Dorcas led ALA’s Ecosystem Initiative Task Force, which authored the Ecosystem Toolkit, and she is the lead author of Strengthening Library Ecosystems: Collaborate for Advocacy and Impact. She will serve as our Opening Keynote speaker. 

Bob Leonard

Bob, author, reporter, former professor, former Knoxville Public Library board member, and library advocate, will be our  closing keynote. Many of you may recall Bob’s work on his Substack early last year when he wrote about the anti-library bills that were making their way through the legislature at the time. 

I’m confident both speakers will underscore our conference theme: “Libraries: The Heart of Iowa Communities” and speak to the cultural moment we’re navigating both statewide and nationally. ~Eric Jennings, ILA President