[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 15030]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING MRS. OMELIA McKINNEY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 19, 2012

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 
remarkable librarian, Omelia McKinney. Omelia was born and reared on a 
plantation in Bourbon, Mississippi, to John Fred and Nancy Johnson. In 
January 1964 she and her family of five brothers and five sisters 
relocated to Mound Bayou, Mississippi where she resides today. She is a 
member of St. Mark Church of God in Christ in Mound Bayou, Mississippi. 
Her maternal grandparents Lem and Elsie Frye passed on a legacy of 
holiness that left the family without excuse when it comes to 
salvation. Her paternal grandparents Marshall, Sr. and Sarah were also 
devout people of God.
  Omelia always liked to read even as a small child. Her dad taught her 
to read when she was three years old. He was a great supporter of his 
children obtaining an education even though he did not get his high 
school diploma until 1966. Her love for books led her to reading 
centers in elementary school where she read every book she could get 
her hands on and later to the library where she read so many books that 
the librarian gave her special permission to check out as many books as 
she liked. Upon graduating from Coahoma Junior College, in Clarksdale, 
Mississippi in 1969 with an Associates of Arts Degree in Social 
Studies, she furthered her education at Delta State College where she 
earned a Bachelor of Science in Education. She taught in Social Studies 
in the Quitman County School District while pursuing a master's degree 
at Delta State University in library science.
  After receiving a master of library science degree in 1974 from Delta 
State University, Omelia McKinney began her career as a high school 
library media specialist at John F. Kennedy High School in Mound Bayou, 
Mississippi. She was a professional library media specialist who had a 
broad understanding of the educational system and worked closely with 
teachers, administrators and students in selecting and evaluating 
materials to support the instructional program.
  Omelia was dedicated to the children of John F. Kennedy High and made 
great strides toward educating them in the use of media such as 
reading, research, audiovisual production and many other useful 
instruments that would assist the students to succeed. Students were 
also given comprehensive tests to measure their skills which they did 
excel.
  In the early 1990s, she wrote a mini grant which she used to purchase 
the first multimedia computer in the Mound Bayou School District. Upon 
receiving the computer she was aware she did not know what to do with 
it. However, she was determined to learn and solicited two students who 
were avid computer users to give her lessons. She took that knowledge 
and later became one of the best computer users in the district, using 
her knowledge to help her co-workers as well as many students.
  After serving the Mound Bayou Public Schools for 26 years, she 
applied and was accepted to the North Bolivar School District in 
Shelby, Mississippi as their high school library media specialist. She 
continued the job she loved so much for another three years until her 
retirement in 2004. A year after retirement she took a position as 
branch librarian in Shelby, Mississippi at the public library. There 
she was helpful in bringing great improvements to the public library. 
After leaving the Shelby public library, Omelia returned to Broad 
Street High School in 2006 to work as a part time library media 
specialist. Her plan and goal was to help children improve their 
reading and research skills by utilizing the great resources of the 
library through fun and interactive activities.
  Omelia uses her skills as a library media specialist in her role as 
the reading fair coordinator for the North Bolivar School District. 
Students she has worked with have won district, regional, and state 
honors for the past four years. She enjoys her job, students and her 
co-workers.
  Omelia's profession as a librarian has had a positive impact on her 
husband of 37 years, Claude McKinney. During Mr. McKinney's tenure as 
an educator he utilized research and other knowledge to enhance his 
students' learning abilities. The couple has four children, Desmond, 
Sheri, Preamiller and Tanjanikia McKinney.

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