Lisa Von Drasek

I have been a librarian for 8 years and the Children's Librarian for the Bank Street College of Education for the past two years. This is a unique position because I am not only the Media Specialist for the School for Children, Pre-k- 8th grade, but I am also one of a team of 5 librarians of the Bank Street College of Education serving graduate students and faculty. This has been a particularly exciting year as my partner, Alexandra and I have been serving on graduate school committees examining how to include technology (for teachers to use in their classrooms)in the required courses for the graduate students.

I was born and raised in and around Philadelphia. I have a varied work history, I have been the buyer/manager for the museum store at the Please Touch Museum for Children then worked in sales and marketing for several publishing houses. It was at that time that the forces of the universe conspired to remake me into an information specialist. I graduated with my MLIS from Pratt while working at the Brooklyn Public Library. I presently live in Brooklyn Heights, a beautiful historic neighborhood at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge in a hundred and fifty-year-old schoolhouse, Old P.S. 8 (new P.S.8 is down the block.) I spend my free time with my husband , Paul and Soft-coated wheaten terrier, Maggie.

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Alexandra Weisman

I have been a sixth grade teacher at the Bank Street school for Children for the past two years, plus one as a student teacher (yes, I am a bit green!). Before that I taught preschool for two years, and worked a number of jobs including caterer and psychology researcher. I recently graduated from Bank Street College of Education and recieved my Masters, so I'm looking forward to a bit more freedom next year. I am excited about the upcoming institute as I often find myself "mucking about" on the internet, rather than really having a clear direction to what I'm doing. I fear that I bring this style to my students. As much as exploration is important for my students, so is a clear idea of they are headed.

In August I'm heading to Belize to work with a team of archeologists at a Mayan site. My fall curriculum is the study of the Maya and it will be exciting to combine the work I doing with primary sources at the LOC with the work I will be doing with primary materials and artifacts from Belize.

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