Speakers

Alexandra Alisauskas (she/her)

University of Calgary Libraries 

Alexandra Alisauskas is a Learning and Engagement Librarian at the University of Calgary. Her current research explores person-centred approaches to library, archival, and information services. She lives and works as a grateful guest on the traditional territories of the people of the Treaty 7 region in southern Alberta.

Andrea Marshall (they/them)

Answerland

Andrea Marshall is an online reference volunteer for Answerland, researcher and artist from New Jersey.

Amy Dye-Reeves (she/her/hers)

Texas Tech University Libraries

Amy Dye-Reeves, Associate Education and History Librarian, Texas Tech University. MLIS, University of Tennessee- Knoxville (2013), MA History (2009), and BA History (2007). An active member of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and the American Libraries Association (ALA).

Beth Fuchs (she/her/hers)

Colorado State University Libraries

Beth Fuchs is an associate professor and Information Literacy Coordinator at Colorado State University Pueblo. She has nearly twenty years of experience in reference and instruction and enjoys the professional challenge of being a public services generalist.

Beth Valentine (she/her)

University of North Dakota

Beth Valentine is the Equity Compliance & Education Manager in the Equal Opportunity & Title IX Office at the University of North Dakota where she serves as the Deputy ADA Coordinator and a Deputy Title IX Coordinator. She holds a Ph.D in Philosophy from Rutgers University and an M.S.L. from Yale Law and loves living in North Dakota with her spouse and two dogs.

Carla Pfahl

AskMN

Carla Pfahl is an Outreach & Instruction Librarian and the Coordinator of AskMN, Minnesota’s statewide 24/7 virtual reference service. As a consortial librarian with Minitex, Carla enjoys working to support libraries, librarians, and library services across Minnesota. Along with her M.L.I.S. degree from St. Catherine University, she also has a Certificate of Project Management from the University of Minnesota’s College of Continuing and Professional Studies.

Clara Turp (she/her)

McGill University Libraries

Clara Turp is a discovery systems librarian at McGill University Libraries. As part of Digital Initiatives, she is involved in managing, configuring, and integrating selected library systems, including, but not limited to the Library's Discovery layers.

Corey M. Johnson (he/him)

Washington State University Libraries

Corey works in the Research Services Unit of the WSU Libraries with the title Instruction and Assessment Librarian. His current set of responsibilities include: teaching classes and facilitating other instructional liaison and assessment activities with the Roots of Contemporary Issues, Honors College and English Composition programs, and providing both in person and online reference services.

Danielle Worthy

Boise State University's Albertsons Library

Danielle Worthy got her MLIS from University of Washington in 2022 and has worked in a variety of libraries. She's currently the Library Academic Programs Coordinator at Boise State University in Boise, ID, and previously worked at the Idaho State Archives and in public libraries for 7 years. She is passionate about student success, human-centered innovation, and instruction assessment.

David Robert Bell

Tennessee State University Libraries

Robert Bell has been Coordinator of the Avon Williams Campus Library of Tennessee State University since June 2021 where he is active on several committees and is Chair of the Marketing Committee. He has worked as a Librarian, Library Manager and Assistant Director, Teacher, and University Faculty and Lecturer for libraries, schools, and universities in Japan, China, and Thailand, and in various locations in the United States, for more than 20 years. He is an active member of the Film and Media Round Table of the American Library Association and currently co-chairs two committees for the Tennessee Library Association. Robert has a Master of Science in Information from the University of Michigan, a Master of Arts in Film and Television – Critical Studies from the University of Southern California, and a Bachelor of Science in Communications with a minor in Asian Studies and a Certificate in Women's Studies from Ohio University.

Devin Becker (he/him)

University of Idaho Library

Devin Becker is the Associate Dean for Research and Instruction at the University of Idaho Library. He is the project director for CollectionBuilder, which is an IMLS-funded digital exhibit framework that was used to create the repositories for this project and serves as the infrastructure for the Library’s digital collections and digital humanities projects.

Dipti Mehta

Bridgewater State University Maxwell Library

Dipti Mehta is the Head of Reference, Research and Instruction Librarian at Maxwell Library, Bridgewater State University (BSU). Ms. Mehta is very passionate about information literacy and critical thinking skills. Her expertise includes providing user-focused reference assistance in person and virtually, delivering information literacy instruction through creative pedagogies, proficient in website management, community building, and outreach. She holds a Master’s degree in both Library and Information Science and Computer Science. She is active on campus and outside library organizations, in scholarly work and presentations.

Dr. Elizabeth Johnson

Tennessee State University Libraries

Dr. Elizabeth Johnson is an Associate Professor/Assistant Library Director of Operations and Planning at Tennessee State University. She is the author of Resistance and Empowerment in Black Women’s Hair Styling and co-author of Female Narratives in Nollywood Melodramas. In her employment inside and outside of the academy, she has valued participating in and organizing activities around DEI. She argues that a means of meeting DEI is by promoting awareness. Awareness is developed through the patrons’ exposure to the collection (in-house and online). Awareness may initially come about as a dilemma when it is not in line with one’s understanding of the world but then grows to reshape one’s meaning perspective and belief systems.

Emily Benoit

Oakland University Libraries

Emily Benoit is an Instruction & Research Help Librarian at Oakland University Libraries. Emily has worked for academic libraries, public libraries, and archives since 2014, and obtained an MLIS degree and archival administration certification from Wayne State University in 2020.

Emily Zerrenner (she/her)

Salisbury University Libraries

Emily Zerrenner is a Research and Instructional Services Librarian at Salisbury University in Maryland.

Gary R. Maixner III (he/him/his)

Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis Library

Gary R. Maixner III is the User Experience and Project Management Librarian at IUPUI. His work includes maintaining and updating the library’s website, being the main administrator for their Springshare systems, and managing other projects related to digital projects. He has been a librarian since 2014.

Grace Meyer (she/her)

University of Idaho

Grace Meyer is a University of Idaho criminology alum and a former Prison Education Initiative Intern. She will begin her graduate studies in criminal justice this fall.

Guinsly Mondésir (he/his/him)

University of Toronto Libraries, Scholars Portal

Guinsly Mondésir is the virtual reference librarian at Scholars Portal, which is located at the University of Toronto. Guinsly coordinates Ask a Librarian, a consortial chat service.

Jessica D. Gilbert Redman (she/her)

University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences

As the Online Resources & Services Librarian serving the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and College of Nursing & Professional Disciplines, Jessica D. Gilbert Redman streamlines access to library resources and systems and strives to make processes more efficient and purposeful. She lives in North Dakota with her spouse, Neal, and their muted torbie cat, Rosie.

Jessica Leach (she/her)

Montana State University Library

Jessica Leach is a Student Employee Service Desk Supervisor and is a member of the Student Management Team in the Learning & Research Services department of the MSU Library. While newer to the role, she spent her undergraduate career as a student employee in the MSU Library, giving her experience in working with student employees. She is currently pursuing her MLIS, and aims to understand more about the industry.

Jen Saulnier Lange (she/her)

Washington State University Libraries

Jen is the Online Learning Librarian in the Research Services Unit at the Washington State University (WSU) Libraries. Jen creates and manages online learning materials and tutorials, along with being the liaison to WSU's Global Campus. In addition to instruction, Jen provides in-person and online reference services.

Dr. Joyce Yukawa

St. Catherine University

Joyce Yukawa is Program Director of the St. Kate’s MLIS Program and has taught courses in user services, information literacy, and information ethics at St. Kate’s for the past 15 years. Before that, she worked as a librarian in academic, public, and special libraries in the U.S. and Asia. She earned her Master’s in Library Science from the University of Michigan and her PhD in Communication and Information Sciences from the University of Hawai'i.

Joe Ptacek

St. Catherine University Library & Archives

Joe Ptacek is an MLIS student at St. Catherine University and a graduate assistant for Library Collections and Discovery Services (LCDS) at the St. Catherine University Library & Archives. He has broad interests in academic librarianship, user experience, and information ethics, especially work involving library systems and metadata.

Jylisa Kenyon (she/her)

University of Idaho Library

Jylisa Kenyon is the Social Sciences Librarian at the University of Idaho Library.

Kelli Herm (she/her/hers)

Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis Library

Kelli Herm is an Instruction Librarian and co-liaison to Health Sciences, Kinesiology, Technical Communications, and Organizational Leadership at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI).  She provides research help services and teaches undergraduate information literacy classes in her liaison areas as well as for first year seminars in Science.

Lindsay Marsh

Boise State University's Albertsons Library

Lindsay Marsh is an Adjunct Librarian at Boise State University's Albertsons Library. She is a graduate of California State University, Chico (BA) and the University of Denver (MLIS). Her scholarly interests are focused on utilizing technology to enhance student experience and engagement.

Mary Anne Hansen (she/her)

Montana State University Library

Mary Anne Hansen is Research Services Librarian at the Montana State University Library in Bozeman, MT. She is in her twenty-seventh year providing library instruction and research consultations to students, faculty, and staff. She has been providing virtual reference assistance and online library instruction for over two decades.

Mindy Cooper (she/her/hers)

Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis Library

Mindy Cooper is the Reference Coordinator at IUPUI University Library. She trains staff at the Service and Information Desk and liaison librarians in providing chat reference service.

Memo Cordova (he/him/his)

Boise State University's Albertsons Library

Memo Cordova is an Associate Professor/Librarian at Boise State University's Albertsons Library. He is a graduate of Boise State University (BFA) and the University of Washington (MLIS). His research interests center on how emergent technologies affect information behavior in libraries and everyday life.

Pamela N. Martin (she/her)

Washington State University Libraries

Pamela N Martin is the Reference Coordinator and Undergraduate Services Librarian at Washington State University's Holland and Terrell Libraries. She has 18 years of experience in academic libraries, focusing on reference and instruction.

Priscilla Finley (she/her)

University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries

Priscilla Finley is humanities librarian at University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Perri Moreno (she/her)

University of Idaho Library

Perri Moreno is a Reference/Instruction Librarian at the University of Idaho Library. She is a member of their First Year Experience Team and works to ensure that students are successful as a whole person.

Rebecca Krystyniak (she/her/hers)

Oakland University Libraries

Rebecca Krystyniak is an Instruction & Research Help Librarian at Oakland University Libraries.  She holds an MLIS from Kent State University and a BA in Music from Oakland University.  In addition to academic librarianship, her career experience includes public and music ensemble librarianship.

Sandra Meyers (she/her)

Frankford Public Library

Sandy retired from the Anne Arundel County PL in Annapolis Maryland in April of 2021. She moved to Bethany Beach Delaware and is working 18 hours a week as the adult programming librarian and all around ‘jack of all trades’ for the Frankford Public Library. Reference and readers' advisory continue to be her passion.

Sandy Hervieux (she/her)

Nahum Gelber Law Library of McGill University

Sandy Hervieux is the Head Librarian at the Nahum Gelber Law Library of McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Her research interests include reference services, information literacy, and the impact of artificial intelligence on user services.

Sandy McCarthy

Washtenaw Community College

Sandy McCarthy is a faculty librarian at Washtenaw Community College. She is the liaison to the health and nursing programs as well as the science and the STEM Scholars Program. She is the co-administrator to the Michigan Research Help Now Virtual Reference Service Collaborative since 2003.

Sara Memmott (she/her/hers)

Eastern Michigan University

Sara Memmott is the Social Work Librarian at Eastern Michigan University, and also part of the volunteer administrative team for the Research Help Now chat collaborative of academic libraries in Michigan.

Star Bradley (she/her)

Montana State University Library

Star Bradley is a Research and Instruction Librarian at the Montana State University Library in Bozeman, MT. Star has been at MSU for over 6 years and spends much of her time staffing the online chat service. She also offers online reference help via one on one appointments and teaches an online course every spring.

Stephanie Williams (she/her/hers)

Oakland University Libraries

Stephanie Williams is an Instruction & Research Help Librarian with Oakland University. She received her MLIS from Wayne State University and spent nearly a decade working in public libraries before joining OU in 2022.

Suzanne Bernsten (she/her/hers)

Lansing Community College Library

Suzanne Bernsten is the Web Services Librarian at Lansing Community College Library, and has done virtual reference as part of the Research Help Now chat collaborative of academic libraries in Michigan.

Sydney Burton (she/they)

University of Calgary Libraries 

Sydney Burton is a PhD candidate in the Department of Classics and Religion and the Indigenous Student Library Assistant with Library and Cultural Resources at the University of Calgary. They are currently working on wayfinding tools to help students access 2Spirit materials within the library and more generally material related to indigeniety within archives. They live and work on the traditional territories of the people of the Treaty 7 Region in southern Alberta. 

Vandy Owen

Tennessee State University Libraries

Vandy Owen has been with Tennessee State University since 2003 and has worked with Electronic Resources since 2005. She has a BS in Elementary Education, an MEd in Administration and Supervision from Middle Tennessee State University, and an MS in Information Science from the University of Tennessee.

Victor Dominguez Baeza (he/him/his) 

Oklahoma State University Libraries

Mr. Victor Dominguez Baeza is a full professor and the Director of Library Graduate Services for Oklahoma State University. He provides leadership in the areas of services, resources and training for the OSU libraries, and codirects the hiring, training, and supervision of the tiered virtual reference team.

Xiaocan (Lucy) Wang (she/her)

Brown University

Xiaocan (Lucy) Wang is the head of Library Discovery Systems and Design at Brown University Library. Prior to this, she served in the capacity of Emerging Technologies Librarian and Digital Repository Librarian. Ms. Wang has varied experience in library system administration, website development, UX experience, electronic resource management, and digital initiatives. She holds a Master’s degree in both Library and Information Science and Computer Science. She is active in library organizations and maintains a continuous record of research publications and presentations.