2024 Iowa Library Association Fall Conference

In this session learn from two seasoned library directors on how to establish an equitable hiring process to ensure you are getting the best possible candidates for your open positions.
Learn the elements of an equitable hiring process, develop an understanding of the common biases associated with hiring employees, and be able to identify common pitfalls when interviewing and establishing practices to avoid them.

Most library professionals do not have a background in business and we dread being asked questions about it. But business does not have to be scary! In this session, you will learn what the Davenport Public Library has done to reach out to the business community. You will also walk away with a better understanding of how you can help people in your community with their business questions.
Topics that will be covered are business databases, reaching out to members of the business community, starting a website and/or a libguide, and selecting business books.

This presentation introduces a toolkit designed to foster community partnerships in providing mental health information and programming. It will cover the toolkit's potential benefits, key components, and practical application.
Presenters will describe the toolkit's key concepts, principles, and components and demonstrate how to apply them effectively in community settings. Evaluate the significance of community partnerships in managing mental health information and programming and utilize the toolkit to plan and implement these partnerships.

Our small team of academics and software engineers at the University of Northern Iowa have been asking how to better display historical photos online for the past decade. We have emerged with a new public platform--Fortepan US, located at https://fortpean.us--that beautifully displays historical photos according to place, time, and theme. We now have an instance for every state, and we developed the prototype featuring family collections and historical photos from Iowa (Fortepan IA--fortepan.us/ia).

Our panel presentation will bring together three library and archive professionals to discuss our experiences with Fortpepan IA. We invite you to discover this gorgeous (free) public portal with timeline, grid, and map view capabilities, crowd-sourced tagging, powerful search, a new digital exhibit tool options, and a sneak preview of the 360ºTour software (coming soon). Join us to learn how you can be part of this quiet but powerful public photo portal movement.

More than ever, the traditional roles of libraries are being challenged. To navigate these attacks it’s critical for libraries to build preference and reestablish alliances within their communities.
This presentation will include: what does it mean to 'stand for something'?; the first steps to building a stronger internal culture; and how to strengthen community relationships.

Learn how to start a sensory storytime by utilizing the resources and professionals in your community to engage a diverse population of youth and their families!
At the end of this session you will be able to identify potential community partners for your library’s sensory storytime. Recognize that many diverse families are hesitant to attend library storytimes. Replicate a framework and structure for your storytime. Determine the level of support needed for your sensory activities.