Want to throw an epic community event but only have $3, a folding table, and a dream? This session is for you! Learn how to plan, fund, and survive organizing an event that draws a crowd—without losing your sanity (or your budget). We’ll cover how to find sponsors, woo community partners, and dodge common pitfalls. Whether you're a planning pro or just Googled “how to host an event,” you’ll leave with real tools, big laughs, and the confidence to pull it off at your library—even if your only resource is a cup of coffee, and pure willpower. This session is based on a real-life library event that drew thousands, despite limited resources and a serious caffeine dependency.
How do property taxes, reassessments, and state aid formulas translate into your library’s budget? Delaware and Maryland libraries depend on a unique combination of local, county, and state funding. This pre-conference seminar helps library directors, senior staff, and advocates understand how government partners make funding decisions. The session examines how local, county, and state revenue streams are generated, allocated, and defended—and how libraries can position themselves within broader public finance discussions. Through guided discussion and real-world examples, attendees will gain confidence to engage with local officials, advocate for equitable funding, and connect library goals to community development and tax policy.
This program is about the grant Claymont Library and Howard County Library System received from ALA to present children's financial literacy programs in the library using games and story times.
Agriculture shapes Maryland’s identity — from the Eastern Shore to Western Maryland, farms and foodways form the backbone of our communities. This workshop includes the stories of Maryland’s farms, fields, and food — the lived experiences of the people who grow, harvest, and sustain our communities. Through hands-on activities and examples from successful library-agriculture collaborations, this interactive workshop invites library professionals to explore how agricultural literacy can enrich library programs, collections, and community engagement. Attendees will leave inspired to plant the seeds of agricultural awareness in their own communities — ensuring that “Our Stories, Our Shelves” include the people who feed us all.
Middle School Education Director, Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation
Victoria Stone MAEF is a nonprofit organization with programs serving pre-kindergarten through post-secondary audiences whose signature programs include “Infusing Ag in the Classroom” professional development courses for teachers; mobile science labs; and mobile agricultural s... Read More →
Thursday May 7, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am EDT Windjammer
This session presents an innovative outreach model building shared communities through cross-sector partnerships with campus departments, public libraries, and high schools. We create a seamless service continuum, ensuring a student's story is supported from pre-college to graduation. By featuring familiar collections, like Young Adult (YA) works, we build familiarity. The academic library visits for high school students specifically normalize the space. This mutually beneficial approach expands all partners' reach, directly supporting student success initiatives crucial for campus recruitment and retention.
Host dynamic cooking programs for youth using everything from commercial kitchens to microwaves and no-cook setups. This session offers practical tips for planning one-hour culinary experiences that engage all skill levels. Learn how to set themes, incorporate storytelling, and add creative non-cooking elements to boost participation. Leave with resources and ideas to turn any library space into a flavorful, story-rich learning environment.
STEM programming in libraries often emphasizes science experiments, building, or computer activities, while the "M" for mathematics is frequently overlooked or minimized. What if math took center stage? How could a math-focused program be structured, and how would it foster an appreciation for mathematics in children of all ages?
This session is aimed at librarians looking to increase faculty engagement at the Library but do not have significant resources or time to allocate to the endeavor. Presenters will share their experience using vendor services to decrease administrative labor and maximize engagement. Attendees will learn to plan a vendor day at their library where faculty can directly engage with content providers, see live demonstrations of products, and learn to integrate content into course shells. In small groups, presenters and attendees will design an event shell to take back to their libraries.
