Libraries have long centered intellectual, textual, and cognitive ways of knowing—but our bodies have always been part of how we learn, sense, decide, and connect. This session invites library workers to remember and reclaim embodiment as an essential dimension of information work. Together, we will explore what somatics and embodied awareness mean within and beyond LIS scholarship, and why these concepts matter for the future of library work, instruction, and community care.
Participants will be introduced to simple, accessible practices for cultivating embodied awareness in their daily work. We’ll also examine how reconnecting with the body can support attention, emotional regulation, and more inclusive learning environments. No prior experience with somatic practices is required.
Learning objectives:
- Explore definitions of somatics and embodied awareness, in and outside of LIS literature
- Gain basic skills for enhancing embodied awareness
- Understand key benefits of embodied awareness in library and information work and learning spaces
About our presenter:
Bailey Hoffner is the Metadata Librarian for Digital Resources and Discovery Services at Oklahoma State’s Edmon Low Library. As an adult-diagnosed autistic woman, she is particularly interested in the representation of autistic experience in libraries and library metadata. She is currently working on a Critical Interpretive Synthesis entitled Perceptions and Discourses of Autism in Library and Information Science Literature with international collaborators, and is an advocate for slow librarianship as a radical practice of inclusivity in library work.