
April 2026
In This Issue Message From the President Register for the MiALA Conference today! Volunteer for the MiALA Conference! Volunteer To Host Webinar: Centering Indigenous Knowledge Day-long Training on Participating in Local Advocacy Efforts Innovative Programming Corner Calendar of Events Import Welcome New Members! Save the Date! MIALA’s MIX 2026 Conference Join the Early Career Library Professionals Interest Group! Featured Job Board Posting Job posting - Butler University Libraries MiALA Impact Statement Newsletter Submissions Calendar of Events Import MiALA Board Meeting 04/02/2026 HEIS IG Meeting 04/02/2026 I&IL + Crit Lib IG's: Emergent Strategy as Critical Pedagogy 04/02/2026 Mid-Level Leadership IG Meetup 04/09/2026 Webinar: Centering Indigenous Knowledge 04/13/2026 IGCC Meeting 04/14/2026 E-resources IG Meeting 04/16/2026 Cataloging and Metadata IG Coffee Hour 04/20/2026 MiALA Annual Conference 05/06/2026- 05/08/2026 HSIG Meeting 05/11/2026 IGCC Meeting 05/12/2026 MiALA Board Meeting 05/14/2026 Mid-Level Leadership IG Meetup 05/14/2026 Welcome New Members! University of Michigan Sarah Steele Northwestern Michigan College Nicco Pandolfi Sage Publishing Kelleen Maluski Michigan Library Association Keeley Briggs Central Michigan University Ariel Wiborn University of Detroit Mercy Mara Powell Jackson College Garifilia Adamopoulos Wayne State University Sarah Offerman Wayne State University Emily Minott Wayne State University William Neumaier Kalamazoo College Lauren McMullan GVSU Emily Frigo Save the Date! MIALA’s MIX 2026 Conference MIALA’s MIX 2026 Conference: Mapping Trends in Information Literacy Instruction Date: Friday July 17, 2026 Time: 10am-4pm with optional happy hour immediately following at Block House Location: Alma College Library A call for conference session proposals and registration details coming soon. Stay tuned! Join the Early Career Library Professionals Interest Group! Join the Early Career Library Professionals Interest Group, one of MiALA's newest interest groups. This group provides an opportunity for library staff and librarians who are new to the field (or in school) to come together to support each other through the early stages of working in academic libraries. The group meets monthly, depending on everyone's availability. Join the IG today to receive information about future events and meetings! If you have any questions, please reach out to the IG Chair, Tiler Jewell, tbjewel1@svsu.edu. Sign in and join the interest group on the Early Career Library Professionals IG MiALA page. Featured Job Board Posting Nursing & Health Sciences Librarian Wayne State University is searching for an experienced Librarian I/II, Nursing and Health Sciences Librarian, University Library System at its Detroit campus location. Wayne State University is a premier public, urban research institution located in the heart of Detroit. We provide students from all backgrounds with a rich, high‑quality education and are deeply committed to excellence, collaboration, and integrity. Our mission is to prepare students for success in a global society. The Library System encompasses the David Adamany Undergraduate Library, Arthur Neef Law Library, Purdy/Kresge Library, Vera P. Shiffman Medical Library, and the Walter P. Reuther Library of Labor and Urban Affairs. For more information, or to see other jobs listed on the Job Board, please visit the MiALA Job Board website. Job posting - Butler University Libraries Butler University Libraries are seeking applications for a Head of Collections Services and Strategies. Please share with anyone who might be interested! Visit the Job Description for more information! MiALA Impact Statement "My first experience with MiALA was as an MLIS graduate student attending the annual conference. This was very impactful to my career, as it gave me experience presenting in a formal setting and exposed me to the innovative and inspiring projects happening at other institutions in my immediate area. I found it so inspiring to meet and connect with other professionals near me, with similar goals and values. My MiALA membership is something I’m very grateful for as an early career professional!" –Katie Edmiston, Central Michigan University We ask members to consider sharing these impact statements with non-members in their network who might be interested in learning more about MiALA. Newsletter Submissions Are you looking to get important information broadcast to MiALA membership through the newsletter, email, or other communication channels? Items can be sent via our submission form or by emailing the communications committee at communications@miala.org. Have questions? Email communications@miala.org. We're happy to help!	Message From the President Dear MiALA Members, I hope your first weeks of spring are going well! I encourage you to register for the MiALA’s Annual Conference taking place in Traverse City, May 6-8, you haven’t done so already! The conference promises to offer a robust program and serves as a great opportunity to network and engage with colleagues from across the state and region. MiALA Elections for the 2026-2027 Board of Directors and Interest Group Coordinating Committee are now open! If you are eligible to vote, you should have received a message from the Nominations Committee on March 30. Please cast your vote by 5 pm on April 13, 2026. We are also still seeking one or two member volunteers with knowledge of archiving practices to assist us with a project to review our digital files and assist us with developing a system to improve how we store, access, and transfer knowledge within the association. If this project interests you, please reach out to me directly (Julie.garrison@wmich.edu) to learn more. My best, Julie Garrison MiALA President Register for the MiALA Conference today! Reminder: Register for the MiALA 2026 Annual Conference today! Set against the backdrop of northern Michigan’s shoreline, we'll explore "Finding Our True North: Creating Connections to Light Our Way" with inspiring talks, practical breakout sessions, and meaningful conversations. You don't want to miss this opportunity for professional growth and networking! Registration closes April 22, so don't wait! You can register at http://bit.ly/4dRqq3w. Visit the conference website to learn more about the keynote speaker, program, and sessions: https://miala.org/annual_conference_2026.php. We look forward to seeing you at the Park Place Hotel & Conference Center in downtown Traverse City, May 6-8! Volunteer for the MiALA Conference! The MiALA annual conference planning committee is looking for energetic and dependable volunteers to help make our upcoming conference a success! We need volunteers to moderate sessions, work the registration table, set up or take down posters and more. Interested? Check the volunteer interest box on the Conference Registration form. Already registered? Contact Amy Brandt (abrandt@kvcc.edu) or Lisa Burns (lburns@madonna.edu) and let us know you are interested. Volunteer To Host The MiALA 2026 Annual Conference Volunteer Subcommittee is seeking hosts for Birds of a Feather lunch tables and evening Dinearound locations on May 7th. Are you, or your MiALA IG, interested in hosting a casual conversation lunch table during the conference? We welcome any theme, so feel free to get creative. Use the Birds of a Feather Host Form to sign up, or email Meagan Brown (brownmea@umich.ed u) with questions. Are you more interested in hosting dinnertime conversation? Individuals interested in hosting a dinner Dinearound location can complete the Dinearound Dinner Host Form to express their interest and choose their preferred locations. Questions? Email Emily Sanford (esanford@msu.edu). We will do our best to accommodate, but cannot guarantee restaurant location. Please wait for a committee member to confirm your request via email, and thank you for helping make this year’s conference a success! Webinar: Centering Indigenous Knowledge Centering Indigenous Knowledge: Building a Community-Driven Classification System for the TLAM Collection. Please join us for a webinar with Cassy Leeport, Lin Migiziikwe Gokee, and Anastasia Hanson. This webinar explores the collaborative development of a unique classification system designed specifically for the Tribal Libraries, Archives, and Museums (TLAM) collection at the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s CDIS Commons Library. Moving beyond conventional systems such as Library of Congress classification, this project centers Indigenous knowledge systems, relationships, and community priorities. Presenters will discuss the motivations behind the initiative, the collaborative design process, and the challenges and possibilities of reshaping description and access to reflect Indigenous worldviews. Register to attend using the Zoom registration page. Day-long Training on Participating in Local Advocacy Efforts Libraries at the Crossroads of the Constitution and Politics: A Day-long Training for Concerned Citizens and Library Stakeholders When: April 12 – 16, 2026 As libraries navigate a rapidly changing landscape, community members play an increasingly important role in supporting access, learning, and intellectual freedom. This session is for community members who value libraries and everyday advocates who are confronting book bans, censorship, and discrimination affecting their communities. Participants will explore ways to engage meaningfully with their communities; become familiar with the laws that protect libraries, education, and readers; learn strategies for building broad coalitions in their towns, cities, and school districts; and share ideas for working collaboratively while building a new network of mutual support. MLA is proud to welcome John Chratska, founder of EveryLibrary and a national expert on these issues, to guide discussion and facilitate hands-on workshops focused on locally appropriate approaches to these issues. Participants will also be introduced to practical digital and real-world tools and resources to help them get started, or participate more effectively, in local conversations and advocacy efforts. No prior advocacy experience is necessary, just a desire to build connections with others who share a commitment to strong, welcoming libraries. Register for the event using the registration form. Event Dates and Locations Sunday, April 12 from 12:00 – 6:00 PM at the Novi Public Library in Novi Monday, April 13 from 10:00 – 4:00 PM at the Kent District Library Meeting and Service Center in Comstock Park Tuesday, April 14 from 10:00 – 4:00 PM at the Ostego County Library Main Branch in Gaylord Thursday, April 16 from 10:00 – 4:00 PM at the Peter White Public Library in Marquette Innovative Programming Corner The Western Michigan University Libraries debuted its Seed Library in April 2024, and now it reaches its second anniversary. Mary O’Kelly, associate dean for education and user services, worked with a passionate team of supporters to collect free seed donations and package them to be shared with community growers, who are encouraged to save seeds and donate them back in the fall. The seed cabinet is located on Waldo Library’s first floor. University Libraries is a member of the Michigan Seed Library Network and Kalamazoo Seed Collaborative. The Libraries’ seed volunteers are currently cleaning, sorting and processing donated seeds into individual packets for the 2026 growing season. The Seed Library has been a wildly popular program on campus and in the Kalamazoo community—more than 5,900 packets were distributed in 2025. Everyone in the Kalamazoo community is welcome to stop by Waldo Library and pick up seeds to start growing at home. We want feature your innovative programming in our next newsletter! Is your library doing something fun, innovative, or unique? We would love to feature it here! Please submit a short write up of your programming and a picture (when available) to the MiALA Communications Committee using the submission form or by emailing the communications committee at communications@miala.org.
MiALA Newsletter - April 2026