Monday, April 27, 2026
Session 6: Breakouts
2:30-3:20 PM
Monday, April 27, 2026
Session 6: Breakouts
2:30-3:20 PM
Embedded Files
Thank you for attending the 2026 CLA Conference. A Post Conference Email will be sent out after May 4th.
Session 6: Breakouts
2:30-3:20 PM
Mystic Ballroom AD
Mystic Ballroom AD
Ebook Update: What's Next with Connecticut's Ebook Law
Ebook Update: What's Next with Connecticut's Ebook Law
Presenters: Kate Byroade, Cragin Memorial Library, Colchester; Rebecca Harlow, Case Memorial Library; and Ellen Paul, Connecticut Library Consortium
Learn about CT’s landmark eBook and e-Audiobook licensing law passed in 2025 and the national landscape as other states put forward and enact similar legislation . Learn how you can participate in a statewide strategy for how Connecticut’s libraries should prepare for and respond to the likely triggering of the Connecticut eBook law.
Sponsor: CLA Legislative Committee
Mystic Ballroom BE
Mystic Ballroom BE
Improving Communication Skills for Community Interaction
Improving Communication Skills for Community Interaction
Presenters: Steve Mazeau with Niantic Toastmasters, David S. Freedman, Sharon Mercado and Laura Furtado
Successful communities have clear communication and good leadership. Professionals skilled in one area, may have room for improvement in other areas, such as delivering presentations, speaking spontaneously or choosing words carefully to avoid or resolve a conflict. Local Toastmasters will provide a hands-on demonstration of basic communication skills and resources available to gain these skills.
Sponsor: CLA Member
Mystic Ballroom CF
Mystic Ballroom CF
People First, Objects Second: From Theory to Practice
People First, Objects Second: From Theory to Practice
Presenters: Maxine Bleiweis, Library Consultant and Former Library Director, and Sarah Kline Morgan, East Hartford Public Library
For years, Maxine Bleiweis has spoken at CLA conferences about new ways of thinking about our approach to library services. Sarah Kline Morgan agrees with the thinking, takes copious notes, and returns back to her library to implement. What gets in the way of making those hopes and dreams come true? Hear a provocative conversation between Maxine and Sarah as they sort it all out.
Sponsor: CLA Member
Conference Room 1
Conference Room 1
Cataloging Your Chaos: An Intro to "Second Brains" for Librarians
Cataloging Your Chaos: An Intro to "Second Brains" for Librarians
Presenters: Kayla Chamberlain, Booth & Dimock Memorial Library
We organize information for our communities, but our own budgets, stats, and plans are often painfully decentralized in spreadsheets galore. Fix that with a "Second Brain!" In this session, learn how free personal knowledge management (PKM) tools like Coda and Notion can drastically improve your workflows, connect and visualize your data, and enable custom solutions for librarians’ unique needs.
Sponsor: CLA Member
Conference Room 2
Conference Room 2
Understanding Connecticut’s Freedom of Information Act
Understanding Connecticut’s Freedom of Information Act
Presenter: Mark J. Sommaruga, Esq., Pullman & Comley, LLC
The FOIA contains open meetings and public records requirements (along with numerous exceptions) that unfortunately are often misconstrued. This workshop will serve to provide further/updated guidance to libraries with respect to 1) determining whether they are covered by the FOIA, and 2) if so, how to navigate the maze of edicts and exceptions associated with the FOIA.
Sponsor: CLA Conference Committee
Conference Room 3
Conference Room 3
Building Inclusive Community Services: The Case for
Library-Led Memory Café Support
Building Inclusive Community Services: The Case for
Library-Led Memory Café Support
Presenters: Melissa Baker, Wilton Library Association and Caryn Friedman-Quinn, Wilton Library Association
Millions of Americans aged 65 and older live with Alzheimer’s disease, many continuing to live in their communities supported by family members or unpaid care partners. By sponsoring Memory Cafés, libraries can provide meaningful opportunities for social connection, help reduce feelings of isolation among the dyad, and promote safe, dementia-friendly spaces within the community for cultural, educational and recreational engagement.
Sponsor: CLA Member
Conference Room 5
Conference Room 5
Explosively Popular Science Clubs for Kids
Explosively Popular Science Clubs for Kids
Presenters: Caitlin Augusta, Stratford Library and Heather Baker, Canton Public Library
Whether you want to refresh your current science offerings or don’t know where to start, this program will have you excited about science in the Library. Hear about - and try - some popular science experiments and lessons sure to be popular with kids at your library. Experiments, crafts, take homes, and lesson plans will be discussed and attempted.
Sponsor: CLA Member
Conference Room 6
Conference Room 6
CLC Uncovered: Secrets, Stories & Superpowers of Your Membership
CLC Uncovered: Secrets, Stories & Superpowers of Your Membership
Presenters: Jacqueline Cashin, Connecticut Library Consortium; Stephanie Smith, Connecticut Library Consortium; and Julie Yulo-Medeiros, Connecticut Library Consortium
Discover how to get the most from your Connecticut Library Consortium (CLC) membership in this fun, informative session! Learn about CLC’s history, surprising stories, and member benefits from exclusive contracts and roundtables to helpful tools and tips. Leave with practical insights, new connections, and maybe even a prize! This is your backstage pass to all things CLC!
Vendor Demo
Conference Room 7
Conference Room 7
Powered by Context: Life, Leadership, and Librarianship with a Disability
Powered by Context: Life, Leadership, and Librarianship with a Disability
Presenters: Amanda Stern and Tim Kellogg, Scranton Memorial Library
Context matters in how we work and live. Did you know that you can be disabled, a trauma survivor, and also be a library leader? Former library director Tim Kellogg will share his story in conversation with Amanda Stern as participants learn how to lead better, skip assumptions, ask needs, and recognize the importance of work and life in context.
Sponsor: CLA ADA Committee
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