Mariah Wheeler, MIS: Leading Learners with the Library
Posted: January 06, 2025 | Author: Madelyn Bushman | Read Time: 7 minutes
During her first day on the job, Mariah Wheeler, Librarian and Remediation Director at Kanab High School, watched students walk along the bookshelves. Once in a while a student would pause at a title, but would never pull anything off the shelves nor check out a book. She thought that was strange and sad. And she wanted to fix it.
She also wanted to add a master’s degree to her SUU bachelor’s degree. She had looked into a variety of programs at different universities, but never found the right fit that aligned with her career goals or her life as a wife and working mother of five.
“Everything seemed like a dead end,” she said of her search. “Either it was too costly, or required too much in-person time, or things like that.”
Soon after, she received an email from Southern Utah University showcasing the online Master of Interdisciplinary Studies (MIS) degree, known for its versatile customizability.
Since students tailor their degrees by selecting courses from three of 19 different academic disciplines (learning blocks), Wheeler chose Online Teaching and the Library Media Endorsement (covers two of the three learning blocks) for her customized master’s degree.
Wheeler felt as if it was fate when she learned about the MIS program at SUU, as she obtained her bachelor’s degree in Theater Arts at SUU after being attracted there due to its reputation with the Utah Shakespeare Festival.
“My experience at SUU during my undergraduate studies essentially brought me back to SUU for my master’s,” Wheeler stated. “SUU has long maintained a camaraderie between professors and students. I was so pleased that this element was still part of SUU when I returned.”
Wheeler achieved a “personal victory” by graduating with her MIS degree from SUU in April 2024. The bonus? It came with a salary increase, known as a “lane change,” for educators who earn graduate degrees.
“With the MIS, I loved that I could build my own program – that I could choose the things that I wanted to study together. I loved that I could come away with two sets of marketable skills that had immediate application to my work: library and online teaching.”
Experience at SUU Online
When looking at master’s degree programs, Wheeler needed to have the flexibility of studying online. She required a program to fit around the demands of her busy schedule and family. Wheeler found that doing her studies late at night worked well for her and created a schedule that she could stick to.
In addition to the flexible schedule that is a hallmark of online programs, Wheeler loved how the Library Media curriculum was current and could be implemented right away in her library.
“One of the most valuable parts of my SUU education is having current knowledge – being able to put immediately into practice what I learned,” Wheeler said. “I could see firsthand what was working and what wasn’t working and where I could improve. I made a lot of improvements in my library because of that education.”
Wheeler found that the MIS program through SUU Online had what she calls “companionship learning” where the professors would work side-by-side with students. She said it felt like there was always an open door for collaboration between students and professors. The MIS professors valued students' own personal experiences and wanted to learn from them.
Wheeler highlighted that some of her professors in the MIS program provided feedback through a video response instead of typed comments. This felt more personalized and fostered a stronger connection for her. She also noted that the professors’ feedback was timely, which helped immensely so she could better plan her study schedule.
Additionally, she found that connection was fostered through her active and genuinely curious participation in discussion boards.
“I didn’t know how achievable it was going to be, how accessible it was going to be, how much I was going to learn, the connection I would find with my professors and classmates. I didn’t know how it would expand my social and professional networking opportunities,” Wheeler said.
The impact of obtaining her MIS Degree
Obtaining her master’s degree showed the importance of education to her children. She was setting an example for her kids by continuing her education and allocating time every night to do her studies.
“I would have dinner with my family and then go study in the office. My kids could see me through the window of the door and they knew that my education was important,” she explained.
For all the nights her children saw her study, watching Wheeler walk across the stage and receive her hard-earned diploma at SUU’s graduation ceremony was thrilling. For many parents receiving their college degrees, the accomplishment has required sacrifice and support from every member of the family – and graduation is a celebration for all of them.
Wheeler was able to apply what she was learning directly to her career as she was working at a library while enrolled in school. It gave her current, relevant knowledge so she could be more effective in helping students.
She explained, “Kids who were doing dual enrollment with early college courses saw me working on my college courses and it helped build rapport because we had something in common.”
Incidentally, since earning her MIS degree, Wheeler has displayed her diploma on her desk in the library – not as a brag, but as a conversation starter and social proof that higher education is possible. For students, it helps them aspire to education beyond high school.
How did she fix the library?
So…how did Wheeler’s education help her fix the problem of students not utilizing the library? While she has made many changes to the library based on her education, she shared three things that have made big impacts.
First, Wheeler implemented dynamic shelving which places some of the books with their covers facing out, instead of just the spines. “It gives the students something interesting to look at. More students are stopping and taking books down, and spending more time in the library, even if they are just reading the inside cover,” she said. “Because they are there for so long, kids group around them, their friends show up and pretty soon they are all standing around the book.”
The second was genrefication of the books. Though the practice can be controversial among K12 librarians because they aim to prepare students for the academic libraries in colleges, grouping books by genre has been tremendously helpful for KHS students and teachers.
“For my students, many come in for book recommendations. So I ask them what kind of books they like, and if they could at least tell me ‘love stories’ or ‘fantasy’ it is easy to take them to sections where they will find more books they are likely to enjoy.”
Wheeler also shared that a History teacher at the high school has her classes utilize the large collection of World War II titles available in the library. “So when they come into the library, we can show them where all the relevant books are located, and they can easily find something that will work for their assignments.”
The genrefication project has been a monumental effort spanning two years and, ultimately, it became her capstone project for her degree program. “I have taken every book off the shelves and sorted them by fiction and non-fiction, and then by genre,” Wheeler shared. Then they get shelved in those groups with some covers facing out, naturally.
Third, Wheeler was able to secure district support for new furniture and created a comfortable space that was a little more homey and inviting, so it is a place students want to be.
Advice for Future T-Bird Librarians
Wheeler’s advice for others considering going back to school for Library Media and/or a master’s degree that includes the endorsement is, “Do it now! Don’t wait. It is so achievable! This MIS program being customizable, and being affordable, and being so well set up in order to accommodate life today, it just makes sense.”
It is important to note that SUU’s Library Media Endorsement program meets the requirements for the state of Utah and for several other states (check your state’s requirements). To receive the endorsement in Utah, candidates must also have an active teaching license. SUU’s Library programs are available at both undergraduate and graduate levels.
Learn more about SUU's Online Library Media Programs.
Learn more about the School Library emphasis in the MIS degree.
Learn more about getting a Utah teaching license through SUU’s online APPEL program.
Tags: Career and Professional Development SUU Online
