Association of Rural and Small Libraries Conference Report Back

Posted by NNLM Region 7 on October 22nd, 2026 Posted in: Blog
Tags: public libraries, rural, rural and small libraries

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You may remember that earlier this year, NNLM’s National Training Office (NTO) and Region 1 offered professional development awards to attend the Association of Rural and Small Libraries Conference held this year in Montgomery, AL in September.

We are thrilled to provide this award to rural and small libraries, which play a vital role in connecting their communities with trusted health information. By supporting attendance at the ARSL Conference, we hope participants will gain new knowledge, skills, and connections that strengthen their ability to help patrons access reliable health information and ultimately improve the health and well-being of their communities

–Jessi Van Der Volgen, Assistant Director, NTO

The award covered travel expenses and conference registration, ensuring that awardees could bring valuable insights back to their communities.

Award recipients also participated in a pre-conference training session, Healthy Roots, Strong Communities: Health Information Resources and Programming which was taught by Jessi and Margie Sheppard both from NTO. This specialized workshop allowed recipients to earn continuing education credits toward a Consumer Health Information Specialization (CHIS), equipping them with certified skills to help patrons find and navigate trustworthy medical and public health resources.

NTO and Region 1 selected twenty outstanding library professionals out of a highly competitive pool of applicants from across the United States. They were selected for their dedication to community service.

There were two recipients from Region 7:

• Gisi Vella, Morton Memorial Library (New York)
• Margaret Woodruff, Charlotte Library (Vermont)

Congratulations to Gisi and Margaret and we look forward to spotlighting their work and libraries in blog posts in the upcoming months.