Live Sessions 10:30 AM-11:00 AM ET| Visit the Exhibits 11:00 AM-11:40 AM ET| Opening Keynote The cosponsor of the Congressional $2 billion Library Stabilization Fund Act to support libraries during and after COVID-19 will address the crucial role of libraries to our nationwide COVID recovery, both social and economic. Andrew Levin, U.S. Representative for Michigan's 9th congressional district
11:45 AM-12:30 PM ET| Safety First This live session will discuss the development and implementation of the Toledo-Lucas County Library’s staff safety–focused plan to reopen during COVID, the origins of the Reopening Libraries, Archives, and Museums (REALM) collaboration between CML, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, OCLC, and the Battelle research organization to determine the lifespan of the virus on library materials, what it has found, and next steps. Jason Kucsma, Executive Director/Fiscal Officer, Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, OH Pat Losinski, CEO, Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML), OH Will Richter, Principal Research Scientist, Battelle Memorial Institute, OH Moderator: Meredith Schwartz, LJ Editor-in-Chief
12:30 PM-1:15 PM ET| Break to Visit the Exhibits 1:15 PM-1:55 PM ET| Advocating for Library Budgets in Times of Austerity The economic fallout from the continuing pandemic is putting states, counties, and cities in a tough spot where they must make deep cuts or raise taxes on a population already experiencing hardship. Meanwhile, as in any recession, users need the library more than ever to help with finding new jobs, getting reliable health information to make informed medical decisions, participating in the census, supporting students new to remote learning, and more. The stakes have never been higher for library funding advocates. In this live session Chrastka will highlight key strategies for making your case when cuts are on the table, and take your questions. John Chrastka, Founder and Executive Director, EveryLibrary
2:00 PM-2:45 PM ET| The Library’s Role in the Community’s Recovery Crucial as libraries are to surviving the pandemic and all the other challenges of 2020, they don’t have to go it alone. In this live session, panelists will address how libraries can and should integrate into the larger strategic planning and implementation of their communities’ strategies to achieve shared goals. Jill Bourne, City Librarian of San José, CA Ayub Khan MBE, Head of Universal Services, Warwickshire County Council, UK Moderator: Lisa Peet, LJ News Editor
2:45 PM-3:15 PM ET| Break to Visit the Exhibits 3:15 PM-3:55 PM ET| Strategies to Narrow the Digital Divide Many patrons rely on their libraries for broadband access, but during the COVID pandemic, branches are often closed to the public. This live panel will share replicable ways that libraries can provide access offsite or after hours, keeping their communities connected. Betsy Fowler, Director, Williamsburg Regional Library, VA Mary Hastler, CEO, Harford County Public Library, MD Moderator: Matt Enis, LJ Senior Technology Editor
4:00 PM-4:40 PM ET| Closing Keynote: Hold, Fold, Walk, Run: A Playbook for Leadership in the Time of a Pandemic Faced with leading the world’s oldest and largest library association through a pandemic which arrived on U.S. shores one week after she became the American Library Association’s tenth executive director, Hall gets real about the ins and outs of change management, organizational realignment, questioning our sacred cows, honest conversations about race in the LIS profession, and why we should never, ever, let a good crisis go to waste. This interactive and candid session is meant to examine the challenge of leadership in situations where decision-making is quick and highly visible, even when control is not entirely in your hands. Tracie D. Hall, Executive Director, American Library Association
Live Zoom Conversations 10:40 AM-11:25 PM ET| Birds of a Feather: Academic Libraries In this informal 40-minute convening, academic librarians and library workers can touch base with their colleagues about the most pressing issues they face, from supporting online, in-person, and hybrid courses (and unexpected toggles between them) to orienting remote first years, OER, falling budgets, and more. Pre-registration is required, details to follow. 11:45 AM-1:15 PM ET| Leading in Uncertain Times This 90-minute convening with breakouts, facilitated by YALSA’s Linda Braun, is for top library leadership. As libraries respond to the pandemic, budget challenges, and urgent calls for a reckoning on racial discrimination, many library administrators are finding their established decision-making processes, policies, and procedures need to be retooled to meet pressing needs while keeping staff and patrons safe. In this interactive Zoom session, directors and assistant directors can work together to diagnose where their systems’ challenges lie, and design potential solutions. Pre-registration is required, details to follow.
1:45 PM-3:15 PM ET| Feedback from the Frontlines This 90-minute convening, facilitated by YALSA’s Linda Braun, is for frontline librarians and other library workers. As the primary point of contact with patrons, frontline staffers have invaluable information on what works. But as library leaders balance the complex calculus of reopening, some workers feel their perspective is getting lost in the shuffle. In this interactive Zoom session, frontline library staff can share their lived experiences and brainstorm what managers need to know and how to make the case for re-thinking library services, policies, and structures for greater equity as well as safety. Pre-registration is required, details to follow.
3:20 PM-4:00 PM ET| Birds of a Feather: Urban Libraries In this informal 40-minute Zoom convening led by Urban Librarians Unite cofounder (and co-Librarian of the Year) Lauren Comito, urban librarians and other urban library workers can discuss with their peers the major issues they are facing. Pre-registration is required, details to follow.
4:05 PM-4:45 PM ET| Birds of a Feature: Rural and Small Town Libraries In this informal 40 minute Zoom convening, librarians and library workers in a rural or small town setting can discuss with their peers the major issues they are facing. Pre-registration is required, details to follow.
4:50 PM-5:30 PM ET| Birds of a Feather: Suburban Libraries In this informal 40-minute Zoom convening, librarians and library workers in a suburban setting can discuss with their peers the major issues they are facing. Pre-registration is required, details to follow.
On-Demand Sessions Available Starting at 10:30 AM ET Antiracism in Libraries In this 45-minute on-demand session, moderated by LJ Associate Editor Stephanie Sendaula, Svetha Hetzler, director of Wisconsin’s Sun Prairie Public Library, will discuss her racial literacy initiative, while Dr. Kawanna Bright of East Carolina University will address antiracism in an academic library setting. Getting the Word Out In this 45-minute on-demand session, Deborah Hakes, director of communications and marketing for the Georgia Public Library Service, will share tools, techniques, and tips for effective marketing of library services during COVID-19 building closures. How to Fact Check the Election (Without Taking Sides) With election season in full swing, the role of libraries as a source of reliable, vetted information for informed democratic participation is more vital than ever. In this 45-minute on-demand session Gary Price, editor of LJ’s INFOdocket, will share a wealth of resources that librarians can use to help their patrons make sense of the messages they receive on social media and elsewhere. Libraries Work! Although employment rates have picked up since the spring, the landscape for job seekers has changed with the pandemic. Libraries are ideally positioned to help adults looking to re-enter the workforce, those who need to add to or polish their skills, and small business owners who have to learn new ways to promote their products. This 45-minute on-demand session, moderated by John Chrastka, founder and executive director of EveryLibrary, will examine a range of programs libraries are using to help patrons find jobs and keep businesses afloat, from help for older job seekers and those with disabilities to multilingual suites of services to mentorships to digital marketing strategies. Panelists include Thomas Fortin, chief of the Main Library, San Francisco Public Library and Rebecca Stavick, executive director of Do Space, Omaha, NE. Open Up In this 45-minute on-demand session Dr. Roland Poellinger, head of eservices - library technologies and systems, Munich Public Library, on openness as a core library ethos and organizing principle: open access, open data, open (unstaffed) library hours, and more. Practical Alternatives to Calling the Police As societal awareness of bias in policing grows, many libraries seek to reduce their dependence on calling the police to ensure that all patrons feel safe and welcome. In this 45-minute on-demand session, librarians Laurel Johnson of Skokie Public Library, IL and Em Lane of Pima County Public Library, AZ will share their experiences with implementing restorative justice practices, peer navigators, on-site nurses, and more. Programming at a Distance In this 45-minute on-demand session, Erica Freudenberger, outreach and marketing consultant for the Southern Adirondack Library System, NY, will highlight the innovative and replicable ways that libraries are reaching their patrons with coronavirus-safe programming that provides education, entertainment, and connection to those otherwise isolated, from outdoor storywalks and scavenger hunts to low tech dial-a-storytimes to interactive virtual escape rooms. |