Educational Information Sources Online

Brenda Cowe is a recent graduate of the University at Buffalo's School of Informatics. Ms. Cowe has worked as a school library media specialist with the Buffalo Public Schools and Lancaster Public Schools and will be beginning a full time position with Ithaca City Schools in the Fall of 2006.

Brenda has presented on educational blogging and integrating technology into writing for the Buffalo School Librarian's Conference, WNY School Librarian's Spring Sharing, the Buffalo Teacher's Center and the WNY Writing Project at Canisius College. She has experience in the public library system and previously worked on a special collections project and digital information retrieval system for a prominent medical researcher.

She has a special interest in the way in which digital technologies and Internet tools can and do change the nature of research. Specifically, she would like to further explore the concept of long distance research that compiles a body of resources on an ongoing basis, with the researcher being directed by a remote group. How this creates or impacts on the notion of community, is also of interest.

In addition to her library experience, Brenda is a creative writer, photographer, and musician. She has had poetry, short stories, and non-fiction essays published and she is completing her first novel, while beginning work on two non-fiction writing projects. Her publishing credits include: Earth’s Daughters Journal, Writing for Our Lives Journal, Buffalo Spree Magazine, The Buffalo News, ArtVoice, and Arts In Buffalo.

In the summer of 2005, she was selected as a fellow for the WNY Writing Project, where she continued work on her novel and developed writing instruction for other teachers. In 1997 Ms. Cowe was awarded a WNY Artist Exchange Literature Residency sponsored by Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center. At that time, she completed a one-month residency at the Niagara Council on the Arts and completed a poetry manuscript based on the lives of her grandparents. In 2001, she won Honorable Mention in Just Buffalo’s Annual Writing Competition for her short story “Ghetto”. She has studied with Carl Dennis, Irving Feldman, and Samuel Delany at the University at Buffalo.

Brenda is an accomplished musician and songwriter. She plays the piano, clarinet, and guitar and is a former long-time member of the Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus. She also composes her own music and lyrics for the piano and guitar and can be seen performing at local coffeehouses on occasion.

As a self-taught photographer, she has won several juried photo competitions. In both 1999 and 1997, she won First Place awards for her photos and in 1999 she was awarded Best of Show for her photograph “Postcards Along the Seine.” Although self-taught, she credits her father and grandfather, both of whom are award-winning amateur photographers, with her ability to capture a scene.

NOTE: Photo of blog author is a reflection shot of a poster in a window, not the actual author (though she may feel this way at times :)