Motherhood and Business Librarianship: A Panel

Register

Business librarianship often comes with high expectations- fast-paced environments, faculty partnerships, high-profile student consulting, data-intensive reference work, and a demand for responsiveness. At the same time, many business librarians are navigating another complex role: motherhood.

This panel brings together business librarians who are also mothers to explore the intersections between caregiving and professional identity. Panelists will discuss how motherhood shapes their approaches to instruction, leadership, research, and service. Topics will include navigating parental leave, managing unpredictable schedules, handling bias or assumptions in the workplace, and building support systems- both personal and professional.

We'll also reflect on how the skills honed through parenting (time management, negotiation, empathy, long-range planning) contribute to professional success, and how the business librarianship community can become more inclusive of parent professionals.

Whether you're a current or future parent, a manager, or someone interested in issues of gender equity and work-life integration, this session offers space for candid conversation, community-building, and advocacy.

By the end of this webinar, the participant will be able to:

  • Explore how caregiving responsibilities shape professional identity and practice in business librarianship
  • Understand the unique challenges and opportunities faced by librarian-parents in high-demand academic environments
  • Identify practical strategies and institutional supports that can help balance work and family
  • Foster community and conversations among library professionals navigating similar life and career stages. 

Panelists:

Rashida Scott Barnes, Business & Communication Librarian Second, San Diego State University

Lumarie Guth, Business Librarian, Western Michigan University

Summer Krstevka, Associate Librarian, Wake Forest University

Lisa Martin, Assistant Program Director, Instruction and Outreach, US San Diego Library

Moderator: 

Ilana Stonebraker Head, Business/SPEA Library, Indiana University

Register