Academic libraries are mission-critical infrastructure within their institutions. Yet unless library leaders can articulate their work in donor-centered language, libraries often remain invisible within advancement strategy. This session will explore how academic libraries can strengthen partnerships with institutional Advancement teams to supplement budgets, accelerate strategic priorities, and build sustainable philanthropic pipelines. Drawing on fundraising leadership experience at two PASCAL member institutions, this presentation will demystify how Advancement offices operate and provide practical strategies library leaders can immediately apply. Topics will include: - Working in partnership with the Advancement Team - Translating library priorities into compelling philanthropic cases - Building donor pipelines for libraries - Implementing stewardship practices that encourage long-term investment The session will also examine three common myths that often limit library engagement in fundraising efforts and offer practical reframing approaches that empower library leaders.
Library workers are subjected to burnout and low morale experiences throughout their careers, as evidenced by themes of library literature. This speaker, who has lived experience with both burnout and low morale (inside and outside of the library world and at a variety of academic libraries) will outline avenues for library workers to mitigate burnout and low morale through peer mentoring and mutual support group opportunities. This speaker, who has experience with the NASIG Peer Mentoring Program as well as the Urban Library Workers Library Workers Support Network (LWSN - not just for urban library workers) will outline research behind both types of programs as well as outline what she gained through participation in both programs. The presentation will also end with a call to action centered around the possibility of creating a peer mentoring cohort of PASCAL members, either through official or unofficial means to strengthen connections statewide.
Academic libraries are increasingly expected to deliver high-impact, low-cost programming that strengthens connections among faculty, students, and campus partners. This session introduces "Pecha Sharka," a library-led faculty research showcase inspired by PechaKucha ("chit-chat") style storytelling but adapted to fit institutional culture and faculty participation needs. Developed at the University of South Carolina Beaufort, Pecha Sharka uses a streamlined presentation format (10 slides, 20 minutes, visual-forward design) to help faculty share current research in an engaging and accessible way with other faculty and students. The program emphasizes narrative over lecture, encourages interdisciplinary visibility, and positions the library as a central hub for scholarly communication and community engagement. Attendees will learn how to design event infrastructure, recruit presenters, coordinate logistics and marketing, and scale the model for campuses of varying sizes. Through practical examples and lessons learned from pilot events, participants will gain a replicable framework they can adapt to strengthen campus partnerships, elevate faculty scholarship, and increase library visibility within the staffing, space, and budget constraints common at smaller institutions.
Master of Science Library Science, UNC Chapel Hill Master of Arts in Educational Theatre, New York University Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Education, East Carolina University
Academic libraries of all types are struggling with staffing shortages driven by budget cuts, hiring freezes, and frequent turnover. In this presentation, librarians representing a small private institution (Anderson University) and a public R1 institution (Clemson University) compare and contrast their experiences navigating long-term staffing shortages and examine the ramifications of these challenges on library staff and operations. The presenters also share practical, adaptable strategies attendees can implement at their institutions to mitigate burnout and support staff well-being during periods of extended understaffing. Areas of focus include cross-training, evaluating priorities, leveraging in-house talent, and maintaining realistic expectations.
Renna Tuten Redd has served as the Interlibrary Loan Librarian at Clemson University since 2015 and oversees resource sharing and document delivery services as well as off-site storage management. Her other current library projects involve participating in the PASCAL (Partnership... Read More →
Join a panel of scholarly communication professionals to discuss the role of librarians in shaping the academic landscape through education and the dissemination, preservation, and accessibility of scholarly works. We will focus on: 1. Open Access Initiatives: How are librarians advancing open access publishing models and ensuring researchers have access to free and equitable knowledge? 2. Scholarly Communication Education: What are the best practices for educating faculty, researchers, and students on scholarly publishing processes, copyright, and licensing?
Assistant Head, Acquisitions & Scholarly Communication, USC Columbia
Amie Freeman is the Scholarly Communication Librarian with the University of South Carolina Libraries' Digital Research Services department. She holds a BA in International Studies and a MLIS from the University of South Carolina. Amie oversees Scholar Commons, UofSC’s institutional... Read More →
Scholarly Communication Librarian, Clemson University
With over 29 years of experience in Library and Information Science (LIS) and more than 8 years in Scholarly Communication services and instruction, Prof. Amal Mostafa has recently joined Clemson University Libraries as a Scholarly Communication Librarian. Previously, she served as... Read More →
Thursday June 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT Virtual Room C
Whether you are teaching a library instruction session for the first time, filling in for your instruction librarian, or a seasoned veteran looking for quick tips on making a new template, join me as I present three easy and budget-friendly ways to organize and quick-start your instruction practice. I've developed the Three S's - Keep It Simple, Keep It Structured, and Keep It Student-Focused - as a baseline template that can be used in any instructional setting. We will define the Three S's, look at sample templates, and share tips and tricks on how I managed teaching subjects ranging from introductory library tours to first-semester composition classes to advanced history and even music courses.
With the move to Primo NDE on the horizon, I have customized our view with our college branding and colors. I will talk about updating the custom css file with custom colors, updating the default background image using an svg file, and updating the default buttons, both in look and number. I'll also cover checking custom colors for appropriate color contrast for accessibility.
Leaders in higher education often have a strong belief system regarding students' needs from the library. It is difficult to address these beliefs which are typically based on personal experience or articles that espouse what students need from the academic library but may not pertain to the students a specific academic library serves. The myriad beliefs and opinions that exist at the University of South Carolina Beaufort frequently drive how resources are prioritized and distributed. To address the anecdotal opinions about students' library needs, the USCB library conducts a one-week in-person intensive needs assessment survey of its students, faculty, and staff. The survey provides data that demonstrates what students need and provides support for the library's financial investment in services and provides data that demonstrates why the library prioritizes certain investments and how they support student success. The needs assessment is also used as the basis for requesting new resources for the library in the annual budget cycle and shows how the investment in resources addresses what students stated they want from the library. The needs assessment survey reduces reliance on personal opinions, and the process shows students that the library is interested in their opinion and wants to respond to their needs to support their success and comfort in the library.
In April 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a final ruling under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act establishing the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA as the technical standard for digital accessibility. The ruling requires state and local government entities serving more than 50,000 people to make their web content and mobile applications fully accessible by April 2026. For large research institutions, this mandate presents an enormous challenge: how do you ensure accessibility across hundreds of licensed databases, thousands of e-journals, multiple digital repositories, and countless web pages?
Assistant Head, Acquisitions & Scholarly Communication, USC Columbia
Amie Freeman is the Scholarly Communication Librarian with the University of South Carolina Libraries' Digital Research Services department. She holds a BA in International Studies and a MLIS from the University of South Carolina. Amie oversees Scholar Commons, UofSC’s institutional... Read More →
What happens when your library receives unexpected news of a significant collections budget cut? How does a severely understaffed department even begin to identify over half a million dollars in savings within three months? With a looming transition to Revenue-Based Budgeting, as well as cuts to the Department of Education and other avenues for research funding, Clemson University Libraries faced a crisis of cutting five percent of the healthy collections budget. The presenters will outline their framework for conducting collections assessment and identifying within a condensed timeframe. In addition to frequent team communication and collaboration with departmental liaison librarians, strategies included utilizing a Renewal Decision Matrix developed by the Associate Dean for Collections & Discovery and a shared Serials Review spreadsheet that calculated cost per use for each resource. Ultimately, over one hundred serial titles and nearly 30 databases were identified for cancellation.
If you are considering starting a new makerspace or expanding the services in a current one, this presentation is for you. This presentation will discuss considerations for designing a makerspace in an existing space as well as newly constructed space. Attendees will benefit from our experiences designing in both conditions. There will be an equipment overview of makerspace technologies including: 3D printing, laser cutting, garment printing, poster printing, vinyl cutting, and sewing machines. We will explore methodologies and audience considerations for equipment selection and potential pitfalls that will save both your time and budget. Makerspace partnerships, programing, workshops, and special projects will also be discussed. We'll discuss outreach opportunities and strategies that have created successful partnerships between the makerspace and faculty as well as university at large. There will also be an overview of the makerspace operations, budgeting, staffing, and assessment will also be discussed.
Associate University Librarian, Coastal Carolina University
Jennifer Hughes has been employed at Kimbel Library, Coastal Carolina University for over 20 years. Most of her experience has been in Access Services, and she currently serves as the Associate University Librarian. Jennifer received her MLIS from the University of South Carolina... Read More →
ADA Title II updates require that government funded institutions make fully accessible all digital materials provided to the public. Coastal Carolina University has convened groups with multiple campus stakeholders to plan for full accessibility of all digital materials. Coastal Carolina University Libraries has already made progress in several accessibility projects identified by the library. This poster presentation will outline those projects and show progress made after one year of planning and implementation. The poster aims to provide insight to those libraries and institutions planning their own digital accessibility updates.
In one shot library instruction the Faculty-of-Record has real power to improve the quality of the library presentation. Even a small gesture from the faculty could create a more rapt audience of students during the class. This observation led to the creation of a qualitative survey to determine the importance of faculty participation in the library instruction process. Over the summer of 2025 ten instruction librarians from various PASCAL institutions were interviewed about their perspectives on the one-shot instruction process, how involved faculty are in their instruction, and other related questions. This poster will explore the collected data, patterns that were found, and provide recommendations for better one-shot library instruction.
USC Beaufort Libraries will create a public-facing Library Guide entitled "Freedom Takes Root: A Digital Gateway to the Reconstruction Era." This guide will be a curated, interactive digital bibliography centralizing Reconstruction-era materials related to Beaufort County and the Lowcountry. This collaborative project between the USCB Libraries and the ISRE will organize, annotate, and contextualize key primary and secondary resources to support researchers, teachers, and the public's understanding of one of the United States' most significant Reconstruction communities.
Elizabeth Laney, M.A., is a historian and genealogist with 20+ years experience working in state parks, historic sites and public libraries. She specializes in the history of the Reconstruction Era and the history of the State of South Carolina with a particular focus on African American... Read More →
Master of Science Library Science, UNC Chapel Hill Master of Arts in Educational Theatre, New York University Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Education, East Carolina University
In Fall 2022, HONS 101: Studies in Fanfiction was offered as an interdisciplinary course to first semester freshmen at USC Aiken. Co-taught by an English professor and a librarian, the course focused on critical thinking, analysis, information literacy, research, writing, and examination of primary and secondary texts. The final project of the course was to create and deliver a conference style presentation, and the final projects were excellent and demonstrated good and actively developing research and information literacy skills. In this session, we'll define fanfiction and participatory fandom and demonstrate how they can be valid subjects for interdisciplinary study, with particular focus on helping students develop information literacy skills. Fandom communities develop in a similar way to academic communities, and many fans essentially become subject matter experts with some understanding of the nature and overall quality of information online, resulting in them becoming more sophisticated information consumers, overall.
Many librarians that do outreach work either do not use or do not have access to their ILS systems, making creating book lists for displays or purchase requests tedious. However, there is an innovative approach to rapidly generating book lists from both the open web and library catalogs. By creating a custom Citation Style Language compatible with Zotero, librarians can quickly save and export book lists with relevant metadata such as call numbers or ISBNs. By using generative AI and Citation Style Language's code editor, functional workflow requirements can be integrated into custom CSL code without programming expertise. Harnessing the power of open-source platforms like Zotero and the Citation Style Language project alongside generative artificial intelligence allows librarians doing outreach work to streamline their workflows.
In an effort to encourage engagement with students on campus, Lander University's Jackson Library developed weekly interactive whiteboard prompts to invite students to share their thoughts with the staff and other peers. Each week saw an outpouring of responses, with the boards quickly filling to capacity to display students' handwritten opinions, book recommendations, and creative doodles. Using examples from Jackson Library's boards of the past, this poster session will discuss practical insights on crafting successful prompts and how these responses can be utilized to inform collection development decisions in academic libraries.
In 2025, Clemson Libraries' Digitization Services unit migrated its digitization project management workflow built in the software platform Trello to the software platform Wrike. This transition allowed the department and its cross-functional collaborators to review essential steps of digitization workflows and leverage the move to a new system to better manage both large-scale digitization projects and small requests. Based on this experience, this presentation will provide attendees with a software-agnostic framework for determining requirements for and selecting a project management platform. The presentation will provide an example of a real-world process used to develop collaborative library workflows in a newly adopted project management platform and outline governance structures necessary to maintain a cross-functional project management system.
Students are increasingly using generative AI for a variety of educational purposes including research, writing, and citing. Because of this, librarians at Coastal Carolina University decided that AI literacy should be integrated into a long-running, for-credit, information literacy course. This session will provide an overview of how AI literacy was integrated into the course, topics that were addressed, activities and course materials that were used, and how the course materials were received by students. While the presentation focuses on lessons created for a credit course, the material can be adapted to one-shot sessions. As a librarian who is new to generative AI, this presentation is geared towards other beginners who are interested in exploring this topic.
Springshare has released a new product called "LibSites" that allows for the creation of custom library websites using drag-and-drop functionality. Representatives from the Furman Libraries will demonstrate how they are using LibSites to re-envision their website. The presentation will include a brief demo, pros and cons of the software, and a sneak peak of their newly redesigned site built in LibSites.
To proactively combat stressful times within an academic year, such as midterms and finals, the Gregg-Graniteville library hosts a table of snacks, drinks, play-doh, puzzles, and coloring books. This resource has seen great success, but what if there was a permanence to this initiative? With inspiration from Oregon State University's Library of Things, the access services department at USC Aiken has created a de-stress alcove. This permanent location within the library hosts board games, puzzles, hammocks, and coloring books. This new collection promotes an environment of sustainability through borrowing, not buying. It also allows student to take mental health breaks, try new things, and understand that lifelong learning isn't just limited to textbooks and the classroom. Further collaboration between departments across campus, like student life and housing, has increased foot traffic in the library and reframes the library as a fun space while also holistically improving campus life.
When the circulation desk cash register became too unreliable to continue operating, I built a user-friendly replacement using Microsoft Excel on an existing Windows workstation. Built in one week at a small college library (under 5,000 students), this zero-budget solution handles all circulation transactions - print charges, ID fees, fines, and guest card costs - without new software, vendor contracts, or supplies. Previously, student assistants relied on tip sheets and regularly escalated transactions to senior staff. Now they operate independently with minimal assistance. This poster documents the problem identification, design, and live implementation process, with before/after comparisons and workflow analysis. The solution works with basic Excel skills, though advanced macro versions are available. Attendees will receive an adaptable template for immediate use at their own circulation desk.
Seed libraries connect library patrons to seeds for them to grow their own flowers and vegetables. In this poster presentation, participants will learn how a librarian collaborated with an undergraduate student organization to pilot a seed library located in the main library building on campus. The seed library was created to meet the needs of students, as plants continue to be of interest to students based on their feedback. The focus of this seed library is to provide free seeds and resources on gardening for students. The poster will describe the educational resources used to learn about seed libraries, materials needed to create the library and where to get those materials and donated items, and the planning that took place to create and market a seed library.
One of Amanda Caldwell's biggest tasks as Outreach and Engagement Librarian is to get more students in the library. She aimed to achieve this by reaching out to the support services students were already using and leveraging events happening on campus. From these initiatives, new collaborative events with various campus partners were developed. These events successfully drove students to the library and created lasting relationships across campus that will continue to grow the library's outreach. This poster will give examples of these events and list recommendations to help other libraries collaborate cross-departmentally.
Crafting has become one of the ways our library builds connections, supports mental health, and enhances the library environment. The library offers a monthly drop-in craft hour for students, faculty, and staff, alternating between guided activities with supplied materials and bring-your-own-project sessions. During final exams, the library offers collaborative coloring or sticker mosaic posters and grab-and-go craft bags for short mindfulness breaks. Library staff also create book art displays, such as penguin journal sculptures and folded book hearts, for our front desk. These displays support staff self-care, provide a creative outlet for staff, and create an inviting atmosphere for visitors. Informal feedback has been enthusiastic, with visitors finding the craft sessions beneficial and pausing to photograph and comment on the creations. The poster will share examples and ideas adaptable to other library settings.
Join PASCAL for an in-depth two-hour webinar on cost per use in Alma. This session will focus on reviewing and demonstrating the data necessary for Alma to calculate cost per use and generating the relevant reports. Participants are encouraged to submit specific problem examples in advance.
Note: This session will be held during the PASCAL Member Conference Virtual Day. Registration for the conference is separate and is not required to participate in this session.
This session builds on the Acquisitions Infrastructure and Electronic Resource Acquisition and Activation sessions in this series.
Please note this session will not include the actual configuring of SUSHI harvesting of COUNTER data into Alma Analytics. If there are questions about that functionality, please open a PASCAL support request for assistance.
Registration is required. This webinar will be recorded.
About the Alma Acquisitions Training Series:
PASCAL is hosting a four-part acquisitions training series in May and June, facilitated by Miiya Holmes, Senior Customer Education Trainer at Ex Libris.
Part 1: Acquisitions Infrastructure | Thursday, May 14, 2026, 1:00pm -3:00pm Part 2: Physical Resources Acquisition Ordering, Receiving, and Invoicing | Thursday, May 28, 2026, 10:00am -12:00pm *Part 3: Electronic Resources Acquisition and Activation | Thursday, June 11, 2026, 1:30pm -3:30pm Part 4: Electronic Resource Cost Per Use | Thursday, June 18, 2026, 1:00pm -3:00pm All staff at SLSP participating libraries are welcome to participate in any or all sessions. For those new to acquisitions, full participation—either by attending live or by viewing the posted recordings—is strongly encouraged, as each session builds on the previous one.
*Part 3: Electronic Resources Acquisition and Activation is a preconference event held in conjunction with the 2026 PASCAL Member Conference. Registration for the conference is separate and is not required to participate in this session.
Mature LibGuides implementations benefit from routine clean-up. After the initial "ugh" when considering how overwhelming the project could be, developing and implementing a strategic approach makes the maintenance efficient and adds value for librarians and Guide users. The presenters will each share how they approached recent clean-up and will propose a model for considering a strategic approach to maintaining LibGuides. One presenter will also touch on her approach to conducting a full systemic review of the entire suite of Springshare products and will discuss how that review intersects LibGuides cleanup. Participants will receive examples of spreadsheets and other organizational tools as well as framing questions for developing a local strategy.
What if we turned source evaluation from the CRAAP test into a pirate adventure where the whole narrative was the lesson? Avoiding a Pirate TRAAP is an original OER narrative that shows what happens to two teenagers who buy the wrong information from a man named Blackbeard Joe. Join me as we look at narrative pedagogy and discuss how to teach source evaluation and information literacy with ancient pedagogy techniques - from the fables of Aesop to the parables of Jesus - as we remix storytelling and learning to make the experience both fun and tangible. We will also discuss using the Adventurfy Method, an instructional method created by Lian Warner, on creating your own learning experiences that add adventure, risk, and story. Participants will gain access to the Pirate TRAAP story and a launchpad on how to create instructional adventures in your own library.
Controlled Digital Lending (CDL) has emerged as a sensible strategy for libraries seeking to expand access to physical collections in digital environments. Grounded in the core "owned-to-loaned" principle, CDL allows libraries to lend digitized versions of legally acquired print materials under controlled conditions that mirror physical circulation, including user authentication, limited loan periods, and technical access controls. Even with the ongoing legal and policy debates, this session will center on understanding how CDL can function in day-to-day library operations, the decision-making that guides its use, and the role it can play in advancing library service missions and strengthening connections.
Academic libraries rely on data from multiple vendor platforms, yet reporting workflows are often manual, fragmented, and time-consuming. This session shares the development of a semi-automated assessment dashboard that integrates data across systems to streamline reporting and improve transparency. The presentation will outline practical steps for auditing available data, establishing a sustainable extraction process, and designing dashboards that support both internal planning and public reporting. The presentation will emphasize decision-making, tool selection, and workflow design that can scale across different institutional contexts. Attendees will learn how to leverage different tools to reduce annual reporting preparation time, strengthen shared understanding of library impact, and support more consistent data practices. Considerations related to data governance and ethical use will also be addressed.
