Watch the 2021 NEFLIN Award Presentations

Member of the Year Award​:  Randall Duggins, UF Marston Science Library
The NEFLIN Member of the Year Award recognizes a current employee of a NEFLIN library who has made a significant positive impact on his/her library and the community it serves.

Distinguished Career Award:  Linda Cue, Alachua County Library District
The Distinguished Career Award is for an individual who has displayed exemplary achievement and leadership throughout his/her career in the library field.

Library Innovation Award:  Volusia County Public Library
The NEFLIN Innovation Award recognizes an innovative program or service that has demonstrated impact on the community a NEFLIN library serves.

Library Champion Award:  James Gross, Friends of the Taylor County Public Library; Donovan J. Welch, University of Florida
This award is for any individual who has demonstrated exceptional support for a NEFLIN library. (Current employees of NEFLIN libraries are not eligible.)

Room 1
Scholarly Skills Community: Information Literacy Hub at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
Presenter:  Julie Evener, University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
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In 2021, the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences library launched our new Scholarly Skills Community, which is a community in Blackboard designed to provide information, guidance, practice, and an opportunity to earn micro-credentials on topics related to information literacy and scholarly writing. The Community is a partnership with the University Writing Center, and made up of 21 modules organized into 6 topic areas. Our ultimate goal is to integrate the modules into courses to help fill gaps in student knowledge that is expected in the curricula, but not taught through the curricula.

Room 2
We are CapABLE: Programming for Individuals of Intellectual and Developmental Disability
Presenter:  Sarah Capps, Volusia County Library System
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**View the Social Story
This innovative virtual program series addressed a need to support individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disability in the Volusia County Community. The library team wanted to create programming and events specifically targeted to this demographic, just as we do for children, teens, adults and seniors. Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities benefit greatly from programming that helps to develop social and communications skills. Discussions and experience gained in learning to function as independently as possible can bring confidence and well-being. Although in-person programming for adults with IDD is currently on hold, the virtual programs are thriving. At this writing, there are 50 We are CapABLE videos in the library’s YouTube play list and more planned each week. The videos have received 3,739 views, which averages approximately 75 views for each video. The videos fall under several broad categories: Photography Club, Science and Nature Club, Cooking, Mind and Body, Health and Wellness, Crafting and Daily Living Skills. In addition, staff have begun offering Grab and Go Activity Packets. The most recent one, to complement a gardening video, had materials to make a paper seed pot and included seeds to plant. In the past two months, over 100 activity packets have gone out into the Volusia County community. In the future, planned in-person programming includes a book club and a photography club. Participants will learn how the Volusia County Public Library Team, led by Sarah Capps, researched and prepared to launch this program series. We will discuss the categories chosen, best practices in presenting the materials in a virtual environment and the team’s plans for future in-person programming.

Room 3
How to Genrefy Your Fiction without Losing Your MInd
Presenter:  Julie Miller, Ridgeview High School (Clay County)
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This session will primarily target school librarians (and perhaps YA librarians). Participants will learn about genrefication of their fiction section: what it is, why it is beneficial (for students AND librarians), and tips on everything from: choosing which genre sections you will have, determining a book’s genre, getting and training help, purchasing labels, moving ALL the books, labeling your sections, and updating your catalog WITHOUT having to change any call numbers! It sounds like an insurmountable task, but I was able to complete the whole process in THREE DAYS! If you’ve been on the fence about genrefying or just are intrigued by the concept, check out this session! You’ll walk away with step-by-step instructions and lots of handy tips!

Room 4
Lightning Rounds
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Help @ Your Fingertips!  VA Mobile Apps
Presenter:  Lisa Huang, North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System
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This lightning round session will cover the VA’s Mobile Applications (apps) available to Veterans and their caregivers on staying connected to the VA from scheduling appointments to getting text messages from their care team, the vast variety of mental health apps, and COVID-related tools and resources. The purpose of this presentation is to educate attendees about the VA’s mobile technologies connecting Veterans to the VA for improved health and well-being. Attendees will also learn about COVID related resources for coping and support. The VA is a tax payer funded entity so all of its applications are available free to the public.

Training for All: Equipping Staff to Answer Questions about Electronic Resources
Presenter:  Olivia Hattan-Edwards, Jacksonville University
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Small libraries often mean limited staff, which means everyone must know a little about everything. The systems librarian at the Carl S. Swisher Library at Jacksonville University discovered the need for everyone on staff to understand the common technology questions asked by users when accessing electronic library resources. To improve responses and equip staff with the knowledge and confidence to answer such questions, a training session was developed that all staff (professional and paraprofessional) attend at least twice a year. This presentation will discuss the training session, including the training materials used, how the training is conducted, and feedback from staff on the usefulness of the training. Attendees will leave with ideas on how to replicate a session.

Reaching for the Stars: How Libraries Can Support Elite Fellowship Applicants
Presenter:  Grace Kaletski-Maisel, Stetson University
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Each year, thousands of students compete for elite fellowships like Rhodes, Fulbright, Truman, and others. Competition for these awards is fierce, but successful recipients earn a worthy prize. Becoming a fellowship recipient can put winners and even finalists on the fast track to future success and brings international recognition to their universities. Librarians are not often at the forefront of the fellowship recruitment or application processes, but students and fellowship advisors stand to benefit from library workers’ expertise and the resources and services that libraries provide. This presentation, led by a librarian who is also an elite fellowships advisor, will provide insight into the information needs of fellowship advisors and candidates and share strategies for library outreach to this unique population.

Opening Doors and Windows:  An Introduction to the Diverse BookFinder
Presenter:  Brittany Kester, University of Florida Education Library
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This presentation will introduce attendees to a free online resource called the Diverse BookFinder, its collection database and Collection Analysis Tool (CAT), and how this resource can be utilized to support, analyze, and strengthen the diversity of picture book collections. The Diverse BookFinder “is a comprehensive collection of children’s picture books featuring Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC)” which currently includes over 4,000 picture books published since 2002 (https://diversebookfinder.org/, 2021). What makes this collection database unique is that one way books are categorized is by the dominant message in the story which reveals not just who is represented but how they are represented. The presenters will discuss how these categories were developed, how to use them in the collection database to search for titles, and how they are used by the CAT. The CAT enables participants to analyze their picture book collections based on the intersection of the dominant message and race/culture categories. A live demonstration of the process of preparing for and conducting an analysis using the CAT will be given and how this can be used to inform collection development and policies. The presentation will include the strengths and weaknesses of the tool based on the presenters’ experiences using it with their own picture book collection.

Curated Lit Kits to Go
Presenter:  Debra Robbins and Lauren Bridges, Volusia County Library System
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**Session Takeaways
Following the temporary suspension of in-person programming due to COVID, libraries were challenged to find new opportunities to reach library patrons. In 2020, a Volusia County Library System staff member proposed the idea of the Lit Kit – a curated set of materials personalized for young library patrons unable to visit their local branch. This program, intended as a temporary service, has become an integral part of Volusia County Library’s personalized Reader’s Advisory Service for children. Participants will learn about the inception and history of the Volusia County Library Lit Kit program, as well as the evolution of program goals and objectives. Presenters will share how libraries can launch a comparative program with existing resources (and little to no cost), explain how Lit Kits are curated and personalized, and share their experiences with program marketing and implementation.

Online Music Discussion Clubs
Cameron Burris, Alachua County Library District
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**Session Takeaways
Music Talk, Alachua County Library District’s monthly online music discussion club, creates opportunities for patrons to participate, connect, and discover. Patrons are encouraged to participate by selecting songs related to the monthly theme. During the live program we play snippets of the songs and discuss why we chose them. Sharing our personal responses to the music we love helps us to connect with one another and leads us to some great music discoveries!

Room 1
Using Cross-Departmental Project Work Teams to Innovate Library Services
Presenter:  Anne Casey, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
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**Session Takeaways
Hunt Library at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) has over ten years’ experience developing initiatives from teams that draw from each of the library departments according to interest and availability. Over the last decade, ERAU has increased students and programs, while the library has lost personnel. Yet, Hunt Library has offered new services, increased programming, developed asynchronous training videos, and launched a digital repository that has grown to over 25,000 items with 3.7 million downloads in eight years. This presentation will outline the creation of Hunt Library work teams to develop and implement new initiatives that arise from strategic planning or new community needs; the different ways these teams operate; and the successes that the library has achieved.  The presenter will highlight successes and lessons learned so participants have a roadmap for developing teams of their own and connecting them to local strategic planning and community needs. Although examples are drawn from an academic library, this presentation will be beneficial to libraries of all types.

Room 2
The Proctor Library, Omeka, and Collaboration During the Pandemic
Presenters:  Katherine Owens and Jolene DuBray, Flagler College
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The Proctor Library purchased a subscription to Omeka in January of 2020 in order to create digital exhibits with student interns, highlighting items in the Flagler College Archives and in Special Collections with the intention of making these collections available to a wider audience. This eventually evolved into using Omeka in collaboration with colleagues from other local cultural heritage institutions in Northeast Florida. This presentation will cover the growth of these projects, the trials, and fruitions that led to the strengthening of cross-institutional collaboration that these projects have fostered. These two ongoing projects have become a resource for both World War II in Northeast Florida and Black Heritage in St. Augustine.

If you would like to see the work completed so far, please visit:
https://wwiinefl.omeka.net/
https://blackheritagestaugustine.omeka.net/

Room 3
Reach Out and Zoom:  A Method for Collaborative Youth Virtual Program Series
Presenters:  Meaghan Bonnaghan & Courtney Pyche, Alachua County Library District
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**Session Takeaways
This summer, the Alachua County Library District Youth Services team hosted a weekly “Animal Tales” event as part of district wide Summer with the Library program. Animal Tales combined a literacy-based activity and animal science education for elementary school –aged children into an action packed 45 minute virtual program. The district hosted nine virtual events with over 15 different animals, four community partners, and eight different library staff from six unique branches. This fall we’re jumping back in with a STEM series with local scientists! Are you interested in trying something similar, but are not sure how? This presentation will cover the program process from pitching the program to planning to lessons learned and how we plan to do it better in the fall. We will cover: • Defining virtual program agreements • Comparing and contrasting virtual and in-person programs • Identifying characteristics of strategic internal and community partners • Demonstrating effective communication practices for managing a large program with many stakeholders • Assembling a program presenter’s guide • Formulating different ways to implement a similar program in your community As a result of this presentation, participants will be able to: • Design public programs related to literacy and STEM • Identify strategic internal and community partners • Develop relationships with multiple community organizations • Manage a program with multiple branches.

Room 4
NEFLIN E-Resources Committee Update
This session will provide an update on the committee’s work towards creating a cooperative purchasing program of e-resources for NEFLIN’s public libraries.
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The committee was formed to with these goals.  First, library systems will be able to purchase databases or products cheaper than they could by themselves through consortium licensing.  Second, NEFLIN is able to then charge a small fee to cover the administrative costs of the consortium licensing, which is a needed revenue stream for NEFLIN on account of the uncertain nature of grant funding from the State.  It is a win, win, and win: libraries get a discounted price, NEFLIN generates income, and the vendors sell their products to more libraries.

Committee members:

• Jae Bass, St. Johns County Public Library
• Jill Haile,  Jacksonville Public Library
• Paul Lightcap, Alachua County Library District
• Brad Ward, NEFLIN
• Brook White, Volusia County Public Library