Training
Online Resources
Events
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From Intimidating to Insightful: Building a Usability Testing Program
Libraries are increasingly employing usability testing to inform the design of their websites, discovery layers, and services, but designing and facilitating testing can be intimidating for libraries without UX expertise or designated staff. During this webinar, the presenter will share how she designed and facilitated an iterative seven-test usability testing program during one academic year and provide practical guidance for adapting and implementing a similar program at your institution.
The session will walk through considerations for designing sustainable usability testing, strategies for assessing the captured data and identifying action items, and lessons learned along the way.
Hope in the Library: How Libraries Can Help Shape Our Future with Artificial Intelligence
In an era where our information environments are increasingly redesigned for artificial intelligence, Hope in the Library (published Feb 2026) poses a vital question: What is the role of the library in an age of automated systems? Dr. Michael J. Paulus, Jr. argues that far from being obsolete, libraries are the essential counterbalance we need—serving as human-scaled sanctuaries for reflection, imagination, and agency. By reframing the library as a site of “hope,” this talk will explore how these institutions function as archives of the past and catalysts for a better future, ensuring that we do not just survive the rise of AI, but thrive alongside it.
Dr. Paulus, the Dean of Libraries at Creighton University, brings over two decades of leadership and research on the intersection of AI, faith, and higher education to this work. Structured as a series of accessible essays, the book weaves together personal narrative, history, and literary meditations from writers like Mary Shelley, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Jorge Luis Borges. Whether you are a librarian, a technologist, or a reader concerned with the future of human connection, this session will offer a radical, optimistic framework for integrating AI into society while keeping humanity at the center.
In an era where our information environments are increasingly redesigned for artificial intelligence, Hope in the Library poses a vital question: What is the role of the library in an age of automated systems? Dr. Michael J. Paulus, Jr. argues that far from being obsolete, libraries are the essential counterbalance we need—serving as human-scaled sanctuaries for reflection, imagination, and agency. By reframing the library as a site of “hope,” this talk will explore how these institutions function as archives of the past and catalysts for a better future, ensuring that we do not just survive the rise of AI, but thrive alongside it.
The New Instruction Librarian Live: Real Problems, Real Solutions
Step into the classroom with confidence! This webinar brings to life teaching scenarios from the 2025 (2nd edition) book The New Instruction Librarian, tackling the common (and sometimes surprising) challenges that instruction librarians face. Together, we’ll look at practical ways to respond in the moment, keep students engaged, and build confidence as an instructor. Our goal is to keep things real, practical, and reassuring, because you don’t have to figure this out alone.
Co-authors Candice Benjes-Small and Rebecca Miller Waltz will be joined by a panel of librarians who served as experts in the book.
Presenters
Candice Benjes-Small, MLIS, is head of research at William & Mary Libraries in Williamsburg, VA. A frequent presenter at national library and teaching-and-learning conferences, Benjes-Small has published widely on information literacy pedagogy, librarian–faculty partnerships, and the organizational structures that support effective teaching programs. Along with Rebecca, she co-founded The Innovative Library Classroom, a popular regional library instruction conference, serving as co-chair since 2014.
Rebecca Miller Waltz, MSLS, MAEd, is Associate Dean for Learning and Engagement at Penn State University Libraries. Rebecca has been active in regional, state, and national library organizations and has authored and coauthored a number of books, book chapters, technical reports, and articles on teaching, learning, and instructional technologies in libraries, including publications in College & Research Libraries News, Journal of Learning Spaces, Library Leadership & Management, and Journal of Library Administration.