OVERVIEW:
AI is reshaping libraries in ways that raise hard questions and real opportunities, and library workers are responding with everything from skepticism to excitement to alarm. This three-hour mini-conference, "Perspectives on AI: Exploring Experiences with AI in Library Work" on Thursday, April 9, 10:30 am - 1:30 pm US-Pacific Time, is designed to honor that complexity so attendees can form their own informed, values-grounded view.
The mini-conference will explore AI from the angles that matter to library workers:
- Understanding risks and potential harms;
- Practical applications in library and administrative work;
- Research and information literacy;
- Leadership decision-making;
- Ethical considerations;
- Supporting patrons who are navigating AI in their own lives.
Please join us for a conversation that will be as broad and honest as the topic deserves. Attendance is free and open to all.
CONFERENCE CHAIR:
California State Librarian
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL & SPECIAL ORGANIZER
Greg Lucas was appointed California’s 25th State Librarian by Governor Jerry Brown on March 25, 2014.
Prior to his appointment, Greg was the Capitol Bureau Chief for the San Francisco Chronicle, where he covered politics and policy at the State Capitol for nearly 20 years.
During Greg’s tenure as State Librarian, the State Library’s priorities have been to improve reading skills throughout the state, put library cards into the hands of every school kid and provide all Californians the information they need – no matter what community they live in.
The State Library invests $10 million annually in local libraries to help them develop more innovative and efficient ways to serve their communities.
Since 2015, the State Library has improved access for millions of Californians by helping connect more than 1,000 of the state’s 1,129 libraries to a high-speed Internet network that links universities, colleges, schools, and libraries around the world.
Greg holds a Master’s in Library and Information Science from California State University San Jose, a Master’s in Professional Writing from the University of Southern California, and a degree in communications from Stanford University.
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL:
Andres Ramirez Director of Partnerships, AI Safety Awareness Foundation
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL
Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Andres has been living in Chicago for the past 25 years (minus a hiatus in Canada, Colorado, and Scotland). Across a 7 year span, he worked with 5 start-ups as an integral sales member, helping navigate and secure funding rounds. In 2024 he pivoted into AI safety, and now leads AISAP's execution on its partnership framework.
Principal of The LEO Group
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL
Linda W. Braun is Principal of The LEO Group, where she works with libraries, schools, and nonprofits on strategic planning, organizational development, and program design. Much of her work sits at the intersection of culture change and systems — helping organizations move from transactional approaches to ones rooted in real relationships with the communities they serve. Her recent focus includes AI agent development and community-centered approaches to technology, including co-designing AI tools with the people who will actually use them. She serves on the Public Library Association's AI Task Force and has worked on projects with the California State Library, Workforce Council of Southwest Ohio, and Providence Public Library.
Nick TanziLibrary Technology Consultant & Author
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL
Nick Tanzi is an internationally recognized library technology consultant, and author of the books Making the Most of Digital Collections Through Training and Outreach (2016) and Best Technologies for Public Libraries: Policies, Programs, and Services (2020). Tanzi is a past column editor for Public Library Magazine’s “The Wired Library,” and was named a 2025 Library Journal Mover & Shaker.
Library Services Consultant for the Northeast Kansas Library System
OPENING KEYNOTE PANEL
Robin Hastings is the Library Services Consultant for the Northeast Kansas Library System (NEKLS). In that capacity, she provides technology and consulting on library services to 40+ libraries in the NEKLS region as well as providing management for several state-wide services in Kansas. She has presented all over the world on Cloud Computing, Project Management, Disaster Planning and many other topics and teaches classes on library technology at Emporia State University and Library Juice Academy. Robin is the author of 5 books on library-related and technology topics as well as several articles in library-related journals.
CLOSING KEYNOTE:
Founder, Scissors & Glue, LLC,
"5 Whys: No Easy Answers"
AI is reshaping how people access information, learn, and signal what they know. Before deciding how to respond, it helps to understand why everyone in the system is acting the way they are. This session uses the 5 Whys to explore five perspectives on AI and to make the case that libraries are exactly where this conversation needs to happen.
With over two decades of experience in libraries and education, Crystal Trice is passionate about helping people work together more effectively in transformative, but practical ways. As founder of Scissors & Glue, LLC, Crystal partners with libraries and schools to bring positive changes through interactive training and hands-on workshops. She is a Certified Scrum Master and has completed a Masters Degree in Library & Information Science, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Psychology. She is a frequent national presenter on topics ranging from project management to conflict resolution to artificial intelligence. She currently resides near Portland, Oregon, with her extraordinary husband, fuzzy cows, goofy geese, and noisy chickens. Crystal enjoys fine-tip Sharpies, multi-colored Flair pens, blue painters tape, and as many sticky notes as she can get her hands on.
RECORDINGS:
Opening Keynote
Greg Lucas (Host) with Andres Ramirez, Linda Braun, Nick Tanzi, and Robin Hastings
Link to Description | Chat Log
AI to Strengthen Relationships, Increase Visibility, and Reposition the Library as An Essential Partner in The Academic Mission
Sara Hack, Acting Associate Director, Learning Resources- Seminole, St. Petersburg College
Link to Description | Chat Log
Evaluating What Happens When AI Is Embraced, Not Rejected
Lorena Jordan, Policy and Government Librarian, George Mason University
Link to Description | Chat Log
Helping Patrons Navigate in AI-embedded World
Eun Ah Lee, Programming and Engagement Librarian, Plano Public Library
Link to Description | Chat Log
Pause, Prompt, Reflect: Teaching Metacognition in the Age of Large Language Models
Genova Brookes Boyd (she/her/hers), Assistant Professor of Library Science, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Elmer E. Rasmuson Library
Link to Description | Chat Log
Real or Rendered: Detecting AI in the Wild
Kristina I. Dorsett, Research & Instruction Librarian, Wolfgram Memorial Library, Widener University
Link to Description | Chat Log
"Vibe Coding" With AI in the Library
Doug Baldwin, Associate Director Piscataway Public Library, Piscataway, NJ | Jim Craner, The Galecia Group
Link to Description | Chat Log
What it Would Take: Design Notes for Library-Grade AI
Chris Markman, Digital Services Manager, Palo Alto City Library | Melisa Mendoza, Nick Beber
Link to Description | Chat Log
AI in Academic Libraries: Bridging the Gap between Technological Possibilities and Institutional Realities
Mandira Bairagi, Scholar, Department of Library and Information Science, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Nagpur, India, Librarian, DVR & Dr HS MIC College of Technology | Dr Shalini Lihitkar
Link to Description | Chat Log
AI Literacy Programs and GenAI tools at Toronto Public Library
Sumaiya Ahmed, Librarian, Innovation (AI Upskilling Services), Toronto Public Library
Link to Description | Chat Log
Human-Centered AI: Policies and Practices to Elevate—and Safeguard—the Library Workforce
Robin Hastings, Library Services Consultant, North East Kansas Library System (NEKLS)
Link to Description | Chat Log
Learning about AI through Science Fiction
Reed Hepler, Digital Initiatives/Copyright Librarian and Archivist
Link to Description | Chat Log
Onboarding Made Simple for Any Department.
David Daghita, Accounts Services Supervisor
Link to Description | Chat Log
Practical AI in Public Libraries
Scott Lipkowitz, Assistant Director & Digital Services and Technology Librarian
Link to Description | Chat Log
“Using AI or Refusing?”: Preliminary Statewide Survey Results on AI in Public Libraries
Kristin Fontichiaro, Clinical Professor, University of Michigan School of Information
Link to Description | Chat Log
AITD Generator: A Practical Tool for Implementing AI Use Disclosure in Academia
Sergio Santamarina (Librarian)
Link to Description | Chat Log
Building AI Literacy: A Student Success Librarian’s Approach
Aída Almanza-Ferro, Student Success Librarian, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
Link to Description | Chat Log
Building Worlds with AI: A New Zealand Public Library Approach to Creative and Responsible AI Engagement
Amy Chiles, Libraries Learning Specialist, Christchurch City Libraries
Link to Description | Chat Log
"Defining what we do all over again!" Generative AI's Impact on Academic Library Reference Services
David E. Williams, Head of Research, Engagement, and Faculty Support, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Link to Description | Chat Log
Introduction to Key AI Safety Concepts, and Mental Models for Thinking
Andres Ramirez, Director of Partnerships, AI Safety Awareness Foundation
Link to Description | Chat Log
LIS RESEARCH PRACTICE USING GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TOOLS
Ken Herold, California State University, Los Angeles
Link to Description | Chat Log
The Age of Vibe-Coding: When Happens When Anyone Can Build Anything
Kyle Bylin, Research and Assessment Librarian, Saginaw Valley State University
Link to Description | Chat Log
Closing Keynote
Crystal Trice: "5 Whys: No Easy Answers"
Link to Description | Chat Log
PARTNERS:
This conference is a collaborative project of California Libraries Learn, the California Library Association, California State Library, and Library 2.0. It is supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
