Kaitlin Malixi: Leading NEIA’s Libraries, GOA, and Passion Dive
Kaitlin Malixi describes her role at NEIA simply: “My official title is the Director of Libraries and Learning Commons… but many know me as the librarian.” To NEIA, Malixi is much more than a librarian. She is an educator, mentor, and leader of student-driven learning. With over 20 years of experience in public and school libraries, she has dedicated her career to helping students access information, develop research skills, and pursue their passions through innovative programs like Global Online Academy (GOA) and Passion Dive.
A Career Built on Learning and Teaching
Malixi’s journey into libraries started early. “I started volunteering in a public library when I was 14,” she recalls. Originally, she studied to become a teacher but eventually found herself back in libraries, working in almost every position possible. “I’ve done everything from cataloging to collection management, reference services,” she explains, with much of her time focused on youth and children’s services.
Despite her love for libraries, Malixi missed being in the classroom. “I was very proactive in asking for teaching duties,” she says. This passion for instruction led her to teach high school English for several years before realizing she could combine both worlds by becoming a school librarian. NEIA offered the perfect opportunity: “I get to basically build the collection from scratch,” she says, while also playing an active role in students’ academic growth.
Expanding Learning Through Global Online Academy
One of Malixi’s key responsibilities is serving as NEIA’s site director for Global Online Academy (GOA), an online platform offering students access to courses beyond the school’s curriculum. “We can’t offer everything at our current size, but we want to be able to offer kids things that they’re interested in,” she explains.
GOA provides over 65 courses, most of them asynchronous, allowing students to engage with teachers and classmates from around the world. “They could have classmates in Bogotá, Colombia, or Japan,” she says, emphasizing the global nature of the program. These courses also help students develop essential skills. “They have to figure out how to keep themselves on track… It’s very much like a college course.”
As site director, Malixi acts as a bridge between students and their GOA instructors. “Every time something is graded in any one of the classes, I get an email,” she notes, ensuring she stays informed on students’ progress. “If one of the kids is like, ‘Oh, I’m having trouble accessing this,’ I can see the back end of all of their classes and help them navigate.”
Passion Dive: Independent Learning in Action
Malixi also leads NEIA’s Passion Dive program, which allows students to design and pursue independent study projects. “It’s our version of independent study,” she explains. To participate, students submit proposals outlining their learning goals, which Malixi and her colleague review. Once approved, students take ownership of their projects. “They are their own teacher,” she emphasizes.
Students create a curriculum for themselves, defining key questions and mapping out their timeline. “They have to create what I call an artifact directory—basically, a chronicle of their process throughout the semester,” she says. The final product varies, “It could be a portfolio of their process, an exhibition of their photography, a journal of their research, or even a small business they’ve grown,” Malixi explains.
A key component of Passion Dive is mentorship. “They pick a staff member to be their mentor assessor,” Malixi explains, adding that faculty members provide guidance and feedback along the way. She also ensures that students engage in self-reflection. “How is this going? How do I need to revise where I’m thinking based on what I’ve done so far?” She prompts students, mirroring real-world learning and inquiry.
More Than NEIA’s Librarian
In addition to her work with GOA and Passion Dive, Malixi teaches PIN classes for middle schoolers, focusing on research, media literacy, and digital skills. She also teaches a high school elective on young adult literature, exploring censorship, literary merit, and the evolving landscape of books written for teens.
Reflecting on her work, Malixi highlights what she loves most: “Librarians tend to know everybody and get to meet and talk with everybody, which is the thing that I love.” Whether she’s helping a student navigate an online course, refine a passion dive, or decide what books to add to our library, she fosters a culture of curiosity and critical thinking.
Malixi is shaping NEIA’s library and learning programs into something far beyond bookshelves.
