(via Diana Matthews, Santa Fe College)
The Florida Chapter of ACRL (FACRL) believes it is important to affirm the Association’s commitment to acknowledge and address historical racial inequities; challenge oppressive systems within academic libraries; value different ways of knowing; and identify and work to eliminate barriers to equitable services, spaces, resources, and scholarship. We are currently seeking proposals for presentations and poster sessions for the 2021 FACRL Virtual Annual Conference, held Friday, October 15.
Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) initiatives and practices have been at the forefront of library services for years. It is time to ask ourselves, are they working? How often are IDEA initiatives and plans revisited? Assessed? Updated? Which ones require further development? Retired? Is the impact of such efforts visible in your communities? Libraries? Campuses? This year’s CFP encourages librarians and leadership to explore, share and discuss IDEA practices.
Proposals should focus on themes of diversity, accessibility, equity, and inclusion in academic libraries. We welcome submissions from library staff, students, and faculty.
Topics might include but are not limited to, the following.
- bias, racism, and sexism in library collection development, cataloging, acquisitions, or archives
- writing equitable and inclusive policies
- celebrations of equity, diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility
- recruiting, hiring, and retaining a diverse library workforce
- events or displays in the library addressing racial, violence, bigotry, xenophobia, or division
- confronting racism in your campus’ past
- services for neurodivergent patrons
- best practices for creating and implementing welcoming, inclusive and accessible environments for all users (e.g., in person, online (LMS, conferencing platforms, etc.))
- partnerships across campus with student groups, departments such as a Disabilities Resource Center, LGBTQIA+ centers, and other student support services
- trends in inclusive teaching practices and library instruction for diverse populations
Proposals for presentations, posters, and lightning round presentations are due by Friday, July 9, and they can be submitted using the online submission form. Selected presenters will receive free registration to the virtual conference.
Presentations should be a total of 45 minutes in length, which would include time provided for questions. Posters will be shared during a virtual poster session during the conference. Lightning round presentations are 5 minutes in length. Please follow this link (requires signing into a Google account) to the rubric that will be used to score all proposals. Acceptance emails will be sent on or before August 15.
Presentations and posters of superior quality may be considered for future publication in The Reference Librarian, a major refereed journal published by Taylor and Francis. Consider reviewing the Instructions for Authors to learn about the expectations of content and writing for this peer-reviewed journal, which utilizes APA 7th edition style. Please contact co-editors Lauri Rebar (lrebar@fau.edu) and Steve Black (seblack@colgate.edu) with any questions. New and established authors are welcome!
Inquiries may be sent to the FACRL Conference Program Committee Co-chairs, John Reynolds (jxr1327@med.miami.edu) and Clarissa West-White (whitec@cookman.edu).