TNLA 2025 Conference

To make room for new innovative and technology-driven student spaces at the Charles C. Sherrod Library, faculty and staff decided to weed the bound periodical collection that is housed on the second floor of the building, store the remaining items in compact shelving, and renovate the now empty space by removing static and electronic compact shelving, replacing carpet, and updating paint. The space was converted for implementation of the Innovation Commons, a digital media and maker hub. Faculty and staff at Sherrod Library utilized GreenGlass for this project and elicited feedback from faculty inside and outside of the library regarding titles that were under consideration for deselection. This presentation will walk attendees through the process of deselecting 45,000+ periodicals and presenters will share their thoughts on GreenGlass and the effectiveness of this tool for a project of this size. Presenters will also provide an update on how this project has progressed since it was initiated in the spring of 2023.

Join us to explore a collaborative partnership between the University of Tennessee’s Preston Medical Library, which secured funding from the Network of National Libraries of Medicine Region 2, and the Clinch River Regional Library. This funding enabled public library staff to receive training on consumer health resources and provided curated sets of consumer health books for public libraries. Academic and regional library staff will describe the project and its funding sources, discuss the advantages and challenges of collaboration between public and academic libraries, and share best practices and potential improvements for future efforts.

To address the increase of born digital publications from Tennessee state agencies, the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) and the University Libraries at the University of Memphis each implemented the Digital Commons platform to house these materials and make them searchable on the open Web. Though the two institutions share similar goals, their unique missions guide the development of their online repositories. Join us to learn more about how you and others can benefit from the growing content on TSLA’s Digital Tennessee and the University of Memphis Digital Commons space.

In an era of constant change, effective outreach programs are grounded in purposeful principles. This session explores how ACRL's newly adopted outreach competencies build on fundamental elements of successful academic library outreach: intentionality, assessment, and strategic relationship-building. Drawing on research from conceptual frameworks to practical applications, learn how understanding these core elements creates adaptable and sustainable programs. Perfect for both new and experienced outreach librarians, attendees will discover how mastering outreach fundamentals enables programs to demonstrate value while evolving to meet changing needs. Join us to explore getting "back to basics" while building for the future.

Are you ready to start a library garden, or would you like to learn more about it? Join this session to discover our garden programs at the Chattanooga Public Library. Learn how you can create a garden, the benefits of having one, and get ideas for programs. You'll also explore how to grow your garden program through partnerships and find resources to help you launch your gardening initiative.  

With dwindling budgets and rising anti-library sentiment, it is difficult to remain positive. We're all working harder because we believe in what we do, but burnout is also rising. We're asked to do more with less, and when we complain or raise our concerns, we're often told canned phrases, especially, "Remember your why." My presentation is both a love letter to our professions and a calling out of toxic behaviors and gaslighted thinking. We deserve to be treated as humans, not superheroes. So lets take off our capes and talk about what we need.

Come and learn about a new open educational resource and community to support library workers as they develop their negotiation knowledge and skills. Designed to help all library workers learn negotiation best practices and strategies for both their personal and professional lives, this OER includes lectures, readings, assessments, and hand-on assignments.  In addition to learning about this resource, attendees will learn about the community being created to provide support for library professionals responsible for negotiations and about key issues and trends uncovered during an interview research study. While the content developed around licensing is geared toward an academic audience, the negotiation strategy and planning techniques in the OER are widely applicable across all types of libraries and library workers.

In the aftermath of COVID-19, libraries faced the challenge of reengaging students and rebuilding disrupted outreach efforts. At East Tennessee State University’s Sherrod Library, librarians recognized the need to rebuild, innovate, and restructure our approach to student outreach. This presentation will explore how ETSU reference and instruction librarians revamped existing strategies to foster a welcoming, inclusive environment for students by redesigning our student orientation process, by developing several casual student-centered clubs, and by opening a new reference desk for drop-in research help. This presentation will provide insights and practical takeaways for libraries looking to revitalize their student outreach programs in a post-pandemic landscape.

Learn who last year’s TNLA Intellectual Freedom Award winner RCLA is, what they do, and how they can help you! Libraries have unfortunately turned political, with attempts to impose censorship here in Tennessee. We’ll dive into what the laws actually say, what the specific language used means, and how to resist censorship in your libraries.

Like many other college campuses, Lipscomb University saw an increase in mental health and social problems as students returned to campus after the Covid-19 shutdown. Because of that, our library put a new emphasis on student events to encourage students and make them feel at home in the library. In the past two years, as federal Covid funding has ended, we have also faced budget cuts making it more difficult to fund these events. These dual problems have forced us to be more creative in our programming. We faced the question: How do we make the library an inviting and encouraging place for students without spending money? This presentation summarizes our attempts to leverage our current resources to provide some levity in the library. We found that seeing students smile raises our spirits too. We hope that our experience will inspire you to create some fun in your own library even when times are tough.