Erin Downey

Erin Downey is the District Consulting Librarian of Boise School District in Boise, Idaho, and the outgoing Vice President of the Idaho Library Association. A member of the inaugural Lilead Fellowship, a leadership cohort formed by the University of Maryland to initiate systemic change in school districts and school libraries, she has also served on Idaho’s Library Leadership Advisory Committee to increase engagement across the Idaho library community. In her role in the Boise School District, she was a member of the Discovery Education Network Leadership Council and has been a joint presenter at the International Society for Computers in Education (ISTE)international conference. She collaborates on technology initiatives within the school district and brings professional development opportunities to school librarians and school staff that bridge best practices in library services and instruction, technology, and pedagogy. She is passionate about creating professional development spaces and opportunities that reflect best practices in the classroom–engaging content, building relationships, meeting learners where they are, and blending learning between digital and in-person learning environments.

She received her Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, in 2004, and taught Reading and English in grades 7-12 until 2010. She earned a Master’s in Library and Information Studies from The University of Alabama in 2011. She was a high school librarian from 2010 until taking a district position overseeing the Boise School District’s 45 school library programs in 2014.

When she’s not librarianing, she lives in Boise with her family and takes every opportunity for adventure. Her current passions are swimming, aerial silks, and flying trapeze!