The ILA/ACRL & IPAL Spring Conference was held on May 29 & 30, 2024 at Parks Library, Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. The theme of the conference, “Sustainable Futures,” was woven throughout the sessions and discussions. Commitment to sustainability calls us to integrate environmental health, social equity, and economic vitality in order to foster resilient communities for this and future generations. Yet each year Iowa academic libraries must do more with less. Despite diminishing purchasing power, fewer staff, and shrinking spaces, we are asked to continue to build our collections, offer expanded services and outreach, and contribute to broader campus initiatives. Library and information professionals shared how they are addressing the sustainability issues in libraries and how they are creating new spaces, initiatives, and pathways for the future.
Two awards were presented at the conference. The Mary Iber Spring Conference Scholarship was awarded to Katie Hanson, University of Iowa (student) during the Welcome session and during the Thursday luncheon, the ILA/ACRL Research Award was presented to Sarah Slaughter, University of Dubuque. See a list of past ILA/ACRL Award winners.
Thanks to our talented Spring Conference Planning Committee: Kris Stacy-Bates (Chair), Mary Anderson (Loras College), Heather Campbell (Iowa State University), Melissa Curtis (Wartburg College), Heather Lewin (Iowa State University), Jen Provorse (University of Iowa), and Pam Rees (Grand View University). Thank you to our generous sponsors: Mobius, Clarivate, Oxford University Press, EBSCO, and IPAL. Much appreciation goes to our wonderful speakers for sharing their expertise with us. And, many, many thanks to everyone who attended!
We are looking forward to conferencing with you again at Drake University in Des Moines in 2024!
Photographs from the conference:
More information about the organization can be found on the ILA/ACRL Website.
