellow. She and her partner developed a lesson about the contributions of German Immigrants to the upper Midwest. In 2008 she was appointed to a Library of Congress Curriculum Review Panel. Mary Alice is a member of the World Book Publishing Editorial Advisory Board. She is also a member of the education committee for the Winona County Historical Society. She collaborated with the Society educator to develop a web site about Winona's early history.
Mary Alice has also taught Integrating Technology in the Elementary Curriculum at Winona State University and was a member of the College of Education Dean's Advisory Council.
Mary Alice has been an active member of MEMO for over 25 years and is currently the editor of the MEMORandom newsletter and program co-chair for the Fall 2009 conference. She served as the state Vice President and Telecommunications chair. Among her recent involvements in MEMO are working with the team that developed the Minnesota Standards for Effective Library Media Programs and working with the committee that developed the criteria for the 2002 and 2004 Census of Minnesota Media Programs.
Mary Alice received Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees in English from Winona State University. Her library and media supervisor licenses were earned at Winona State University and St. Cloud State University, also in Minnesota.
Mary Alice and her husband, Bob, have two Siamese cats, Nudder and Cody. They enjoy gardening, bike riding, exploring technology, entertaining, attending Winona State basketball games, and visiting with friends. Mary Alice also enjoys scrapbooking, volunteering for the Great River Shakespeare Festival, and attending plays.
E-mail your comments or questions to Mary Alice @ andersonmary@uwstout.edu
Visit her personal web site and blog, Random Thoughts: Change & Other Stuff