The Collective 2025: Full Schedule

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10:45am EDT

Craft & Chat: Zine Making & Using Crafts to Encourage Group Discussion

Tuesday April 15, 2025 10:45am - 12:00pm EDT

Join us for an example session of our Craft & Chat workshops where we pair easy-to-learn crafts with typically awkward discussions to help patrons open up and learn from one another. In this session, we'll make zines and get a little meta as we talk about how creative activities can ease discussion in workshops.

Speakers

Sara Sweeney Bear

Project Design Studio Manager & Studios Outreach Coordinator, University Libraries at Virginia Tech

Hi there! I've worked for VT Libraries for 8 years and have been lucky enough to have time, space, and permission to explore experiential learning through creative activities. I manage a studio that supports mostly independent student projects and coordinate outreach programs for... Read More →

Ellen Boggs

Studios Network Coordinator, Virginia Tech University Libraries

Seven years as a non-librarian in VT University Libraries managing student workers, developing programs + events, providing instruction, and supporting daily operations at six different technology-focused service points. I love teaching people to make art.

Tuesday April 15, 2025 10:45am - 12:00pm EDT
Cattails B

Hands-On Workshop, Make/Hack/Play

1:30pm EDT

A Spark of Inspiration!

Tuesday April 15, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT

Cattails B

Get ready for a whirlwind tour through some of the most creative and practical ideas in library services. These lightning talks will take you from the art of reflective teaching to building a library site from scratch, with a pit stop for some graduation portrait fun!

Beyond the One Shot: Cultivating a Reflective Teaching Practice: Many librarians have teaching responsibilities, but not all regularly reflect on their teaching practice. This interactive session will equip teaching librarians with practical strategies to regularly self-assess, collaborate with peers, and gather student feedback - empowering them to continuously evolve their teaching and elevate the student experience. By embracing reflective teaching, librarians can unlock new levels of pedagogical expertise and better fulfill their vital role in student success.
BOOK PROPS & STACK BACKDROPS: Patron Engagement via Graduation-Portrait Photography in the Library: This presentation considers how an academic Library seized a rising tide of graduate-portrait professional photography amidst the stacks as an opportunity to engage with born-digital students’ "Shelf Credibility." The choice to engage rather than prohibit graduation-portrait photo shoots in the library yielded outcomes like both reducing unannounced shoots' disruptions to staff workflows & branding the Library with a new no-cost service using pre-existing resources.
You don't have to be a genius! How I created a library site from scratch in Linux using Google machines, PHP and MYSQL: Some special libraries don’t have their own library site or catalog, and some librarians own personal monographs that they could place online instead. Come learn how I created my own library site from scratch using Wordpress, MYSQL, and Google instances; you don’t have to be a genius to do it!

Speakers

Raeshelle Cooke

Computing Librarian

I'm a Computing Librarian at George Mason University. I have 14+ years experience working in academic libraries.

Candace Lewis

Head Librarian, Access Services. Assistant Professor., Brown-Daniel Library, Tenn State Univ

John Paul Martinez

Business and Data Analysis Librarian, Vanderbilt University

Shelly Salo Martinez

Librarian for Science and Engineering, Vanderbilt University

The Collective 2025 Reflection Martinez pdf

How I built my very own library from scratch pdf

Tuesday April 15, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT
Cattails B

Lighting Talks

2:45pm EDT

Fandom Conventions and Libraries: Bringing Stories and Community Together

Tuesday April 15, 2025 2:45pm - 4:15pm EDT

Cattails B

Did you know that libraries are the perfect place to give people a taste of the Comic Con experience? These events can be scaled according to your institution's needs and provide a free event for community members to enjoy. Fandom conventions are, at their core, a celebration of the stories that unite us, which makes them a great fit for libraries!

*You will need a phone or internet-capable device to participate to the fullest extent in this session.

Speakers

Jennifer Murray

Children's Librarian, Washington County Public Library

nearly 15 years of library experiencefull time children's librarian since 2016background in early childhood educationMLIS earned in spring 2023developed Librarian-in-Training program in 2018I love sharing ideas because I believe that's what makes us successful as librarians! Let's... Read More →

Collective Presentation 4.15.25 pdf

Tuesday April 15, 2025 2:45pm - 4:15pm EDT
Cattails B

Interactive Panel, Make/Hack/Play