NYLA 2021 Conference & Trade Show | Conference Program Descriptions (In-Person)

Friday, November 5th

Program Slot #3 8:30 AM - 9:45 AM

Prioritizing Teen Engagement During A Pandemic
Sponsors: PLS, LGBTQIART, NMN, YSS
The New York Public Library is committed to providing impactful teen programming, but the COVID pandemic forced us to rethink our plans. Join us to learn about how we successfully engaged teens in the digital space, through our innovative Teen Reading Ambassadors program, and how these strategies can also be applied to in-person programming. Strategies reviewed will include: how to provide opportunities for teens to share their voice and creative ideas through magazine production, how to build an intentional mentorship program, and how to use digital tools for remote and hybrid learning. Also discussed will be the possibility of high-quality teen programming to mitigate increased isolation and negative mental health effects during social upheaval.
Track: PLS
Speakers:
Rachel Roseberry, New York Public Library

Success using the SLP Rubric
Sponsors: SLSA, SSL
Do you need a way to show others how students are succeeding through the school library program? The newly revised School Library Program Rubric can help you do just that! Join us for this interactive session that will help you intentionally use the values of our profession to show the impact of the school library program on student learning. We will also help you use the rubric to identify areas for growth and share tools that will assist with long-term planning for the school library program.
Track: SLSA
Speakers:
Kerrie Burch, Questar III BOCES

Dr. Jennifer Cannell, Ed.D, St. John Fisher College

Emerging Technologies for Lifelong Learning & Success
Sponsors: SMART
SUNY’s Exploring Emerging Technologies for Lifelong Learning and Success (#EmTechMOOC) is an online learning opportunity targeted to the needs of college students, faculty, and anyone interested in learning about the value and implications of using emerging technologies for personal and professional growth. #EmTechMOOC is a Massive Open Online Course that is complemented by EmTechWIKI, a socially-curated collection of established and emerging technologies. Learn how libraries located anywhere in the world can take advantage of this project to benefit students, faculty, and patrons from a variety of library types. Participants in the MOOC earn digital badges and are encouraged to build an ePortfolio as a culminating project activity.
Track: SMART
Speakers:
Roberta (Robin) Sullivan, University at Buffalo

Cherie van Putten, Binghamton University

Creating Dandy Displays for Library Lovers
Sponsors: YSS, NMN, SSL, YSS
If you could have a conversation with a child, teen, student, teacher, or caregiver-what important details would you want to share about your library? Creating a display that is engaging, creative, fresh, and interactive is a great way to market your library and visually demonstrate the library's value to its community. Displays promote the resources and programs available in both public and school libraries and serve to educate patrons on particular issues and/or topics. A creative curated display can identify local or newsworthy events, or highlight new acquisitions or services offered. Social media virtual displays expand your marketing reach. Participants will get tips and tricks for ease and organization and will leave with new ideas and samples.
Track: YSS
Speakers:
Carole-Anne Weik, Valley Stream UFSD #13 and Peninsula Public Library

CANCELED-Climate Change Simulator
Sponsors: START, LAMS
Do you think you can come up with a plan to keep climate change to less than 2 degrees Celsius? Find out and explore in this interactive workshop on climate solutions. We'll be using the En-ROADS Climate Solutions Simulator (developed by Climate Interactive and MIT Sloan School of Management) to see if we can build a future scenario where we keep global warming well under 2 degrees. In real-time, we'll explore multiple approaches to addressing climate change, see the scales of their impacts, and work together as a team to build a pathway for the future.
Track: START
Speakers:
Sean Dague, Citizens' Climate Lobby

Program Slot #4 11:00 AM - 12:15 PM

Digital Media Storytelling and History
Sponsors: LHRT
Traditionally history focuses on the lives of extraordinary individuals. The use of oral histories and digital storytelling lifts ordinary people from public obscurity. Indeed, chronicling their works and actions enables a better understanding of our collective past and present. By developing podcasts, mini-documentaries, and a digital oral history archive, the Yonkers Public Library has engaged teens, adults, and senior citizens in the work of preserving as well as creating history. This program will showcase accessible media editing platforms, programming ideas and current digital media projects conducted by local patrons. Dr. Soljour will discuss and recommend ways in which the general public can design their programming.
Track: LHRT
Speakers:
Dr. Kishauna Soljor, Yonkers Public Library

Library Trustees [Not In] Legal Jeopardy!
Sponsors: LTAS, FLS
Being a trustee takes dedication, awareness, and a willingness to learn the ropes of library and not-for-profit legal considerations. Since that is a lot of work, this session will make it fun, promoting awareness of the most critical aspects of library trustee ethics and responsibilities through a game-show format: "What is...a fiduciary?" "What is...a conflict of interest?" "What is...Director's & Officer's Insurance?" You will wager all of your late fees as you test and build your trustee skills in this fun and highly informative session! (Non-trustees also welcome.)
Track: LTAS
Speakers:
Stephanie Cole Adams, The Law Office of Stephanie Adams, PLLC

Adaptive Read-Alouds at the Elementary Level
Sponsors: SSL, SCLA, SLSA, SRRT, YSS
In this program, participants will explore options for making their existing physical picture book collections more accessible and engaging by developing hands-on activities designed to support various reading experiences with a primary focus on read-aloud. This session will encourage participants to use basic digital editing and publishing tools to create materials to complement these read-alouds. Templates will be provided, including ones that support computational thinking (i.e., conditionals and sequencing) in reading. The program is targeted to PK-5 educators with the understanding that public youth services librarians will also be able to walk away with more in their toolkit. It is designed to support all learners with an emphasis on students with special needs and time will be allocated for participants with computer access and G Suite accounts to start creating their own materials.
Track: SSL
Speakers:
Geoff Hinman, Tompkins Seneca Tioga BOCES

Lessons Learned from School Shutdown
Sponsors: YSS, NMN
Since March 2020, schools and families have panicked, scrambled, and experienced frustration. However, amongst all this, there have been helpers, aha moments, and game-changing shifts in practice that should shape how we move forward in the future. This panel will share their suggestions and ideas towards achieving these goals. These voices will help transform planning in libraries as we move forward in a post Pandemic world.
Track: YSS
Speakers:
Sue Kowalski, Pine Grove Middle School-East Syracuse Minoa Schools with a panel of students.

Program Slot #5 2:15 PM - 3:30 PM

Friendly Relationships, Working Together for the Library
Sponsors: FLS, LAMS, LTAS, RLRT, SCLA
Friends of the Library can be valuable members of the library team. Trustees provide governance, library directors manage the operations of the library, and a Friends group provides an opportunity for citizen volunteers to give support and financial assistance. All parties in this alliance need to understand their well-defined responsibilities and the limits of their roles. Frequent, clear, and open communication is the key to a successful partnership, along with joint planning sessions and establishing an operating agreement to address the needs and expectations of all. Robust, positive relationships between these key players will impact customer satisfaction and achieve long-term goals, helping libraries to be strong and resilient. Our panelists from the Hamilton Public Library will share ways their Friends, director, and trustees work together successfully.
Track: FLS
Speakers:
Travis Olivera, Hamilton Public Library

Diane Finch, Friends of the Hamilton Public Library

David Hopper, Hamilton Public Library

Casey Conlin, Mid-Hudson Library System

CANCELED-Adapting Services to Incarcerated Patrons Using Tablets
Sponsors: SMART, CORT, ESRT, SRRT
Our presentation will provide an overview of our efforts to provide library services to our patrons during the pandemic. Through the use of tablets provided by the Department of Corrections, we sought to re-engage with our patrons after months of providing limited services. We will discuss how we adapted library programs and services such as creating virtual programs, providing reference information through Ask-a-Librarian, and matching books to patrons in a version of Book Match and Mail-A-Book. We will also discuss the use of survey results to design programs to meet patrons’ needs and interests. We will share mistakes made and lessons learned. We will talk about issues that arose in creating these services such as privacy and confidentiality, copyright, access, and learning styles.
Track: SMART
Speakers:
Diego Sandoval Hernandez, Brooklyn Public Library

Nili Ness, Queens Public Library

Program Advocacy in Your Daily Routine
Sponsors: SSL, SCLA, SLSA, ULU, YSS
What is advocacy and how can we, as school librarians, promote ourselves, our programming, and our skillsets? Learn how to make the work you are already doing speak on your behalf without sacrificing your own self-care. Using your daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly routines, you will identify key stakeholders and learn strategies from the private sector to personalize service, even during times of remote or hybrid instruction.
Track: SSL
Speakers:
Sharon Fox, Port Jervis City School District

Talking to Kids About Race
Sponsors: YSS, ESLN, ESRT, NMN, PLS, SCLA, SRRT
Participants will gain a ready-to-implement program for their communities about engaging with children and their caregivers in crucial conversations about race. The program includes simple, low-cost hands-on activities, lessons connected to popular books, and resources for extended learning. Caregiver tips highlight preschool, school age, and teenage ranges for having conversations about race, current events, and how to create more inclusive environments.
Track: YSS
Speakers:
Melanie Miller, Alfred Box of Books Library

OJ Shepard, SUNY Alfred State

Kathy Sherman, Alfred Montessori School

Program Slot #6 3:45 PM - 5:00 PM

CANCELED-Reinventing Ethnic Library Services
Sponsors: ESRT, LAMS
Since the library closing, the New Americans Program at Queens Public Library has fulfilled an important role in serving immigrant communities in Queens and elsewhere through a variety of virtual programs and services, including coping skills workshops, cultural programs, citizenship and immigration legal assistance, ESOL classes, census promotion and partnerships with other organizations. The Combatting Racism in Libraries webinar series was co-created by ESRT and PLS. This series was conducted virtually, and organized as several roundtable discussions with colleagues and experts in each session's topic. Topics that were covered included how race and racism affect our workplace, collection development, authors and stories, programming, creating community, and ESOL classrooms.
Track: ESRT
Speakers:
Cathy Chen, Queens Public Library

David Nochimson, Molloy College

Tracy Allen, Middletown Thrall Library

Kelly Yim, New York Public Library

Jo-Ann Wong, Queens Public Library

Kacper Jarecki, Queens Public Library

CANCELED-The Accessibility Games:
Sponsors: PLS, LAR, PCRT, SRRT, YSS
Successful programs like "Learn to write your name in Braille", "Learn Some Secrets of Sign Language" and "Hot Wheels: the Wheelchair Challenge" are all fun and easy programs to introduce to your library with no budget restraints and big returns. Learn how these innovative and interactive celebration days, trivia, games, and crafting have successfully raised awareness, encouraged empathy, and developed an understanding of disabilities at the Tremont Library.
Track: PLS
Speakers:
Ariana Csonka Kaleta, New York Public Library

Build Community & Teach Skills with Esports
Sponsors: SMART, PCRT, SSL, YSS
Video games may not be the first thing you think of when you hear the word “library,” but when you look closely an esports team has all the hallmarks of a perfect library program: it builds community and contributes to positive academic outcomes for students. It also allows participants to develop leadership, entrepreneurial, and media literacy skills. Running an esports team might seem daunting for librarians that don’t play video games, but you don’t need to be a gamer to run a successful program. Librarians, by the nature of their profession, already possess the skill set needed to get an esports team up and running in under a year. We’ll show you how!
Track: SMART
Speakers:
Lindsay Cesari, Baldwinsville Central Schools

Civic Online Reasoning in the Library
Sponsors: SSL, SLSA, SRRT, YSS
In a world fraught with misinformation where most people get their information from the internet and social media, discerning the truth can be nearly impossible for today’s library patrons. Librarians must be up-to-date on evaluative tools and frameworks that aid in online information evaluation. One such tool is the Civic Online Reasoning (COR) framework, created by the Stanford History Education Group. This program will highlight the tenets of COR and explore a case study in which the presenters, two high school librarians, successfully advocated for COR instruction in their school. Finally, the presenters will detail how they utilized the Stanford curriculum, in conjunction with real-world examples and interactive instructional tools, to create collaborative units with English and Social Studies teachers in their school. The strategies outlined in this case study are easily transferable to a public library setting, whether in a formal adult education course or in ready-reference situations.
Track: SSL
Speakers:
Mary Kamela, Kenmore West High School

Elizabeth Aszkler, Kenmore West High School

When We're All In, Kids Are In
Sponsors: YSS, SSL, YSS
As librarians, whether you've lost your spark for reading or can't get enough, how do we find avenues to share with kids? It's not just about programming, it's also about our own reading journey and translating that into excitement. The presenters will share their favorite recent books, encourage participants to begin thinking about their own lifelong reading habits, and discuss why it matters. Part book talk and part exploration, participants will have opportunities to reflect and share with others.
Track: YSS
Speakers:
Stacey Rattner, Castleton Elementary School