Keynote Biography

Felicia A. Smith

Racial Justice and Social Equity Librarian, Stanford Libraries

Felicia A. Smith, MLIS., is the inaugural Racial Justice and Social Equity Librarian, at Stanford Libraries. She is launching Stanford Libraries’ KNOW Systemic Racism (KSR) project. She was the visionary for the libraries’ exhibit titled, Say Their Names – No More Names, which has been translated into Chinese and Spanish and is currently being translated into German. This forget-me-not exhibit highlights 65 names of recognizable victims who represent larger groups of lesser-known victims. This exhibit includes the names of 330 victims and 3 admitted cases of governmental systemic racism.

Felicia believes that librarians are charged with the awesome responsibility of being keepers of the light and protectors of our shared memories. However, before we as a society can “Know Justice” we must interrogate the injustices and right the wrongs of society, and only then will we “Know Peace.”

Felicia is responsible for outreach to faculty and students interested in issues of race, ethnicity, and social equity across all departments, schools as well as the Equity, Community, Leadership (ECL) centers. She will also be responsible for collection development of research materials that support the Stanford’s newly created African and African American Studies (AAAS) Department.

Felicia is dedicated to inclusion and supporting under-represented populations. This was one reason she created a paid summer internship for First-Generation and/or Low-Income minority students. Previously, she coordinated Stanford Libraries’ information literacy program and served as Head of the Reference Department.

In addition to her numerous national and international presentations, Felicia has published several peer-reviewed articles as well as a book, Cybrarian Extraordinaire, detailing her highly successful and unique approach to library instruction. Felicia created a program that taught Information Literacy using Kindles for inmates in a Juvenile Jail. This interest in criminal justice stems from her prior career when Felicia worked as a Criminal Defense Private Investigator in Chicago, Illinois, specializing in homicides and narcotics cases.

Felicia Smith received a Master of Library Science degree, from Dominican University and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her past positions include serving as the Latino Studies Subject Specialist as an Assistant Librarian, at the University of Notre Dame.

Breakout Session Speaker Biographies (alphabetical)

Steph Crowell

Reference and Instruction Librarian, Utah State University

Steph Crowell (they/them/theirs) is a Reference and Instruction Librarian at Utah State University since 2021. They also act as the liaison librarian to the University’s College of Science. They received their MLS with a concentration in Archives and Records Management from the University of North Carolina School of information and Library Science (SILS) in 2020 and a BA in Medieval and Renaissance Studies from Duke University in 2017. Their research interests include critical librarianship; critical information literacy; diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the academy; and the day-to-day work of librarians.

Erin Davis

Head of Learning & Engagement Services at Utah State University Libraries

Erin Davis is Head of Learning & Engagement Services at Utah State University Libraries. She received her BA in English from The Pennsylvania State University and her MLIS from Simmons College. She has worked at USU for 15 years and before that at North Logan City Library. Her articles have appeared in portal, Communications in Information Literacy, and Weave and she has presented at numerous national and international conferences.

Jennifer Duncan

Dean of Libraries at Utah State University

Jennifer Duncan is the Dean of Libraries at Utah State University. She received her BA in History from Smith College and her MLIS from the University of Texas at Austin. She has worked at USU for 19 years, primarily in Collection Development and Special Collections & Archives, but also serving as the liaison librarian to the Department of History. Prior to working at USU, she worked in libraries at Columbia University, Texas Christian University, the University of Pittsburgh, and the University of Texas. Currently she is finishing her term as the President of the Cache Valley Library Association.

Michael W. Harris

Assistant Librarian in Outreach and Statewide Services at Utah State University Eastern

Michael W. Harris is a librarian, archivist, and musicologist who is an assistant librarian, Outreach and Statewide Services at Utah State University Eastern. His articles, reviews, and essays have appeared in Cinema Journal, Asian Music, and Library & Information History.

Hiroko Hashitani

ILL Supervisor/Lending & Technology Coordinator, University of Utah’s Marriott Library

I am the ILL Supervisor and Lending & Technology Coordinator at the University of Utah’s Marriott Library. Since obtaining MLS in 2020, I have served as the library liaison to Asian Studies on campus and Utah Asia Campus in Incheon, South Korea. My motto is “Your Patron is My Patron,” which highlights my philosophy of Resource Sharing. I am interested in current and upcoming technologies and best practices related to Resource Sharing, as well as Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion topics in academia and libraries. I also enjoy outreach and liaison activities, especially interacting with library users with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) backgrounds.

Annalee Hickman Pierson

Head of Reference and Faculty Services, BYU Law Library

Annalee Hickman Pierson joined the BYU Law Library faculty in 2016 after completing a J.D. at Brigham Young University. As Head of Reference and Faculty Services, she oversees legal reference and faculty services, provides faculty research assistance and support, and writes scholarship that focuses on legal reference services, faculty services, legal research instruction, legal education, and law librarianship. She also teaches two first-year law student courses: Introduction to Legal Research and Writing and Introduction to Advocacy.

Todd Hugie

Director of Library Information Systems and Technologies, Utah State University

Todd Hugie received his BS in Computer Science at Utah State University and an MLIS from the University of North Texas. He has worked for Utah State University for 29 years as a computer programmer/analyst, systems librarian, and various administration assignments. He served as the President of the Utah State University Staff Association for three years and as the Chair of the UALC Systems Committee for two years. He is currently the Director of Library Information Systems and Technologies and is a member of the library’s Executive team.

Rachel Lawyer

Library Instruction Assistant, Utah State University's Merrill-Cazier Library

Rachel (she/they) has been working as a Library Instruction Assistant at USU’s Merrill-Cazier Library since September 2021. Her library career started at BYU where she worked as a student at the Harold B Lee Library Center for Teaching and Learning and received a BA in Media Arts in 2018. They grew up queer and autistic in a small town in West Virginia which ignited within them a passion for education, community building, accessibility, and inclusion.

Kacy Lundstrom

Full Librarian and liaison in Education, Kinesiology and Health Science, Human Development and Family Studies, and the Political Science departments at the Utah State University Libraries

Kacy Lundstrom received her MS in Literature & Writing at Utah State University (USU), followed by her MLIS at the University of Kentucky. She served as the Head of Learning & Engagement Services at USU Libraries from 2016-2020 and was promoted to Full Librarian in 2021. She currently serves as a liaison in Education, Kinesiology and Health Science, Human Development and Family Studies, and the Political Science departments. Her research interests include research assignment design, collaborations with faculty on teaching IL effectively, and library teaching anxiety. She is published in College & Research Libraries, portal: Libraries and the Academy, and Communications in Information Literacy (among others), and has presented at numerous national and international conferences.

Ben Nielsen

Multimedia Lab and Software Training Supervisor, Brigham Young University’s Harold B. Lee Library

Ben Nielsen is a librarian, an instructional designer, and a VW van lover. He has an MSLS with emphasis in Public Libraries from the University of Kentucky and a MS in Instructional Psychology and Technology with emphasis in Design from BYU. He has worked in both public and academic libraries. Currently he oversees the Software Training Lab at BYU’s Harold B. Lee Library.

Lindsay Ozburn

Assessment Coordinator and an Assistant Librarian at the Utah State University Libraries

Lindsay Ozburn is the Assessment Coordinator and an Assistant Librarian at the Utah State University (USU) Libraries. She received her MSLIS and an MA in European Union Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In her capacity, she provides direction and leadership on the assessment of library services, spaces, technology, and collections. She currently serves as the Chair of the Social Science Libraries Section at the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). Her research interests include library space assessment, DEIA principles in library assessment design, general research and assessment design, and information search practices on library online platforms. She is published in the Journal of Library Administration and has presented at numerous national and international conferences.

Brandon Patterson

Technology Engagement Librarian, Eccles Health Sciences Library at the University of Utah

Brandon Patterson is the Technology Engagement Librarian at the Eccles Health Sciences Library at the University of Utah. He connects students, staff, and faculty to digital tools and emerging technologies and creates meaningful experiences using prototyping tools, virtual reality and online learning platforms. He is a health sciences education liaison and coordinates with faculty to incorporate information literacy instruction and technology into their classrooms.

Michael Whitchurch

OER and Media Literacy Librarian, Brigham Young University’s Harold B. Lee Library

Michael Whitchurch is the OER and Media Literacy Librarian at Brigham Young University’s Harold B. Lee Library. He received his MLIS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in May 1999 where his passion for the convergence of information and technology took root. His previous positions include Instruction Librarian and WebCT Administrator at the University of Utah, and Information/Learning Commons Librarian, Virtual Services Librarian, and department chair for the Information, Media and Digital Services Department at Brigham Young University.

He currently leads the OER efforts at BYU in part by chairing the BYU Affordable Course Materials Working Group. He also provides strategic guidance to the Software Training, Media Production, and Makerspace units of the library.

Since 2004 Michael has been involved in local and national organizations such as the Utah Library Association, the Association of College and Research Libraries, the Reference and User Services Association, the American Library Association and the Open Education Network. He holds a Creative Commons Certificate and is an instructor for the Open Education Network’s Certificate in OER Librarianship.

L. Wynholds

Research Data Librarian, Utah State University

L. Wynholds (they/them) received their MLIS from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has worked in several university/science libraries, and received a PhD from the University of California, Los Angeles while focusing on medical recordkeeping, gender variance, and health data. They have worked at Utah State University as the Research Data Librarian since 2021 and is interested in science and technology studies, research data metrics, user assessment, quantitative social science research data, ethnographic field methods, and feminist studies.