DO-IT Conference

OUR LIBRARIES SHOULD HAVE FEWER BARRIERS AND MORE INCLUSION.
LET’S DO-IT TOGETHER.

The DO-IT Conference brings together library workers and disability advocates for a free day-long conference focused on services to people with disabilities. You will come away with actionable steps and tools to improve inclusion at your library through programming, services, and resource-sharing. Hear directly from and brainstorm with service providers, innovative colleagues, persons with disabilities, and their advocates as we work to break down barriers in library service and in the workplace. In addition to presentations and panels, there will be resource tables, a break-out session, and time to network. Let’s DO-IT together!

Join us on Thursday, November 8 at Raritan Valley Community College. Registration is free. Find more about Location, Parking, and Lunch Information.

9:30 - 10:00 am
Registration/Networking
(Coffee will be avialable to pick up when going in)

10:00 - 10:50 am
Session 1

How to Program for Children and Adults with Disabilities
This session will cover best practices for offering more inclusive library programs that are age-appropriate and intellectually engaging, as well as specialized programs just for children, teens, or adults with cognitive, intellectual, and/or physical disabilities.
Panelists: Karen Kowalski, Director of Adult Services, ARC of Somerset County
Dan Weiss, Director of Fanwood Memorial Library, co-founder of Libraries & Autism: We're Connected
Moderated by: Selwa Shamy, Somerset County Library System

Serving Veterans with Disabilities in Your Community
Experts from the Veterans Administration and the New Jersey Department of Labor will provide guidance and insight on how to navigate the VA system and connect patrons with healthcare and compensation benefits.
Panelists: David Brimmer, VA New Jersey Healthcare System - Lyons Campus
Victor Alvarado, Veterans Career Coach, NJ Department of Labor
Moderated by: David Perez, Long Branch Free Public Library

11:00 - 11:45 am 
Keynote
Dianne Malley
Project Director, Transition Pathways, Drexel University
Dianne will weave together personal and professional experiences of living, working, and advocating for people with disabilities. New Jersey libraries have been a central place for Dianne as she raised her three daughters, one of whom has a disability, and for the ten years she worked at the Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN). Dianne will share stores from the front lines as a mom struggling to help her daughter learn to read and be part of her community, and as a professional working to develop partnerships to help young adults with autism transition to work and community involvement. She will offer practical strategies for making our libraries a welcoming and inclusive place for everyone in our community.

11:45 am - 1:00 pm
Lunch (Go out and get your own)
&
Table Visits
During the lunch, please visit the information tables for the following organizations & groups
and find out about their resources for you & your library:
Special Olympics NJ; NJ Council on Developmental Disabilities (NJCDD); NJLA D&O Section; NJLA Public Policy Committee; MentorNJ & more

1:00 - 1:50 pm 
Session 2

How to Engage Library Patrons with Disabilities?
Book discussions, storytimes, workforce development, cultural engagement, volunteer programs, social interaction, technology instruction and more. Discover how to adapt and tailor the programs and services that you regularly offer to the neurotypical patron in order to meet the socialization and lifelong learning needs of children and adults with developmental and cognitive disabilities.
Panelists: Jen Schureman, Gloucester County Library System
Lisa Cassaly, Somerset County Library System
Moderated by: Zoe Lopez, Somerset County Library System

Inclusion in the workplace
Panelists: Kevin Brown, Digital Services Library Assistant, Gloucester County Library
Moderated by: Selwa Shamy, Somerset County Library System

2:00 - 3:00 pm 
Demystify Disability: Let's DO it Together
At the last session of the day, hear from the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities, an advocacy organization that empowers family members of and individuals with disabilities to educate the public and effect policy change. Afterward, there will be a breakout session where you can meet, learn, and collaborate with parent advocates and adult self-advocates to begin to envision and build a world with more inclusive libraries.
presented by Robert Titus, Public Policy Coordinator, NJ Council on Developmental Disabilities

Breakout Panelists:
Break-out A: Jen Schureman, Parent Advocate of Child
Break-out B: Joyce Quarles, Parent Advocate of Adult and Outreach Representative, ARC of Monmouth County
Break-out C: Steve Janicek, Parent Advocate of Teen/Young Adult
Break-out D: Brian O'Malley, Adult Self-Advocate
Moderated by: Jen Schureman, Gloucester County Library System
& Ally Blumenfeld, Elizabeth Public Library

This conference is brought to you by
NJLA Diversity & Outreach Section 
& 
co-sponsored by
MentorNJ
LibraryLinkNJ
New Jersey State Library
NJLA Professional Development Committee
NJLA Leadership & Education Subcommittee