LUC 2026: Full Schedule

LUC is the LOUIS Users Conference, the annual conference for all LOUIS member institutions.

9:45am CDT

Read the Rainbow: Tips to Make a Summer Reading Program in an Academic Library Fly High

Wednesday October 7, 2026 9:45am - 10:30am CDT

Summer reading programs aren’t just for public libraries! Join us to learn about our successes (and challenges) with Read the Rainbow, the 2026 summer reading program at Sims Memorial Library. We’ll walk y’all through the logistics of running a summer reading program at an academic library, with insider tips from the librarians who’ve been through it.

Speakers

Alex Sharp

Jules Cannon

Wednesday October 7, 2026 9:45am - 10:30am CDT
Room 324

Student Engagement and Programming, Breakout Session

10:45am CDT

Library Constellations: Interactive Mapping and Findings from a Louisiana Study

Wednesday October 7, 2026 10:45am - 11:15am CDT

Room 324

Want to see your own unique Academic Library Team Member Constellation? Built on 6 themes (Sharing, Advocating, Supporting and Collecting, Maintaining, Developing) this data visualization will show your own unique make up; each attendee walks away with a visualization. These themes represent academic librarianship, a type of librarianship spilling over with tension, from the collective level to the individual level. Join me to learn more about this tension, the themes, and your constellation.

Speakers

Emily Bufford

First Year Experience Librarian, Xavier University of Louisiana

Instruction and making stronger librarian-faculty connections are two topics I am passionate about. Also, I love to hear about other folks' kitty cats and talk hair-dos.

Wednesday October 7, 2026 10:45am - 11:15am CDT
Room 324

Professional Identity and Career Development, Breakout Session

1:00pm CDT

What Can We Learn from the 'Students First' AI Act?

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:00pm - 1:20pm CDT

Room 324

This summer, high school students from across the U.S. met in mock Senate proceedings to create the “Students First” Act, a proposal for a national AI policy framework covering rights and responsibilities for K-12 students and schools alike. In this quick talk, I’ll share highlights from the Students First Act and compare it to our institutions’ current AI policies. Let’s consider how our future students’ perspectives on generative AI could inform our approach to AI in higher education.

Speakers

Lauren McAdams

Reference Librarian/Associate Professor, Baton Rouge Community College

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:00pm - 1:20pm CDT
Room 324

Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies, Lightning Talk

1:30pm CDT

EBSCO Discussion on use of AI within the EBSCOhost Platform

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:30pm - 2:15pm CDT

Room 324

Join us for a discussion and live demonstration of the EBSCOhost AI Exchange. We will explore features such as Ask AI and AI Conversational Search to show how they retrieve data through Linked Data, Unified Subject Lists, and the EBSCO Scholarly Graph. Additionally, we will cover how EBSCO collaborates with LLM providers to enable seamless institutional linking to subscribed content.

Speakers

Matt Andros

Sales Director, EBSCO

Sponsors

EBSCO Information Services

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:30pm - 2:15pm CDT
Room 324

Web & Electronic Resources, Breakout Session

3:00pm CDT

Maximizing OCLC Services: Enhancing Library Efficiency and Access

Wednesday October 7, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm CDT

Room 324

Discover how the power of partnership can transform your library’ operations from functional to phenomenal. This session will help you optimize your existing OCLC services to streamline your workflows and get insights into future enhancements—all to unlock your library’s full potential.

Speakers

Mary Miller

Library Services Consultant, OCLC

Mary Miller is an OCLC library services consultant based in Georgia. Her MSLS is from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and she worked in a public, an academic, and a special library before she started helping libraries with software and services. She looks forward to meeting... Read More →

Sponsors

OCLC

Wednesday October 7, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm CDT
Room 324

Resource Sharing, Breakout Session

4:00pm CDT

What’s the Big Deal with BIG DEALS? History, Experiences, and Recommendations When Considering Large Journal Packages

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm CDT

Room 324

Would you believe it if I told you there’s a library that loves “Big Deal” journal packages? Come learn about our experiences with large journal package subscriptions at a health sciences library. We will cover the history of our deals, how we evaluate packages, trends, and lessons learned along the way. We will also provide strategies for maximizing your budget, negotiating with publishers, interpreting usage statistics, and ultimately how to provide the best collection you can for your users.

Speakers

Rebecca Bealer

Head, Serials/Systems Librarian, Louisiana State University Health Center New Orleans

Marlene M. Bishop

Head, Collection Development, LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Library

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm CDT
Room 324

Collection Development and Management, Breakout Session

8:30am CDT

Evidence That Matters: Demonstrating and Communicating Library Impact and Value Accreditation

Thursday October 8, 2026 8:30am - 9:15am CDT

Room 324

Libraries play a critical role in supporting institutional effectiveness and student success, yet demonstrating that value during the accreditation process can be challenging. This session explores practical approaches to aligning library assessment with the revised principles and expectations of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).

Speakers

Timothy Stamm

Dean, Library, Delgado Community College - Moss Memorial Library

Thursday October 8, 2026 8:30am - 9:15am CDT
Room 324

Library Administration and Operations, Breakout Session

9:30am CDT

LSU Health Sciences Insights: Scholarly Integrity, AI Services, and Library Everywhere with LibKey

Thursday October 8, 2026 9:30am - 10:15am CDT

Room 324

LSU Health Sciences Center and Third Iron discuss customizing LibKey Nomad (browser extension) to reach researchers wherever they start searching, outside the library's own systems, new tools for flagging problematic publishers and retractions, and strategies for connecting AI research assistants like ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Gemini to library full-text access. Presented by Rebecca Bealer (LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans) and Mark Hyer (Third Iron).

Speakers

Rebecca Bealer

Head, Serials/Systems Librarian, Louisiana State University Health Center New Orleans

Mark Hyer

Sponsors

Third Iron

Thursday October 8, 2026 9:30am - 10:15am CDT
Room 324

Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies, Breakout Session

11:00am CDT

Learning Support for EBSCO Resources through EBSCO Academy

Thursday October 8, 2026 11:00am - 11:45am CDT

Room 324

Join this session for an overview of the learning support available for the SaaS services and databases you have through EBSCO. We will focus on the eLearning opportunities available to you through EBSCO Academy, EBSCO's complimentary centralized learning portal. We will review the types of learning opportunities available, the content covered, and discuss how you can use special features to track your own learning journey and share resources with your colleagues and users.

Speakers

Jaime Barrilleaux

eLearning Experience Designer, EBSCO Information Services

Jaime Barrilleaux hosts online training sessions covering multiple EBSCO products. She also designs, delivers, and manages the production of videos for product lifecycles and eLearning paths. Prior to joining EBSCO in 2019, she worked in member support and engagement for a statewide... Read More →

Sponsors

EBSCO Information Services

Thursday October 8, 2026 11:00am - 11:45am CDT
Room 324

Web & Electronic Resources, Breakout Session

1:00pm CDT

To Dew[ey] or Not Dewey? That is the question!

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:00pm - 1:45pm CDT

Room 324

This Sharing Session will give librarians a chance to air their grievances with the Dewey Decimal System. From the man himself to the actual system of classification, whether the librarians currently use it in their library or have used it in the past, there is much to pick apart with Dewey.

Speakers

Donis Marie Lambert

Alex Sharp

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:00pm - 1:45pm CDT
Room 324

Collection Development and Management, Sharing Session

2:00pm CDT

Mapping Up: Using a Library Room Management System to Broaden Library Influence

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:00pm - 2:20pm CDT

Room 324

This case report discusses the implementation of a new interactive map room management system at LSUHS Library. We will show how it provides interactive heat maps that allow room usage to be easily visualized to administrators. The report will also discuss how after implementation the Library was asked to take the system campus wide. We will describe the process of integrating the campus, the team members, and the roadblocks and successes of the project.

Speakers

Julia Esparza

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:00pm - 2:20pm CDT
Room 324

Space Design and User Experience, Lightning Talk

2:30pm CDT

Search, Scroll, Cite: How Students Research in the Age of AI and Social Media

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm CDT

Room 324

We conducted a survey on nontraditional research methods among undergraduate university students, specifically regarding the use of A.I. and social media as tools for research. This will allow us to draw conclusions about undergraduate students’ self-reported research methodology. Based on these results, we will present conclusions we’ve drawn that could lead to improved information literacy instruction practices for current generations.

Speakers

Lili Bedoya

Science Librarian, LSU Libraries

Jasmyne Johnson

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm CDT
Room 324

Instruction and Information Literacy, Breakout Session

2:30pm CDT

Academic "Freadom": Confronting Challenges to Intellectual Freedom in the Academic Library

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm CDT

Room 324

Recently, attempts to ban books and restrict intellectual freedom have risen precipitously in the United States. While the intellectual freedom struggle in American librarianship has long been the domain of public and K-12 libraries, recent skirmishes in the culture wars combined with tide of popular skepticism towards higher education have increased the risks for academic libraries. Join us to discuss the principles and the practices of intellectual freedom related to academic libraries.

Speakers

Kelly Kingrey-Edwards

Thursday October 8, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm CDT
Room 324

Professional Identity and Career Development, Breakout Session

9:45am CDT

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4:00pm CDT

8:30am CDT

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11:00am CDT

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2:30pm CDT

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