This one-hour webinar explores nearly a decade of research on disaster preparedness and community resilience, with a special focus on lessons learned from disaster-affected public libraries. Participants will gain insights into the crisis leadership skills and emotional intelligence needed to guide their libraries and communities through emergencies. The session will highlight strategies for building and leveraging community partnerships, as well as the essential competencies library leaders and staff need to strengthen emergency preparedness. Attendees will be introduced to a grant-funded NNLM Region 2 website featuring practical tools, case studies, and resources that can be applied across all types of libraries. The speakers will also share approaches for translating research findings into actionable practices, paving the way for an evidence-based framework to support library disaster readiness.
Speaker Bios:
Dr. Feili Tu-Keefner (PI) is an associate professor at the School of Information Science (iSchool) at the University of South Carolina. Her specialty in research and teaching is health librarianship, health informatics, and health communication; she is also known for her expertise in disaster management and the pivotal role of public libraries in community resilience. Dr. Tu-Keefner has led teams to complete six situation-specific case studies that illustrate public libraries’ value in facilitating emergency response and recovery during disasters. Dr. Tu-Keefner is a founding member of and current academic advisor for the Certificate of Graduate Study in Health Communication program jointly administered by the Arnold School of Public Health and the College of Information and Communications at the University. Dr. Tu-Keefner completed the Infodemic Manager training program sponsored by the WHO and the U.S. CDC in 2021, and she is a WHO-certified infodemic manager. Dr. Tu-Keefner has co-edited a book, Health Librarianship: An Introduction, and she has authored a number of journal articles, conference papers, and book chapters on library and information science, health information studies, and public health. Dr. Tu-Keefner has published in venues such as the Journal of Consumer Health Information on the Internet, Journal of New Librarianship, Science & Technology Libraries, Health Promotion Practice, and Journal of the Medical Library Association.
April Hobbs, MLIS, is the Research and Data Strategist for the Network of the National Library of Medicine, Region 2 office, located in Charleston, South Carolina. In this role, April develops, plans, and provides services related to data collection and management, assessment and evaluation, and quality improvement. She also leads the development and implementation of regional outreach and education strategy for research data services (RDS). She has been involved in research relating to disaster and emergency preparedness for librarians since 2017 and has an active research interest in how it intersects with public health and health literacy. She served as the Graduate Student Outreach Librarian at the University of Memphis for almost two years before joining the NNLM. She also served as an Adult Services Librarian in a public library system for two and a half years prior to her academic library position.
By registering for this class, you are agreeing to the NNLM Code of Conduct
At the end of the webinar, participants will be able to:
- Describe/Explain the role of libraries in fostering community engagement and partnerships before, during, and after natural disasters.
- Navigate and apply resources from a grant-funded disaster preparedness and leadership website to develop or strengthen emergency plans in various library settings.
- Recognize and assess key leadership competencies and emotional intelligence skills demonstrated by library staff during crises, and identify tools to support effective communication and community engagement.
- Apply research findings and best practices to real-world disaster scenarios to enhance both personal leadership skills and organizational resilience.