San Marcos
Gabriela Sonntag
Advancing information literacy in the Spanish-speaking world

Gabriela Sonntag, Coordinator of the Information Literacy Program and Reference Services at CSU San Marcos, has nearly a 20-year record of excellence working with libraries in Latin America and in Spain. Her involvement began in 1989 when she was asked to participate in a series of seminars for library personnel from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. Subsequently, several participants requested that she teach a course and, in 1991, she received a Fulbright to do this.

Through the years, Gabriela has been invited to numerous conferences and universities, both in the U.S. and abroad, to give workshops or seminars on the topic of information literacy, called ALFIN in Spanish. Over the last six years, she has lectured, taught, and presented in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Santiago, Chile. "I want to teach librarians how to effectively collaborate to integrate information literacy into the curriculum and to connect those involved in information literacy with people in their own institutions who share this concern," Gabriela explains.

The need to better connect practitioners in the information literacy field led Gabriela to create a Web portal, Alfabetizacion Informativa, which includes materials from her workshops, a link to exemplary programs in Latin America, and an extensive bibliography of materials in Spanish on information literacy.

Most recently, she made a presentation to students at the library school in San Jose, Costa Rica, and to members of various organizations and government offices at the U.S. Embassy in Honduras during a three-way videoconference titled "Information literacy, the role of libraries and the digital divide." In November 2006, she was invited by the Spanish Ministry of Culture to speak at the Third National Public Librarians' conference in Murcia, Spain. This past June, Gabriela was invited to teach at a summer session coordinated by the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain. Gabriela's dedication to advancing the cause of information literacy internationally encourages students' abilities to solve information problems globally.

Recent Publications or Research in Progress:

• Sonntag, G., Hamill, S., & Pedersen, J. Tentative title: Student learning and ICT in first year experience class: results of a study using the ETS test for information competence. In progress.
• Thompson, S., & Sonntag, G. (Forthcoming). Tentative title: The teaching Library at CSUSM. B.Schader (Ed.), Learning commons: Evolution and Collaborative Essentials. Oxford: Chandos Publishing.
• Sonntag, G., and Palsson, F. (2007). "No longer the sacred cow-no longer a desk: transforming reference service to meet 21st century user needs." Library Philosophy and Practice, available at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ libphilprac/111.
• Sonntag, G. (2006). La alfabetización informacional y la formación bibliotecaria: diferencias e impacto en la educación universitaria. La Biblioteca Pública, espacio ciudadano: Actas, III Congreso Nacional de Bibliotecas Públicas. Madrid: Ministerio de Cultura.
• Sonntag, G. (2006). Evidence-based Assessment in Information Literacy Programs. J. Cortés & B. Mears (Eds.), Implementación de programas de alfabetización informativa: contextos y experiencias. México: Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez.
• Sonntag, G. (2006). "In Search of Excellence: Qualities of a Library Teaching Model." S. Curzon and L. Lampert (Eds.), Proven Strategies for Building an Information Literacy Program. Neal-Schuman. Expected publication in fall 2007.