Well-Being in Higher Education: The Library's Evolving Role

The Florida Chapter of ACRL (FACRL) is seeking proposals for presentations and poster sessions for the 2025 FACRL Virtual Annual Conference, held online on Friday, October 24, 2025.

“Being mentally resilient is integral to academic success” —Stephanie Rollins, director of library services at Air University in Montgomery, Alabama.

Over the past decade, mental health support in academic libraries has evolved into a creative, focused, and expansive initiative. Leading the way, educational institutions are consistently innovating to address campus needs by implementing targeted tools, dedicating roles and spaces to promote well-being, and investing in specialized programs and services tailored to their students and faculty. This year's call for proposals invites librarians and library staff to showcase their innovative projects, strategies, and ideas that uplift and enhance campus well-being.

What innovative projects have you implemented to enhance your academic campus's well-being? What steps can we take to prevent personal and professional burnout? What can we do to promote work/life balance? What spaces, resources, collections, activities, groups, or services do you provide to support wellness for your students, faculty, and staff? What wellness programs or immersive tools have you introduced to help others in their journey toward improved overall well-being? What practices have you implemented to leverage librarian expertise and enhance services and resources for a more positive patron experience?

We welcome submissions from library staff, students, and faculty.

Topics might include but are not limited to:

• Innovative ways to promote wellness.
• Promoting support services and networks.
• Student engagement activities.
• Building relevant collections.
• Librarians as champions for their students and faculty.
• Flexible work schedules, e.g., remote work, flex time, compressed schedules, etc.
• Innovative spaces, e.g., quiet rooms, comfortable seating, low sensory lighting, serenity, and meditation rooms.
• Stress-less activities for students, e.g., therapy dogs, free massages, coloring, and puzzle stations.
• Physical and mental well-being activities and other immersive tools that promote resilience and mental strength, e.g., yoga for the mind and body, relaxation techniques.
• Slow Librarianship: A captivating approach that harnesses the expertise of librarians to elevate services and resources, ensuring a genuinely enriching experience for patrons. It's all about fostering a positive connection and creating a welcoming environment where knowledge blooms and exploration flourishes!

Do you have an idea for a timely topic outside this year's theme? Please feel free to submit it for consideration! Don't see a trend of interest but have best practices to share? No problem. Submit your proposal anyway.

Proposals for presentations, posters, and lightning round presentations can be submitted beginning Monday, May 19, 2025 using the online submission form. Rolling reviews and decisions will occur as proposals are received. The final deadline to submit is Friday, July 11, 2025. Presenters will receive complimentary registration to the virtual conference.

Presentations should be 45 minutes long, including the time provided for questions. Posters will be shared during a virtual poster session at the conference. Lightning round presentations are 5 minutes in length. Please follow this link to the rubric used to score all proposals. Acceptance emails will be sent on or before Friday, August 15, 2025. 

Presentations of superior quality may be considered for future publication in The Reference Librarian, a major refereed journal published by Taylor and Francis. Consider reviewing the Instructions for Authors to learn about the expectations of content and writing for this peer-reviewed journal, which utilizes APA 7th edition style. Please contact editor Lauri Rebar (Lrebar@fau.edu) with any questions. New and established authors are welcome!

Inquiries may be sent to the FACRL President, Leah Plocharczyk (lplochar@fau.edu).