Currrently working and living in Moscow, Russia

c/o 155 April Point Place, Montgomery, TX 77356

(936) 588-1437 / Skype: libraryjohn / Email: johnmbishop@gmail.com

2011           Post graduate PhD program in Religious Studies at the University of TomsØ in Norway.

2006           New Zealand Teacher Certification. 

1991-1992      MLIS  Graduated with a Master's Degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Texas at Austin.    

1985-1986   Obtained Texas Secondary Teacher Certification in the fields of Spanish and English.  Graduate level course work at the University of Houston's school of Education, in the Curriculum and Instruction Department, with a major in Reading and Language Arts.

1983           Graduate hours in Spanish obtained from the University of Houston.

1979-1983   BA  Graduated Cum Laude from the University of St. Thomas, in Houston, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in both Spanish and Philosophy.  Awarded the Outstanding Student Award by the Spanish Department.

1982           Studied in Mérida, México with the University of St. Thomas' summer program.

1979-1982   Attended St. Mary's Catholic Seminary in Houston, Texas.

1978-1979   Attended the Curso de Orientación Universitaria at the Colegio de Nuestra Señora de la Merced in Madrid, Spain as an exchange student.

1976           Studied as an exchange student in Tampico, México.

2010-Date   Secondary Librarian for the Anglo-American School of Moscow in Russia.  In charge of the Middle School and High School library at the school, as well as giving professional oversight to the sister school in St. Petersburg.  Responsible for all library budgets in the school, as well as the administration, collection development, work plan, customer service, management of staffing, and curriculum support for the secondary school library.

2008-2010   Assistant County Librarian for Mendocino County, California.  Senior management position responsible for operations and services in a six branch rural library system.  Supervision of all branch management staff, and manage all operations and services of the main branch facility.  Responsible for budget planning and administration, policy writing, work plan, customer service, personnel, and marketing.  I woked with the Library Director on strategic planning, reorganizing, and budget forecasting in a time of great financial challenges, which resulted in the inevitable laying off of my position.

2007-2008   Customer Services Manager for Hutt City Libraries, in Lower Hutt, New Zealand.  Senior management position responsible for operations and services in all eight libraries in the system.  Directly supervise three managers, who in turn manage 100 employees.  Responsible for: policy; procedure; reporting; recruiting and hiring staff; training; budget reporting and administration; strategic, project, and operational management.  Recently saw the organization through the completion of a restructure.

2006-2007   Head Librarian at the Ras Al Khaimah English Speaking School in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates.  Responsible for all the library services and curriculum support from Preschool to grade 13.  Supervision of staff, curriculum development, bibliographic instruction, budgeting, fundraising, collection development, acquisitions and public services.  Came to the library on temporary contract to help build the library’s collection and to create policies and procedures to bring the library into compliance with accrediting requirements.  Also worked to develop plans for two new library facilities to be built in the Emirate.

2001-2006   Head Librarian at the American International School of Bucharest in Romania.  Responsible for all the library services and curriculum support for the IB program from Preschool-12.  Supervision of employees, curriculum development, bibliographic instruction, budgeting, collection development, acquisitions and public services.  Moved the library into a new campus facility, and combined three campus libraries into one unified collection.  Automated the collection, and created webpage and access to web-based catalog. 

1996-2001   Senior Librarian for the Chula Vista Public Library System, and Branch Manager for the Civic Center Branch Library.  I have also served as Branch Manager for the EastLake Branch Library.  The EastLake Branch is a combined-use facility with the Sweetwater Independent School District.  Duties included: project and branch management; supervision of 15 employees; management of public services and customer relations; building operations manager; budget planning and maintenance; selection and weeding of materials; grant writing; programming; outreach and marketing; reporting and reference work.

1995-1996   Project Manager for Digital Equipment Corporation's Project Enterprise.  Duties included overseeing the preparation, design, implementation and evaluation of computer network installations in various Citicorp business facilities.  Supervised and coordinated all Project Enterprise installation sites in the Western Region of the U.S.  Managed financial, inventory, procurement, customer relations and personnel issues at various Project Enterprise sites.   DEC no longer exists as it was acquired by Compaq and subsequently merged with Hewlett-Packard.

1995           Senior Librarian for the Chula Vista Public Library System.  Assistant manager for a large regional branch library four miles from the Mexican border.  Participated in the opening of this new branch.  Duties included the supervision and training of 18 staff members; management of the library's Information and Reader Services Department; management of a networked computer lab; collection development and management; administration of the Department's budget; adult and children's programming; outreach and marketing; system-wide advocate for adult reference services; reporting and reference work.

1994-1995   Youth Services Librarian in the Branch Services Department of the San Diego Public Library System.  Duties included outreach and programming, general reference and branch services.  In charge of public computers.  Helped move the branch into the new library facility.  Named to the Outreach Subcommittee of the system's Development Committee, and worked as a presenter with the San Diego/Tijuana Transborder Librarian's Conference. 

1992-1993   Director of the Woolworth Community Library in Jal, New Mexico, a combination School and Public Library which is privately funded and houses a collection of some 35,000 volumes.  The library includes a remote collection housed in a senior citizen's annex also owned by the library's trust fund.  Duties included: supervising library functions; creating and administering budget; marketing; grant writing and administration; creating and publishing a monthly Spanish language newsletter; Coordinating staff training; supervising two full time and two part time employees; collection development; public speaking; creating a curriculum guide for bibliographic instruction; creating a library manual of procedures, practices and goals; writing an American's with Disabilities Act self evaluation for the library; teaching secondary classes; strategic planning; and automating the library's catalog, circulation procedures, interlibrary loan procedures and serial collection. 

1990-1991   Worked full time as the secretary to the Chancellor of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Victoria, Texas, and as the Administrative Assistant for the Tribunal Office.  Duties included: database management; clerical functions; records management; translation; organization of curial book collections; processing legal casework for local hearings and Appellate Court review; transcription; word processing; report writing; coordinating docket schedule and appointing judges and advocates.

1989-1990   Part time assistant librarian at the Yoakum Public Library in Yoakum, Texas.  Duties included: automation of circulation system; circulation of materials; reference; inter-library loan; word processing; maintenance of vertical files; writing reports; grant writing; assistance with collection development; translation; some supervision of volunteers; some cataloging; technical services; graphic and slide presentations; database management.

1986-1989   Full time teacher of Spanish and English at Moulton High School in Moulton, Texas.  Duties included: teaching all high school Spanish and English courses, assisting with curriculum development guides and textbook selection; coordinating club activities and extra-curricular competition in Speech and Debate.

1983-1985   Full time Tax Librarian for Vinson and Elkins, Attorneys at Law in Houston, Texas.  Duties included: shelving; filing; reference; Lexis and Westlaw searching; ordering and maintaining collection of tax forms; cooperative lending with other satellite libraries, other private law libraries and with the County Law Library as needed.

Association for Rural and Small Libraries / New Zealand teaching certification / North American Association for the Study of Religion / American Academy of Religion / Society for the Scientific Study of Religion / United Religions Initiative (Affiliate Member)  / SERRA Young Adult Services Committee / Leadership Chula Vista 98 (Chula Vista Chamber of Commerce) Co-Chair / Reforma (Library Services to the Spanish Speaking) / President of Libros (San Diego chapter of Reforma) / New Mexico Library Association (Educational Scholarship Committee, Long Range Planning Committee) / New Mexico Library Certification / Texas Secondary Teacher Certification for English and Spanish / New Mexico Teacher Certification for Libraries and Media Centers /  American Library Association (Intellectual Freedom Round Table, Independent Librarians Exchange Round Table, International Relation Round Table) / Public Library Association / Special Libraries Association / Austin Writer's League / Houston Area Law Librarians' Association, Co-editor of association newsletter / Director, Co-Editor and contributor to the University of St. Thomas' Spanish literary magazine, Saeta / Aquinas Honor Society / President of Sigma Delta Pi (Spanish Honor Society) / President of El Club Hispánico.