Join us for a tour of the Morgan Library & Museum’s Belle Da Costa Greene: A Librarian’s Legacy exhibition. The exhibition is devoted to the life and career of its inaugural director, Belle da Costa Greene (1879–1950). Widely recognized as an authority on illuminated manuscripts and deeply respected as a cultural heritage executive, Greene was one of the most prominent librarians in American history. Following the tour, join us for a social hour at a nearby location to connect with fellow local library and archives workers. Please note: Space is very limited, and this is a special opportunity to visit this exhibition for free. Please join the waitlist if there are no longer spaces available, because spots do open up at the last minute. If you have secured a spot but then find you’re unable to join, please let us know as soon as possible so we can open your spot to someone on the waitlist.

Join METRO and our sister council, Long Island Library Resources Council (LILRC), for this presentation from Ashley Dalle, Interim Chief Librarian about the many free benefits available for adults from the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library. The Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library is a branch of the New York Public Library (NYPL) and the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) that provides FREE accessible reading material for patrons who are blind, low vision, physically disabled, print disabled, or otherwise unable to read print, to patrons located in the five boroughs of New York City, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties. Andrew Heiskell Library offers materials to borrow in a wide range of formats, including braille, talking books (audio), and magazines, for users of all ages, as well as players and mobile apps. Patrons can also find accessible programming and events, individual coaching in assistive technology, group workshops, braille study groups, the Dimensions Lab for tactile creation, and more. Ashley will present on how to apply for NLS service, the benefit to you, your students, and your patrons, as well as the types of assistive technology courses and workshops that are being offered, for FREE, to library patrons.

A Beginner's Guide to Failure is a half-day cohort experience that teaches library workers how to embrace and even celebrate failure. Instead of viewing failure as evidence of something lacking, this short course endeavors to help individuals better integrate failure as part of being fully human, taking creative risks, and growing critical skills and mindsets for learning organizations. In other words, despite the common misconception, failure is the rule, not the exception, and more failure actually leads to better ideas, creative solutions, and more productive workplaces! This workshop draws on teachings in emotional intelligence, psychology, philosophy, and culture. Our specific goals and objectives for this workshop are to: Encourage critical engagement and exploration of the concept of failure in our lives, especially, but not exclusively, our work lives Experiment with new ways of failing productively, including design-thinking and prototyping approaches Explore stories of failure in library-settings, normalizing the experience of failure Experience failure as part of a work of beauty and impermanence Help workers orient themselves and develop unique connections to fellow workers in a shared spirit of celebrating failure About the Instructor: A.M. Alpin is a creative librarian and educator who teaches workshops at NYU, the Made in NY Media Lab, and other institutions. In addition to producing countless failures, she is the past recipient of the Sundance Institute's Sheila C. Johnson Creative Producing Fellowship, the American Library Association's Advocacy & Innovation in Library History Award, and the Association of College & Research Libraries' Outstanding Professional Development Award. Her creative work has been supported by the Sundance Institute, the Independent Filmmaker Project, the Austin Film Society, the Southern Humanities Media Fund, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Please note: Lunch is included! Plus, all attendees will leave with a copy of the book Creative Acts for Curious People by Sarah Stein Greenberg.

Want to learn more about prison abolition? Looking to explore the role of information in the prison industrial complex? Excited to discuss ways we can collectively offer resources to address violence caused by mass incarceration? Join the club (literally!). The Prison Library Support Network is collaborating with METRO to host Abolitionist Futures: A PLSN Discussion Group, which will meet quarterly on the second Monday of the month in the evening. In 2025, we will continue to curate a rotating calendar of media resources for discussion, including: books, podcasts, videos, zines, and more! We’re also building off of last year's renewed commitment to the “futures” part of our discussion group by intentionally building in time during each meeting to share actionable steps for practicing everyday abolition. This calendar year we’re aiming to extend our run of special guest facilitators (artists, authors, librarians, and more) with a range of experiences relating to prison abolition. More details to come! If you’re on our PLSN listserv, you’ll receive information throughout the year on how to join each discussion group, who our featured guest(s) will be, and which materials we’d like you to engage with before joining. Both upcoming discussion content and past years of discussion materials can be found on this doc. Join Abolitionist Futures for our first meeting of the year featuring special guests from the Arts Justice Safety Coalition. On March 10, we will host a screening and discussion of the film Before Time/After Time. The creative team and cast will join us to share reflections on the film and their experiences and take questions from audience members. Before Time/After Time takes audiences on a journey through the lives of nine returned citizens who share fragments of their lives before and after incarceration. The piece is a tribute to their resilience, compassion, and generosity and an example of the kinds of communities that the arts can create at almost any age—communities where self-realization, shared goals, and transformation are made possible. As always, our discussion materials are free to access and contain a variety of media formats. Before joining the meeting please read, listen to, and explore these materials: WATCH Before Time/After Time (to be screened during the discussion group - view the trailer here!) Additional resources to be added soon!

The Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education stresses that “Information Has Value,” and that we need to recognize issues of access or lack of access to information sources. A library that does not provide access to academic materials to all students is not allowing them to succeed. For example, how can we ensure that learning materials are accessible for students with limited vision, hearing, or mobility? Universal Design (UD) is a model that attempts to provide information access to all users. It offers materials that are accessible for all learners, with or without disabilities In this workshop from Derek Stadler, Web Services Librarian and Head of Media Services at LaGuardia Community College, participants will: Understand the basics of UD and why using them in academic librarianship is vital Identify ableist practices and assumptions in education Engage in a discussion of what barriers to learning might students be facing and what can be done to eliminate the barriers. Learn more about Part 2 in this series here. About our presenter: Derek Stadler is a Professor at LaGuardia Community College, serving as the Library’s Web Services Librarian and Head of Media Services. At LaGuardia, he has organized and co-led several workshops on universal design and accessibility. Derek has a BS in Computer Science, an MS in Library Science, and an MA in History. His library research has been published in Journal of Library Administration, Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, The Journal of Interactive Technology & Pedagogy, New Review of Academic Librarianship, Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Innovative Pedagogy, and the Journal of Library & Information Services in Distance Learning. His history research has been published in Long Island History Journal, New York History, and German Life and Letters.

Please join us for the Second Annual STEM Information Professionals Mini Conference at Barnard College in New York City, co-sponsored by Barnard College and the Metropolitan New York Library Council (METRO). This two-day conference, taking place Thursday, March 20th and Friday, March 21st from 8:30am to 4:30pm both days, aims to bring together science librarians, other liaison librarians, archivists, museum curators and workers, library workers, LIS students, and other information-focused professionals who want to learn more about information and research services in the sciences. Attend this conference ready to build community, share ideas, and discuss critical approaches to instruction and research in the sciences. Registration fees for this conference are on a sliding scale! All levels are self-selected at registration; please choose the level that best aligns with your current situation. All levels receive the same great experience: both days of conference sessions, invited speakers, coffee/tea in the morning, lunches (takeaway containers for people observing Ramadan). Please note: You only have to register once to attend both days! Would you prefer to attend virtually? An online-only option is available for free, but does not include coffee or lunch. All sessions take place via Zoom. Register here! Call for Session Proposals: Submit by February 8, 2025! Do you have an idea for a session or workshop? Find out more about what the conference team is looking for here, and submit your proposal ideas by February 8, 2025 using this form.

Please join us for the Second Annual STEM Information Professionals Mini Conference at Barnard College in New York City, co-sponsored by Barnard College and the Metropolitan New York Library Council (METRO). This two-day conference, taking place Thursday, March 20th and Friday, March 21st from 8:30am to 4:30pm both days, aims to bring together science librarians, other liaison librarians, archivists, museum curators and workers, library workers, LIS students, and other information-focused professionals who want to learn more about information and research services in the sciences. Attend this conference ready to build community, share ideas, and discuss critical approaches to instruction and research in the sciences. Registration fees for this conference are on a sliding scale! All levels are self-selected at registration; please choose the level that best aligns with your current situation. All levels receive the same great experience: both days of conference sessions, invited speakers, coffee/tea in the morning, lunches (takeaway containers for people observing Ramadan). Please note: You only have to register once to attend both days! Would you prefer to attend virtually? An online-only option is available for free, but does not include coffee or lunch. All sessions take place via Zoom. Register here! Call for Session Proposals: Submit by February 8, 2025! Do you have an idea for a session or workshop? Find out more about what the conference team is looking for here, and submit your proposal ideas by February 8, 2025 using this form.

Universal Design (UD) is a model that tries to reach every student. It is "the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design." UD goes beyond assuming a statement about the Office for Accessibility in a syllabus is “enough” for students. It provides options for students such as the option to write a paper or create a short video for their final project in any given class. It considers students at the margins of the educational system by providing Open Educational Resources over costly textbooks. Lastly, UD removes barriers rather than trying to “fix” the learner. How can UD guide librarians? In this hands-on workshop from Derek Stadler, Web Services Librarian and Head of Media Services at LaGuardia Community College, participants will: Learn common accessibility obstacles and easy fixes that align library instruction, and library resources and services, with UD principles Contribute to developing an inclusive learning environment for students by using UD concepts and practices Ensure the materials used or developed in library resources and services are accessible. We encourage you to bring documents that you use in your library instruction to work on during the session. If you do not have any, materials will be provided for you. While attendance at Part 1 is not required, it is strongly encouraged. Learn more about Part 1 here. About our presenter: Derek Stadler is a Professor at LaGuardia Community College, serving as the Library’s Web Services Librarian and Head of Media Services. At LaGuardia, he has organized and co-led several workshops on universal design and accessibility. Derek has a BS in Computer Science, an MS in Library Science, and an MA in History. His library research has been published in Journal of Library Administration, Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, The Journal of Interactive Technology & Pedagogy, New Review of Academic Librarianship, Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Innovative Pedagogy, and the Journal of Library & Information Services in Distance Learning. His history research has been published in Long Island History Journal, New York History, and German Life and Letters.

Effective leadership is built on empathy, compassion, and intuition, fostering trust, collaboration, and innovation within teams. Empathy allows leaders to actively listen, understand different perspectives, and create a supportive environment where employees feel valued. When employees feel heard, morale and engagement improve, leading to higher productivity. Compassion goes beyond understanding—it involves taking meaningful action to support team members in overcoming challenges. A compassionate leader provides encouragement, resources, and guidance, strengthening relationships and building loyalty. Intuition helps leaders make quick, informed decisions by balancing experience, data, and instinct. While logical analysis is important, intuition allows leaders to navigate uncertainty with confidence. Trusted leaders know when to rely on their intuition and when to seek additional information. By the end of this session, attendees will: Understand the role of empathy, compassion, and intuition in a leadership capacity Gain strategies for integrating these qualities to inspire their teams and drive meaningful success Learn ways to create a positive work culture where individuals and organizations thrive About our presenters: Sharon Palmer is a Regional Director at Brooklyn Public Library. In this role, she oversees ten neighborhood libraries and supervises over one hundred employees. Having worked at Brooklyn Public Library in various capacities, Sharon remains passionate about library services and is a strong advocate for collaboration and teamwork among staff. Additionally, she enjoys working with various community partners to positively impact communities. Sharon has been the recipient of three Bklyn Incubator awards that provides funding for staff to implement community-based projects: S.E.E (Shop, Eat and Exercise) Yourself Healthy, Cooking, Crocheting and Coping and Journey to Parenthood: How library staff can support pregnant people. Although Sharon’s primary roles focus on leadership, team building and project management, she enjoys planning and hosting innovative virtual programs for adults. Under Sharon’s leadership, staff at four libraries obtained the prestigious New York City Charles H. Revson monetary award for outstanding customer service. Additionally, Sharon previously presented on a variety of topics at the ALA,BCALA and NYLA conferences. Le'Andre Peoples is a dedicated professional with a wealth of experience in the field of library services. Starting as an Office Aide, Le’Andre's career journey has seen him excel as a Technology Resource Specialist, Circulation Manager, and presently as the Regional Assistant. In his current role at the Brooklyn Public Library, he assists the Regional Director and manages the Regional Office. Beyond his administrative duties, Le’Andre is committed to the professional development of the support staff and himself. His vision extends to expanding branch operations and, thanks to his extensive clerical, technological, and administrative expertise, he's a sought-after contributor to various committees and library initiatives. Taina K. Evans is a Regional Director at the Brooklyn Public Library who has been instrumental in transforming library services through innovative community-focused initiatives. Her groundbreaking "Our Streets, Our Stories" project launched in 2013, aims to collect and preserve oral histories from diverse Brooklyn neighborhoods, while her involvement in the "Branch Tap-Ins" program addresses staff resilience in the post-pandemic era. Evans has consistently demonstrated leadership in enhancing library engagement, supporting staff well-being, and amplifying marginalized community voices through her strategic and compassionate approach to librarianship. She is actively involved with the New York Library Association, currently serving as the President of the New York Black Librarian Caucus roundtable.