2025 FACRL Board Election Ballot

Nominees:

Jason D. Phillips joined the UCF Libraries in January 2022 as a Social Sciences Librarian in the Research Engagement Department. He is the subject librarian for Sociology and the School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs and also provides assistance to Social Science faculty and graduate students with evidence synthesis reviews. He actively participates in library, university, state, and national committees. He also has an active research agenda with articles, book chapters, presentations, and recently published co-edited book Censorship Is a Drag: LGBTQ Materials and Programming Under Siege in Libraries.

Jason received his MLIS degree and an MA in History from The University of Alabama. Before his graduate work, he received a BA in History and Political Science from the University of Alabama. He previously worked at The University of Alabama as a Serials Copy Cataloger, Mississippi State University as a Government and United Nations Documents Librarian, Georgetown University as a Government Information Librarian, and the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith as a Public Services Librarian. In his spare time, he explores the local food scene in Orlando, herds cats and dogs, and enjoys the outdoors and traveling to scenic spots.

Nominees:

Renee Cole Montgomery is the Outreach & Engagement Librarian at the University of Central Florida Libraries. She received her master’s in library science from Florida State University and has an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education. She has worked for 24 years in academic libraries. Most of her experience has been with reference, library instruction, outreach/engagement, and working with community groups such as high school students. She has served on FACRL’s Board before and enjoys working with colleagues.

Nominees:

Heather Bush (MLA, MLIS) is an Assistant Professor, Access Services & Instruction Librarian, and the Behavioral Sciences Liaison at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. She strives to help users identify, locate, evaluate, and use information ethically. She served on the FACRL Board as a Member-at-Large (2020-2022) and worked on the Membership Committee (2019-2022). Her current interests include advocating for intellectual and academic freedom with support through membership with AAUP. As an active member of the Eckerd community, she strives to bring awareness to these issues and how they affect not just faculty, staff, and students but also the surrounding community as a whole. She aims to support and help fight for colleagues in Florida and nationally to preserve diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging as core to our work. She currently serves as Treasurer on the New Members Round Table (NMRT) Board (2024-2025) and is a member of the ACRL College Library Services (CLS) Awards Committee (2024-2026). Outside the library, she enjoys gardening, spending time with her 3 dogs, and every Fall spending Saturday on the couch as a huge college football fan. WE ARE...PENN STATE! I look forward to working with the Florida Chapter of ACRL again.

Katy Webb (she/her) has been serving as the Betty Drees Johnson Dean of the Library and Learning Technologies at Stetson University’s duPont-Ball Library since July of 2024. She received her MLIS degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2011. After serving as the Head of Research and Instructional Services at East Carolina University, she accepted the Director of Yale Access Services and Bass Library position at Yale University in 2020. Katy received a Fulbright Specialist grant that took her to Leiden, the Netherlands. Her research interests include library space usage, library labs, student employee engagement, how libraries can contribute to the High Impact Practices for Student Success (HIPs), and mindfulness, yoga, and burnout in libraries. A full listing of her academic articles and books is available on ORCID here: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5419-5251

Robin Fowler is the Physical Sciences and Engineering Librarian at the George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida. Robin received her Master of Science in Library and Information Studies from Florida State University in 2004 and began her library career working in the Alachua County Public Schools as a Media Aide and School Library Media Specialist. She joined the George A. Smathers Libraries at UF in 2015, first as a Library Research Assistant on the IMLS-funded project, “Researching Students’ Information Choices: Determining Identity and Judging Credibility in Digital Spaces.” As the Public Services Coordinator at the Marston Science Library at UF, Robin spent five years as the Site Coordinator for the Ask a Librarian virtual reference service, expanding the service during the pandemic and researching virtual reference issues in academic libraries. Robin serves on the RUSA-RSS Virtual Reference Services Committee and has presented at the North American Virtual Online Conference, the ALA Annual Conference, and the FACRL Annual Conference. Robin’s research interests include the impact of emerging technologies in academic libraries on student success and the relationship between student wellness and student engagement initiatives in academic libraries.

Crystal Mathews is a blended mix of a love of teaching & librarianship peppered with a gift for relationship building and a hefty dose of outreach and enthusiasm folded in. Her journey with libraries begins as an elementary school Media Specialist. After teaching for 7 years and pursuing her master’s in library information science, Crystal jumped at the opportunity to relocate to Clearwater and work within the public library system. This is where she cultivated her love of information outreach within libraries and an additional passion for swimming. After 4 and a half years with the public library, Crystal returned to her hometown of Tallahassee and is currently Florida State University’s Student Engagement Librarian (aka…Outreach Librarian) where innovative outreach to students, to engage them with their campus library services, spaces, and collection is her very atypical typical day.

Trina McCowan-Adams brings a wealth of academic library leadership experience spanning community colleges, state universities, and private liberal arts institutions. From managing learning commons at Florida State College to serving as an Assessment Librarian at the University of North Florida and directing library services at Flagler College, she has developed a nuanced understanding of academic libraries' evolving landscape. As a topic editor for POEM (Project on Open and Evolving Metaliteracies), Trina is at the forefront of digital literacy education, with a specialized focus on algorithmic bias and AI technologies. Her work bridges traditional library services with emerging technologies, emphasizing critical approaches to understanding data, media, and artificial intelligence. Committed to professional development and innovation, she has presented at national conferences and actively contributes to advancing library practices that support student success and critical technological literacy.

Tara Brigham is an Assistant Professor of Medical Education and the Supervising Librarian of the Medical Library at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL. She received an M.L.I.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2007 and became a Distinguished Medical Library Association’s Academy of Health Information Professionals member in 2020. As an active library member in various health-related library associations (Florida Health Sciences Library Association, Southern Chapter of MLA), Tara is interested in becoming more active in organizations focused on academic and research initiatives, such as FACRL. She is particularly interested in the broader implications of current events and technologies (such as AI and machine learning) and how regional librarians highlight their expertise and value.

Lisa Seymour is an accomplished Librarian and Associate Professor at Palm Beach State College, specializing in research and the ethical implications of AI. With a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida (2022) and a BA in Political Science and Communications from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (1992), she brings a wealth of experience to her role. She is pursuing an EdD in Teaching and Learning with an emphasis on Educational Technology at the University of Florida. She frequently presents at conferences across Florida and shares her expertise on research methods and AI ethics. Her recent publication, "AI vs. Academia: Is the Research Paper Doomed?" in the Spring 2024 edition of Florida Libraries journal, highlights her thought leadership in this evolving field. Lisa resides in Palm Beach Gardens with her husband, Brian, and their sons, David and Jacob.