NCLA Con 2025

As we move past the hype (and perhaps the fears) regarding generative AI, we believe that implications and best practices for using AI in information literacy and literature searching are becoming clearer. This presentation provides overviews and case studies of how three academic librarians are navigating AI in research and library instruction via their research projects, classes, and liaison work. This talk should be useful for any library worker involved in information literacy, research consultations, and scholarly communication. The speakers will leave time to engage the audience, inviting them to offer their own lessons learned and best practices, as well as ask questions and even provide pushback. Our topics will include an overview of Scite.AI, Litmaps, and other scholarly literature products; use of general LLMs like ChatGPT in research and the classroom; an overview of vendor AIs including ProQuest, Scopus, and Statista; and a comparison of an AI-integrated research process to a more traditional research process. We will share our lessons learned, best practices, recommendations, and concerns for any librarian using these tools with their patrons and students. Ophelia has been conducting an IRB-approved research study of undergraduate and graduate students' experience of using AI for scholarly literature searching. Morgan is working with graduate students in a client consulting project to utilize AI in information discovery, analysis, and strategy. Steve has his entrepreneurship research students explore using AI for data discovery, and is now an administrator and trainer of a Scite.AI subscription for his business school. All three of us also have our students engage with the ethical aspects of generative AI. Questions we have been exploring include: What is the impact on students' research abilities in finding, analyzing, and synthesizing information? Do AI tools complement or replace library databases? How do the tools facilitate literature reviews, including evidence synthesis? How do students perceive the value and reliability of AI tools? How are students responding to librarian-led instruction on AI tools, and how does the instruction shape their approach to research and information evaluation? Are scholarly AI tools worth the money? Can they replace Google Scholar? Or Scopus and Web of Science?

Book challenges are not a new phenomenon, but today's intellectual freedom landscape presents unprecedented challenges for library workers and educators. To explore these complexities, we developed a semester-long First Year Seminar at Wake Forest University titled Who's Afraid of the Big Banned Books? Through this course, we engaged with Gen Z students in dynamic discussions about censorship, intellectual freedom, and the broader societal impact of book bans. Using I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Winston Salem's most famous poet, Maya Angelou, as a case study, our class analyzed historical examples of book challenges and bans, including the social and political context of these book challenges. We compared this analysis of historic book challenges to current examples selected from challenges being tracked by NCLA's Intellectual Freedom Committee to look for trends in censorship efforts in the United States over time and elements that are unique to the intellectual freedom landscape today. While we were familiar with these issues, our Gen Z students' perspectives deepened our understanding in unexpected ways. In this session, we'll share key insights from our experience and discuss how they can inform library messaging, advocacy strategies, mission statements, and outreach efforts for all library types.

Librarians are creating more asynchronous online content, services, and workshop sessions than ever before in higher education, and many of these products are made using Springshare products. The ability to tell the story of how libraries meet the needs of patrons (including online and distance) through their Springshare solutions is essential as we continue to navigate through this dynamic and transformative era of librarianship. This presentation will provide an introduction to Springshare, LibGuides, and LibWizard; analytics on the backend and then offer other methods of non-native quantitative assessment of LibGuides and LibWizard tutorials. We will cover three assessment projects: looking at web statistics on how patrons are entering LibGuides, an accessibility audit of LibGuides, and assessing interactive tutorials in LibWizard. This presentation will provide a blueprint for asynchronous assessment strategies for all librarians that can be adapted based on each team's institution and needs. Though this presentation is focused on Springshare products, the elements of quantitative assessment presented can be applied to other websites and online learning materials. This presentation will be interactive and include time at the end for questions and answers.

Libraries are constantly evolving to meet the needs of their communities, and book clubs and readers' advisory services are no exception. Today's readers expect more than just book recommendations - they crave deeper engagement, diverse perspectives, and access to content that enhances their reading experience. Gale Literature Resource Center, often viewed as an academic research tool, is an underutilized resource for public libraries that offers a wealth of materials to support and enrich programming. With primary source sets, author interviews, scholarly articles, and even podcasts, this database provides valuable historical and contemporary insights that can spark meaningful discussions in book clubs and enhance readers' advisory services. This session will explore how libraries can integrate these resources to create richer, more dynamic book club discussions and connect patrons with literary works in new ways. Presenters will showcase practical strategies, such as using primary source sets to provide historical context or incorporating author interviews and podcasts to connect readers with contemporary voices. Attendees will receive discussion prompts, hands-on demonstrations, and concrete ideas for making their library's programs more engaging and impactful. Beyond the tools themselves, this session will also highlight the value of collaboration between vendors and library consortia in meeting the changing needs of member libraries. By working together, we can ensure that libraries have access to high-quality, curated content that not only supports traditional book-related services but also expands their role as community hubs for learning and conversation. Whether you're looking to reinvigorate an existing book club or enhance your library's approach to readers' advisory, this session will provide actionable insights and materials to help you navigate the future of programming in both in-person and virtual environments.

The NCLA Leadership Institute is a fantastic opportunity for librarians who currently serve (or hope to someday serve) in leadership roles. Participants build skills in leadership and mentoring, cultivate an improved understanding of themselves and others, and are inspired to serve in leadership roles within the library profession at local, state, and national levels. This session will feature several past Leadership Institute participants, who will share their experiences briefly before opening the floor to questions. This is a chance for those who are considering applying to the Institute to learn more!

The Source Evaluation Taste Test is an interactive, innovative program that can be adapted for patrons of all ages and backgrounds. This session explores how library programs can incorporate playful, hands-on methods to promote information literacy, while also fostering meaningful connections between patrons and library staff. Through creative use of food-themed metaphors and engaging activities, the program encourages curiosity, critical thinking, and collaboratio-supporting both academic and personal growth. The learning outcomes for this program are to: Improve critical thinking and information literacy skills. Increase confidence in identifying credible and relevant information. Create an interactive, engaging learning environment. Support independent, lifelong learning through the use of library resources. The presentation will be structured as follows: A walkthrough of the Source Evaluation Taste Test program, including examples and materials used. A discussion of how the program aligns with both public and academic library environments. A breakdown of how this program intersects with core areas of library work, including instruction, outreach, programming, and the use of simple technologies. Ideas for adapting the program into a series that meets the needs of different user groups, including teens, first-year college students, and adult learners. The goal of this proposal is to demonstrate how a flexible, engaging program like this can be adapted and reimagined across various library settings. As an early-career librarian, I've used this workshop as a way to meet students where they are, and it's been well-received. I believe it offers other librarians a creative and approachable way to reconnect patrons with the library-especially in times of transition, when staffing changes or gaps in instruction may have left users feeling disconnected. This session ties directly to the conference theme, Books and Beyond: Navigating New Frontiers, by helping patrons think more critically about the information they consume-where it comes from, how to evaluate it, and how to confidently move through an increasingly complex information landscape. As libraries continue to evolve and face new challenges, including the spread of mis- and disinformation, changing technology, and shifting community needs-programs like this offer a way forward. They help library workers support digital and information literacy in ways that are both accessible and meaningful. Additionally, this program can be used to highlight and center diverse voices and collections, making it a valuable tool for advancing equity, inclusion, and representation. For libraries looking to reengage underrepresented groups or promote DEI-related resources in a fun, low-barrier format, this program offers a flexible starting point. The Source Evaluation Taste Test blends creativity, instruction, and community-building while equipping library staff with tools to reach users wherever they are on their information journey.

Family Portraits started with a familiar missional goal: identify what holes exist for our local community in availability, access, and impact, and find a way to provide meaningful service in that space. What began as a utilitarian opportunity to leverage existing Library resources in meeting a community need has blossomed into the Library's most expansive recurring annual program, serving nearly 500 families since its inception in 2021. Starting in 2021, each fall a staff member transforms the underutilized Library Conference Room, crafting multiple festive, nonsectarian backdrops comprised entirely from materials on hand from Library storage or on loan from staff. In patrons' twenty-minute appointment slots, a Library staff member stages the family/individual and shoots photos in various combinations of backgrounds, poses, and props (as determined by the patrons prior). Afterward, the staff member uses free, open-source software to edit the best shots in the same vein a professional photographer would, delivering around a dozen card-ready edits along with any usable unedited photos to the patron digitally via cloud storage. While time-intensive for the staff member responsible for the set-up, staging, shooting, and editing, the program operates on an almost non-existent budget and is easily replicable year-over-year at libraries of any size. As the program entered its fourth year in 2024, word-of-mouth exposure increased significantly, particularly after the program was recognized at a state level by the NC Public Library Directors Association. Following the most ambitious year of the program from a patron availability standpoint (2023), and adding in that the programming staff member responsible for staging, shooting, editing, and delivering the photos would be leaving in the middle of the program's normal editing season for paternity leave, significant innovation proved necessary to slash down staff time investment if the program was to remain available to serve the community. The first step in streamlining was to completely overhaul the patron registration process. Staff enacted a new-look online registration in 2024 as a prerequisite to book an appointment. Under the new system, a custom link (available as QR codes throughout the building and hyperlinked on Library web/social media pages), directed patrons to a one-stop web experience where they could: maximize photoshoot time by filling out all their information; access the full rules, guidelines, and suggestions for enjoying the program; utilize a full catalog-style collection of family portraits from previous years, as well as photos of the backdrop options, to custom order the poses and placements they wanted for their shoot; and, especially important given the staffing circumstances of the program, select whether they preferred to ensure photo delivery by November first (whether edited or not), or wait for the full set of edited photos after the holidays. Another key change instituted in 2024 proved pivotal in slashing editing time, and thus enhancing the capacity of the program: the addition of photography lights. Investing in a set of low-end studio-style photography lights (approximately $50) allowed the staff photographer to better control the shooting environment prior to taking the photos, which cut the largest parts of the photo editing (lighting and color adjustments) out, taking the average edit time down from around ten minutes to less than three. A third key innovation-the addition of a color-neutral background option-while seemingly a flippant addition, provided an unexpected increase in access.

Libraries serve as pivotal community hubs, offering spaces where individuals of all ages can learn, engage, and celebrate cultural traditions together. This session delves into the development and execution of multigenerational cultural programming, emphasizing its significance in strengthening community bonds. Using the Traditions of Ramadan & Eid series as a case study, participants will gain insights into: Program Development; Steps to conceptualize and design inclusive cultural events that resonate with diverse audiences. Outreach Strategies: Effective methods to engage various community segments, ensuring widespread participation. Partnership Building: Techniques to collaborate with local organizations, businesses, and cultural groups to enhance program authenticity and reach. Attendees will leave with actionable strategies, templates, and resources to replicate multigenerational cultural programming in their own libraries. Whether you're just starting out or looking to enhance your library's approach to inclusive community engagement, this session will provide you with the tools and inspiration needed to bring meaningful cultural programming to life.  

Play, Learn and Explore: A Park Adventure Guide is a booklet created in collaboration between Librarians at the Cary Regional Library and the staff of the Downtown Cary Park. The booklet uses the framework of Every Child Ready to Read to guide caregivers and children on an early literacy adventure throughout the park. Using rhymes and songs, conversation prompts, coloring pages, word searches and themed book lists, the booklet helps caregivers interact with their child in proven ways to encourage literacy while having fun. In our presentation we will share the process of forming this collaboration with the Downtown Cary Park and the steps we took to get a printed booklet in people's hands. We will also discuss the various opportunities and problems that arose and how we ultimately ended with both a product and a partnership that helps increase library visitation and encourages early childhood literacy. As Children's Librarians, we understand the importance of early childhood literacy. Our presentation will share how librarians can create tools using Every Child Ready to Read so caregivers can partake every day in developing a child's love of reading. These tools can then be used to engage people all across our community and beyond the library's doors. By partnering with a community park, we have not only created a mutually beneficial relationship, but an opportunity for an outside entity to be an advocate for the importance of public libraries. 

As archivists and curators of special collections, we encounter items and collections that give us pause. Whether it is an artifact that has preservation/conservation issues, a collection with politically or culturally charged language, digitized or born digital materials that present access and management problems, or even physical or online storage challenges, these issues cause us to pause and explore how to best handle each individual circumstance, incorporating imaginative methodologies, along with best practices, to ensure the safety, longevity, and fair use of our collections. Panelists will discuss their experiences stewarding complex and niche collections, including challenges and opportunities they have confronted, and their approaches to dealing with them. Preservation, intellectual control, legal, and ethical concerns will all be discussed. There will also be time for audience members to share their own stories of archival challenges and how they were met.

In efforts to build a sustainable partnership between Winston-Salem's Crossnore Communities for Children, Wake Forest University's (WFU) Z. Smith Reynolds (ZSR) Library is welcoming new students to Anderson Academy, Crossnore's public charter school opening in August 2025 with the Welcome! Back to School Project. The event consists of two components: a book drive establishing start-up classroom libraries and a back to school event promoting fellowship among students and teachers. This project was made possible by grant funding and institutional commitments to cultivating community partnerships. Anderson Academy's 2025 enrollment model includes K-4 students in the foster care system and who have experienced some form of abuse or adversity. The curriculum takes a holistic approach to trauma-informed care and commits to building safe and dependable environments for this inherently unique student body. Anderson will not have a media center in its first years of operation, so this project will make a significant impact to the potential literacy development for new students. The International Literacy Association recommends school libraries provide a minimum of 20 books per child for both in-class and at-home use. Grant funding and an accompanying book drive is intended to provide 500 books amounting to nearly 25% of the recommended number of books in Anderson classroom libraries before the first day of classes. The project will culminate with a Welcome! Back to School party celebrating new students, administrators, and faculty with food, activities, and gifts. During the party, students will not only be introduced to their classroom libraries, they will also receive a new backpack to start their school year. The party will take place at Anderson Academy prior to the first day of classes and provide a great opportunity to connect students with teachers in an informal and festive format. Several partnerships and funding opportunities are making the project possible. First the ZSR Innovation Grant and the WFU Center for Literacy Engagement's (CLE) Diverse Book Grant are funding the purchase of 250 books as well as party supplies and giveaways. Second, ZSR employees and WFU student organizations are donating books as outlined by an age- and culturally-appropriate book title list developed by WFU's children's librarian. Donation choices are facilitated by local and independent bookseller Squarespace store development with discounted purchasing options. Lastly, employees can donate cash through Venmo or PayPal applications. Beyond building a relationship with our nextdoor neighbor, the intent with this project is to create multidisciplinary partnership opportunities between Anderson Academy, ZSR, and ultimately WFU. Potential future engagement endeavors can include instructional sessions, student mentoring and tutoring programs, and campus and library tours all in the effort to support ZSR's commitment to literacy development, Crossnore's mission to facilitate healthy futures for children and families, and WFU's guiding philosophy of "pro humanite". This panel session intends to include key partners from ZSR, Anderson Academy, and WFU responsible for the project's success. By the time of this session, specific project outcomes will be available including book drive and student participation metrics. 

Based off viral internet book clubs like Dracula Daily, ECU's Joyner library started our own digital book club. Using public domain literature and open access photos we divided each story into bite-sized sections and emailed them out to students, faculty, and staff on campus who signed up for the newsletter. This session will share successes and failures from our first two years running this program as well as detail how we navigated logistics, marketed the program, and continue to work to ensure diverse and inclusive voices while using 100+ year old texts. Having now used a novel, short stories, poems, and non-fiction essays in different semesters this session will also discuss the pros and cons of each format and how we are hoping to improve in the future.

Libraries are always looking for new and innovative opportunities to serve the needs of their patrons. Adding manga to an academic library's collection offers an invaluable opportunity to promote inclusivity, diversity, and accessibility within higher education environments. As a distinct medium that blends art and narrative, manga has garnered significant global popularity, transcending cultural boundaries and appealing to a broad range of readers. The incorporation of manga into academic library collections supports the educational and social goals of inclusivity by offering a broader, more diverse spectrum of content that reflects various lived experiences and viewpoints. This collection management project started by creating and expanding the library's popular reading collection. The idea was to provide students with an opportunity to use the library for more than just studying. They are given the chance to make recommendations for the collection by commenting on social media posts or sharing them at events like the annual connect fair (an event for freshmen to explore the different departments and clubs on campus). Through these interactions, we found a need to expand the collection to include manga. The addition of manga to an academic library collection does pose some unusual challenges, particularly in terms of classification and cataloging. Popular manga titles are increasingly being made available in public libraries, but only a relatively small number of academic libraries have begun adding them to their collections. While many manga MARC records do contain call numbers, these are invariably either Dewey Decimal system call numbers or PZ call numbers under LC classification. Gardner-Webb has tried to move away from using PZ call numbers for all but children's books, so we need to assign our own LC call numbers to almost all incoming manga series titles. Further complicating matters is the fact that manga can be assigned LC call numbers based on different criteria by different institutions - by collection name, by author, by title, etc. There seems to be a lack of consistency in cataloging practice among academic libraries, and a lack of non-PZ LC call numbers in existing MARC records inhibits the addition of manga titles by copy cataloging alone. This poses a real challenge to academic libraries who may no longer have an experienced catalog librarian on staff.

The hoopla and intentionality with which many library outreach programs are pitched to undergraduate students are not always replicated for graduate students, especially when their numbers are small. Direct outreach to grad students may only come at the end of their time at the institution through support around theses and dissertations. Inadvertently, libraries may be overlooking a population with diverse support needs that go beyond graduation checklist steps - we certainly were! Our targeted support for graduate students began 16 years ago when the library launched our institutional repository and the Graduate School began requiring students to submit electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). Our scholarly communication committee advised on the technical steps for submission and hosted a workshop to introduce students to the system and answer questions. Hiring a Scholarly Communication Librarian in 2009 enabled the library to provide expert guidance to students around copyright and fair use and to faculty advisors who were skeptical of the benefits of open access for ETDs. After learning about graduate student boot camps at ACRL 2017, we expanded support for graduate students that fall semester with the creation of a graduate student boot camp hosted by the library during the University's fall break. We offered sessions on addressing writer's block, time management, copyright and open access, research databases, and citation tools. To encourage participation, we included coffee and lunch for participants. We partnered with both the writing center and learning assistance office to help lead the sessions and received funding from the library and Graduate School. Over the eight boot camps we have hosted, survey feedback has allowed us to tailor the boot camp to the needs of the students, changing the time of the event, the workshops offered, and even the menu for lunch! Most recently, in 2024, through internal restructuring, we created a new liaison librarian position, part of whose time is dedicated to outreach to and support of graduate students. This new position works with the University's team that prepares and conducts graduate student orientation and represents the library on a University collaborative team that brings together staff who support graduate students from across the campus. Additionally, this librarian offers workshops on research and citation management to graduate students both on campus and in online graduate programs. This expanded outreach aligns with the library's commitment to improving student study spaces, which included relocating the graduate student lounge to a suite with a printer, kitchenette, and snack station. Building from our support around theses and dissertations preparation and submission, we slowly crafted an outreach program for our graduate students. Given that our initial in-road for support came at graduation, we grew our program from end to beginning and now offer a matriculation-to-graduation comprehensive program that provides multifaceted assistance to a critical campus population. Join us for this session, where we will share a scaffolded and replicable model for library support of graduate students that they can customize and implement at their institution.

AI's role in academic libraries predates the rise of generative AI, evolving from early computational tools to today's advanced research applications. This workshop explores the historical trajectory of AI in libraries, from machine-readable cataloging and early expert systems to AI-driven discovery tools and research assistants. By understanding this progression, attendees will gain insight into how AI has transformed information retrieval and academic research support. This session will highlight key developments, discuss current applications in academic databases, and examine best practices for integrating AI responsibly in library services. Through discussion and analysis, participants will leave with a clearer understanding of AI's impact on academic libraries and strategies for navigating its future developments.

In the fast-paced and often demanding environment of library work, staff members face numerous challenges that can impact their professional well-being and success. This session will explore the vital role of mentorship in supporting library staff, with a particular focus on the unique challenges faced by BIPOC employees. While mentorship in libraries is neither a new concept nor a hidden one, it remains underutilized in many library settings. By fostering a culture of mentorship, libraries can create spaces that promote professional growth, emotional support, and retention for all staff members. Join Ciera and Candace as they share their insights from research, and firsthand experience, in both academic and public library environments. They will highlight the positive impact of mentorship programs, discuss strategies for implementing and expanding these programs, and provide practical recommendations for library leaders and staff. Attendees will leave with a better understanding of the importance of mentorship and how it can be used to strengthen and empower library teams, particularly for BIPOC library workers.

Join library staff who have Hoopla Digital collections in an open forum to share experiences and resources for sharing this digital collection with the public. If you don't have Hoopla Digital and would like to learn more, you're welcome as well!

No matter your position, you can cultivate leadership skills by embracing the transformative power of self-awareness and leading with authenticity and purpose. As the NCLA Leadership Institute emphasizes, "Lead from where you are." At the heart of effective leadership is a deep understanding of oneself. In this session, Jenneffer (academic librarian and former public librarian) and Jenny (Assistant Director at a public library and former school library media coordinator) will share their complementary yet distinct leadership journeys. As mentees, mentors, and planning committee members of the NCLA Leadership Institute, they will provide insights into how self-awareness shapes authentic leadership and fosters resilience. Through reflective discussions and interactive exercises, participants will explore how their core values and strengths influence their decision-making, workplace relationships, and leadership effectiveness. Attendees will engage in practical activities designed to deepen self-awareness, assess their leadership styles, and identify actionable steps to enhance their leadership practice. Topics will include the role of self-care in leadership, the importance of setting healthy boundaries, and the power of storytelling in leading with impact. Participants will leave equipped with tools to turn reflection into meaningful action, confidently navigating their leadership journey.This session is ideal for library professionals at any career stage who are eager to strengthen their leadership abilities, foster collaborative environments, and contribute to a culture of growth and innovation. Join Jenny and Jenneffer to discover how intentional self-awareness can empower you and your library to navigate new frontiers of leadership.

Library staff encounter people with trauma histories every day. We don't usually know their stories, but we can approach our patrons and our colleagues with a person-centered, trauma-informed lens. In 2024-2025, Amanda Goldson (librarian at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library) and Rachel Green (licensed clinical social worker at Jewish Family Services) developed and presented 6 training sessions on the PCTI lens to CML staff members. At the same time, Amanda put together a grant-funded, PCTI healing arts series for the public with local artists teaching a variety of media. In this presentation, Amanda and Rachel will talk about the basics of PCTI and what was learned by adapting PCTI to library services and programs.

Library Programs help to bridge the gap between customers, organizations and authors. In my experience, library programs is a safe place for meeting, it opens the doors for new library customers. Programs also lead to lasting partnerships which is a key element to community relations and resources. In keeping with High Point Public Library motto: nurturing the joy of reading, sharing the power of knowledge, strengthening the sense of community, and enhancing cultural economic vitality. I seek to create programs that foster the joy of reading organizing Programs that create a space for connections to be made and lasting friendships to form while educating attendees. Programming such as hosting author events is an excellent way for authors to network with other authors, meet and greet their readers and it's an opportunity for community engagement and promoting education.

As staff members of a statewide library consortium, we see tremendous variations between our member libraries marketing needs. Some library systems have entire marketing and outreach departments; others rely on the precious little free time of their creative staff members. However, one commonality is that many librarians express confusion and frustration about marketing e-resources. Because of these disparities and the lack of existing literature on this topic, we launched a national survey to discover the primary barriers libraries face in promoting e-resources specifically.In this presentation, we will present the findings of our survey and share some of the ways that a diverse sample of libraries approach e-resource marketing. We will also share the primary barriers that libraries reported along with insights into the challenges they face in marketing e-resources. Additionally, we will discuss strategies for fostering collaboration among member libraries to share best practices and resources. By leveraging the strengths of larger institutions and supporting smaller libraries, we aim to create a more equitable framework for e-resource marketing. This session will equip participants with practical recommendations for their own libraries and an understanding of how library consortia can help address these challenges and make marketing e-resources more effective for all types of libraries.

Damarius and Sauda will be in conversation sharing stories from the NAACP Image Award-nominated book, “Picturing Black History: Photographs and Stories That Changed the World”, for which he is a contributor and editor. Damarius will be available following the presentation to sign copies of his book. Bookmarks of Winston-Salem will have copies on hand to sell.