Minutes
To find handouts and presentations from previous meetings go to the CALLRGroup Documents Page or look through the Resources posts.
CALLR Fall 2025 Meeting- Unapproved Minutes
Date: Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Location: Wharton County Junior College Library
911 E Boling Hwy., Wharton, TX
Members Present:
Sandra Brown
Laurie Bruns (speaker)
Molly Bullard
Brent Cooper
Jennifer Crispin
Kathleen Dillon
Edgar Fuentes
Rhonda Miller
Michael Mitchell
Mary Muller
Kathryn Park
Kimberly Pemberton
Christy Ruby
Juanna Shin
Yadira Smith
John Swearingen
Klairon Tang
Jenna Tapp
Monica Tran
Carmen Walton
Mira Washington
Jenn Wigle
Anne Zwicky
Speaker:
Laurie Bruns, MLS |Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Beyond Boring: Teach Like a Teacher
Librarians are constantly teaching - through orientations, one-on-one sessions with students, or within a classroom! However, most of us are never taught to be teachers! A recovering K-12 teacher turned Academic Librarian is coming to teach you the best tips & tricks of teaching. You'll learn easy ways to interact with your students and instructors, so they stay engaged during your teaching sessions. You'll experience evidence-based active learning techniques that will help your students retain more information than ever before!
Presentation slides available at https://bit.ly/CALLR25 (full Canva link here)
(Link to adult learning activities slide)
(Link to presentation tips)Business Meeting
Introductions
First-time attendees- Kimberly Pemberton SJCD, Mary Muller WCJC, Edgar Fuentes, HCC
Everyone (if attending virtually, please enter the name of your institution in the available chat box)
New Business
Minutes approved: motion from Christy, second from Carmen
Elections
Vice Chair
Secretary
Web Master
Techshare/TechShare
Anne explains roles, lets people think about what they want to do
Job openings
WCJC- Public Services Librarian- a lot of outreach, a lot of instruction, mostly Wharton/ Richmond
Brazosport College has director opening currently not posted, keep your eye out for it
Third-hand: SHSU has an opening
Library news/updates
HCC SE Eastside opened a family room in the library- a study room dedicated to families, just opened, 2 hrs per family per day
Brazosport is doing another renovation, decreasing print collection 85%, moving in Feb to a temp location, construction will take around 18 months, podcast rooms, green rooms, makerspaces; looking at how to make space useful for online students
UHD- testing and tutoring was moved into the library recently, offices opened at the beginning of the semester. Overall it’s going pretty well, there’s higher traffic in the library (5th floor of an old building. Now another elevator is available to the library—previously blocked for book security, now the back of the library (with the newly-available elevator) might be the new front of the library. Issues with book gate alarms not being audible to library staff. Possibly can be connected to give cell phone alerts
Jenn W (HCC) got a Keurig and it’s running on donations. Seem to be going well and increasing traffic
HCC changing library catalog from Sierra to Sirsi
Brazosport changing library catalog from Horizons to Alma
Fall 2025 meeting location and date discussion
Usually in April . Last year, it was April 24 at HCC Katy
Elections
Vice Chair
Techshare
Web Master
Secretary
Anne suggests new chair sends out info asking for volunteers for the open jobs and a volunteer to host and if there are no volunteers, Anne suggests we do not have a Spring Meeting
RefShare/TechShare Meeting
JennWigle, MLS | RefShare/TechShare Chair | Public Services Librarian, Spring Branch Library| Houston Community College
If you could add one unusual or fun item to your library, what would it be?
Book elevator
Library of things
Story room
Record player
Are there any resources or collectons you wish your library had
Zen room/ mindfulness
How do you promote new collections or resources to students and faculty?
Display in a bookcase at the entrance
First thing you see when you come into the library- leisure reading and manga
Hanging signs featuring a manga character near the manga collection
Newsletter
Do you have a go-to-open-access resource you recommend for research
Elicit, Notebook LM, Consensus
Library Chat
What resources or tool has had the biggest impact on student success in your library?
Library chat
Are there any non-traditional resources (podcasts, videos, blogs) you recommend to students
Podcast studio
3D printer
Have you integrated AI tools into your work at the library?
Newsletter, tone-checking, annual evaluation, adding task trackers, AI literacy, finding keywords & creating search queries, presentations
What are some creative ways you have helped students?
How do you promote library services to faculty and staff?
Regular online presentations to faculty
Toolkit (WCJC libguide to promote library instruction)
Personal chats with instructors using library resources (like the printer)
Finding out which professor gave assignment, reaching out to offer instruction
Trying to get library put in early alert (pathways) pipeline
Consultations through Springshare
Partnership with EDUC 1300 requiring students to attend at least two webinars
What’s one outreach strategy that has successfully brought more students into your library?
Movie night, including students on the movie committee. Goal to make sure students are aware of the library
Buy DVDs with rights, what’s the PPR movie budget? (Public performance rights). Up to 8 DVDs a year. Two movies a day, twice a semester
Waterbead stress ball making table right at the entrance of the library
Painting workshop once a month. 48 students at most recent event
Trying to get funding for popup modeling clay (airdry) that students can paint later at the painting workshop
Popup library, around 150 students reached, promoting databases and ebooks, popcorn, bookmarks, buttons, plan for resources that work for students at the specific point in the semester
Folders with a year of marketing flyers inside
Marketed open research lab
Buttons, stickers
Puzzles
Digital signage
Simple programs right at the entrance
Book cart as a mobile library with giveaways to walk the halls and connect with students, staff, & faculty
Gaming event
Link to resource sharing drive: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/12DtAkNZwf3jo4ov7pcuacvOjBvebxVVP?usp=sharing
Do you run programs unrelated to class assignments, like book clubs or maker activities?
Have you collaborated with student organizations to increase library use?
Talked about grabbing students in the hall
How do you support students with disabilities or accessibility needs
Computers dedicated to AD, Purple phone, document scanner (Topaz), located together in a centralized area
Designers came in for renovations—all seating was tall, so they had to set aside some for people who need lower computers
Shifting books from highest and lowest shelves
Making sure at least a few computers are near the front, near the printers
How do you reach students who rarely visit the library?
How do you collaborate with other libraries or institutions?
Islamic center agreement with UHD
Meet with feeder school (HS) librarians at the beginning of the year
CALLR
Gulf Coast Reads
Sugarland University Branch UH/WCJC partnership
Let students know about public library resources
What professional development resources have helped you most in the last year?
ACRL Project Outcome- a way to standardize surveys, visible dashboard to share with colleages
CULD- speakers
UHD HR has a leadership development program
Faculty book clubs
Have you implemented any new workflows or systems that saved time?
Course reserve paper forms to digital, using springshare
With B&T exiting, how have you change acqusitions?
Some of us didn’t use it, others are still looking
How do you gather feedback from students about library services?
Exit surveys
Surveys at finals events
Gather emails to get student feedback later
Library success stories (https://library.hccs.edu/librarystories)
Have you collected data on student success related to library usage? What did you find?
Trying to add token in Banner to students who’ve used the library
Attempt to coordinate info about grades & library usage
Pulling data on book usage in Sierra, discovering that most circulation is fiction
What is one book, database, or resource you with every student knew about?
Mometrix
JSTOR
Learning Express Library
Hobbies and Crafts
Gale Opposing Viewpoints