• 9:30 - 10:30am
• Sam Helmick
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Keynote - Rooted and Rising: Rural Libraries, Equity, and the Power of Community

How do rural libraries rise to meet the moment when facing pressures on equity, access, and free expression? In this session, Sam Helmick reflects on personal and professional experiences to offer a vision for courageous, compassionate library service. Attendees will leave reenergized with stories, strategies, and shared purpose in building a future where all people see themselves reflected in their libraries.

Sam Helmick serves as President of the American Library Association (ALA), the world’s oldest and largest library association, championing access to information, intellectual freedom, and the essential role of libraries in a democratic society. With nearly two decades of public library leadership, Sam brings a passion for equitable service, community-centered engagement, and bold advocacy in defense of the First Amendment.
In addition to their national leadership, Sam is the Community & Access Services Coordinator at the Iowa City Public Library, where they oversee outreach services, the Bookmobile, and innovative access programs that serve diverse community needs. They have served in numerous leadership roles, including as chair of the ALA Intellectual Freedom Round Table, past president of the Iowa Library Association, and a member of multiple ALA committees focused on policy, equity, and intellectual freedom. Sam’s advocacy is grounded in the belief that libraries are incubators of opportunity, civic dialogue, and collective memory. They are a frequent speaker on intellectual freedom, censorship resistance, and the enduring value of libraries in rapidly changing social and political landscapes. Sam holds a Master of Science in Library & Information Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and continues to mentor new professionals while leading national conversations about the future of librarianship.

• 10:35 - 11:35am
• Elizabeth Rosales Cordova & Eba Klindt
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Track 2, Session 1: Celebrating Diversity Through Children's Multilingual Story-Time

Public libraries are uniquely positioned to foster inclusion and cultural understanding by creating welcoming spaces where all families feel represented. This session highlights how multilingual story-times can strengthen family engagement, include new immigrant populations, and celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity of our communities. Drawing on the experience of Global Tales at the Hornell Public Library, presenters will share their strategies for partnering with multilingual and immigrant families and ideas for engaging programing. Participants will leave with actionable ideas, program templates, resource recommendations to launch or expand multilingual story-times and most importantly inspiration to celebrate linguistic diversity in rural libraries.

Elizabeth Rosales Cordova is an active volunteer at the Hornell Public Library. Since 2024, she has been the program coordinator of the Global Tales, the Multilingual Story-time. She is an educational researcher and holds a PhD in Education from the University of Toronto, Canada. Elizabeth is a multilingual mom herself and has lived in 4 countries away from her native Peru.

Eba Klindt is a Programming Assistant with over four years of experience in public libraries, specializing in youth services and volunteer engagement. After serving two years with AmeriCorps, Eba developed a deep love for the nonprofit sector, which led her to the library field. Since 2024, she has helped develop a community-driven Multilingual Story-Time program, fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in her rural community.

• 12:15 - 1:15pm
• Christine Alexander
• Access session recording here.

Track 2, Session 2: All Abilities Programming: Fun For All

Now more than ever, libraries need to provide a welcoming environment and source of respite for patrons with disabilities. Like all patrons, these traditionally under-served individuals deserve to feel comfortable, appreciated and valuable to the community. This program aims to inspire you to implement exciting programs that thrive, recognize what isn’t working and partner with local resources to make the library truly accessible for all.

Christine Alexander, a public librarian with 20+ years of experience, recognized the need for inclusive programming post-pandemic. She established the All Abilities Programming Department, collaborating with Day Rehabilitation Groups to expand offerings from 1-3 to 9-13 monthly programs, serving up to 150 patrons.

• 1:15 - 1:30pm
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Break with Chair Yoga

Join STLS Outreach & Sustainability Consultant, Keturah Cappadonia, for a 15-minute break and some chair yoga!

• 1:30 - 2:30pm
• Jacqueline Leone
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Track 2, Session 3: Foster Sustainability in Library Programming: Seed Library, Raised Garden Beds, Repair Cafe, and Eco-Friendly DIY Crafts

The presentation discusses the intersections of climate change, finances, community response, found within sustainable programming in a library setting. At Crestwood Library, a small library of the Yonkers Public Library System, that center began during COVID-19. Through a series of Zoom talks and demonstrations of examples of what sustainability could look like for a library and what it could look like for the patrons, we discussed everything from planting more trees, using cotton cloth to wrap presents, all the way to making less purchases for the holidays. In this presentation, I will review all of the DIY ecologically friendly crafts we showed patrons, a discussion on how to host a successful Repair Cafe in a library, and the benefits of a seed library with raised garden beds. The presentation will look at offsite visits to sustainable businesses and facilities like recycling centers and local nurseries to form partnerships to engage the community. The focus will remain on what it truly means to engage in sustainability and not fall prey to greenwashing. The presentation will help the audience to ask the right questions of the status quo to guide them towards actions that will not only benefit the environment, but will bring the community together through knowledgeable and useful eco-friendly engagement.

Jacqueline Leone began working at Crestwood Library, YPL in 2020. Her education encompasses academic research in English and Library Science, recently graduating with an MS-LIS in sustainable librarianship and archiving. She presented a project on Solar Energy at a grade school science fair, marking the beginning of a sustainable journey.

• 2:30 - 3:30pm
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Track 2, Session 4: Hit Refresh: New Takes on Traditional Library Programming

Lightning Round 1: Neurodiversity & Multi-Sensory Learning: Inclusive Tools for Library Programming with Molly Creveling
Lightning Round 2: Jr. Readers Book Clubs with Erin Singleton
Lightning Round 3: Virtual Handcraft Meetup with Katie Ranno
Lightning Round 4: Mix Foam, Hot Sauce, Teens & Stir: Recipes for Teen Engagement with Doris Jean Metzger
Lightning Round 5: Investing in Silver: Senior Planet Tech Training and Rockin’ Chairs Fitness in the library with Christina Bamberg

Lightning Round Session Details:

Lightning Round 1: Neurodiversity & Multi-Sensory Learning: Inclusive Tools for Library Programming with Molly Creveling

Explore how libraries can better serve neurodivergent patrons through multi-sensory learning strategies and learning tools. This presentation will provide an overview of neurodiversity and its implications for library engagement, with a focus on practical, inclusive programming tools. Discover adaptable activities, sensory-friendly approaches, and communication techniques that support a wide range of learning styles and cognitive experiences. Whether you're designing programs for toddlers, elementary, teens or adults, you'll leave with actionable ideas to make your library a more welcoming, accessible space for all.

Molly Creveling is the Youth Services Librarian at the Vestal Public Library in Vestal, New York.  A proud neurodivergent librarian, Molly is passionate about creating inclusive, engaging, learning opportunities for all types of learners. She specializes in multi-sensory programming that supports neurodiverse children and families, blending creativity with accessibility. She has presented for 2024 Children’s Collaborative Summer Reading Workshop,  2024 Four County Library System’s Day of Learning training, and most recently served as a featured speaker and panelist for StarNet’s NASA@MyLibrary webinar, Serving Neurodiverse Library Patrons.

Lightning Round 2: Jr. Readers Book Clubs with Erin Singleton

Looking for a way to make reading exciting for elementary-aged kids? Join us to learn how to create and run a book club that's anything but boring! Gather the tools to plan a book club that captivates young readers. You’ll learn how to blend the classic joy of reading with interactive activities and hands-on crafts. Get tips on how to choose books, structure meetings, and market the program for maximum success. Discover practical tips and tricks to boost reading comprehension while keeping the focus on fun. You'll leave with everything you need to start a book club that will have kids eagerly turning the pages and coming back for more.

Erin Singleton is the Head of Youth Services at the George F. Johnson Memorial Library in Endicott. She loves creating programs that incorporate books, crafts, and technology for kids of all ages. Erin also secretly loves Canva, spreadsheets, and web design!

Lightning Round 3: Virtual Handcraft Meetup with Katie Ranno

Virtual Handcraft Meetup is your traditional handcraft circle with a twist. Instead of meeting in-person, participants chat and share their creations via Zoom for one hour each week. During my talk, I will break down the benefits of hosting this program online, how to set up these meetings, and how we effectively highlight each participant's work.

Katie Ranno is an Adult Services Librarian I at Saratoga Springs Public Library, and an avid handcrafter. She has been running the Virtual Handcraft Meet Up since 2023.

Lightning Round 4: Mix Foam, Hot Sauce, Teens & Stir: Recipes for Teen Engagement with Doris Jean Metzger

In this 10 minute presentation, Doris Jean will share a few best practices for growing teen involvement at your library, as well as some of the recent teen-driven programs that were a bit wild…and worth it!  (These programs can be adapted to other ages, too).

Doris Jean Metzger, MLIS, is the Youth Department head at the Chemung County Library District Steele Memorial Library.

Lightning Round 5: Investing in Silver: Senior Planet Tech Training and Rockin’ Chairs Fitness in the library with Christina Bamberg

Senior Planet/AARP/OATS(Older Adults Technology) combined to form an organization where people aged 60+ can embrace opportunities to reshape their lives, connect with and help one another while learning and growing and having fun.

About 20 NCLS libraries affiliated with Senior Planet several years ago. They issued us a grant to research what libraries would do with their curriculum and training methods.  The money allowed libraries to help pay staff for additional training/teaching hours, bought several sets of laptops and iPad with carts to circulate to libraries for their classes.  Also, libraries receive large screen smart TVs for in-house training and smaller smart TVs for taking our training on the road.  Staff or volunteers from each library took 5 weeks of training with Senior Planet, were vetted and set loose to train Seniors. The curriculum is awesome, updated, includes homework, printed and spiral bound, and provided free for each senior taking a class. 

Rockin’ Chairs was born out of a Tai Chi class we had in the library for seniors to help with balance.  When the class ended, some seniors still wanted to meet and do something similar.  We started with Drum Fit (drumming on exercise balls to cool music with the option for seated or standing exercise, and have added other types of exercise, since then.  We pull up videos on the smart TV and rock out.  Patrons know they could do this at home, but they would rather do it at the library with friends.

Christina Bamberg, came to New York via Fort Drum. Served 12 years in the US Army JAG Corps.  In 2015, the Carthage Free Library employed her as their Story Time Lady.  She became Interim Director in January 2020.  Upon completion of her bachelor’s degree, she qualified as Director in July 2023.