For the second year in a row, Long Cane Middle School media specialist Pam Murphy had to make a trip to Atlanta to appear before the ztate Board of Education.

That’s the price to be paid when your media center earns back-to-back state recognition. This year, Long Cane was named the Exemplary Middle School Media Center in the state, the highest award given to media programs. Last year, the school earned the Exceptional Media Center award with only one other middle school in the state ranking higher.

The Library Media Program award recognizes school media centers in Georgia which demonstrate excellence in the field. Target indicators include student achievement and instruction; staffing; facilities, access and resources; administrative support; and staff development. Murphy has long been an innovator in the media science field, incorporating the latest technology into her media center.

“You have to meet students where they are,” said Murphy, who was the first media specialist in the county to offer students books on MP3. “Young people these days receive and share information at a global pace. My job is to keep up.”

Working with teachers and staff at the school, Murphy makes 21st century technology an integral part of learning at Long Cane. Students collaborate with peers in other counties, states and countries to participate in research projects, cultural investigations, and learning experiences that broaden their view, not only of technology, but of the world.

Besides increased use of technology, a measure of the media center’s success is the amount of reading that occurs. Long Cane students increased the number of Accelerated Reader points earned in the past school year by almost 40 percent.

For her efforts, Murphy also has been named the district media specialist of the year. The Georgia Library Media Association and the Georgia Association of Instructional Technology co-sponsor the Georgia School Library Media Specialist of the Year award to recognize K-12 media specialists whose services have resulted in outstanding library media programs. Murphy, representing West Georgia, is one of six media specialists in the state competing for the title. The state Media Specialist of the Year will be announced at the Georgia Council of Media Organizations in October.

“This is certainly not an individual effort,” Murphy said. “Our media center’s success is due to the work of the entire media staff, the teachers and school staff, and the students who visit the media center and give life to the programs we offer.”