About
Lauren Ferro is the Assistant Director for Marketing and Communications at the Jacksonville Public Library. She has extensive experience in writing, editing, digital marketing, and strategic communications across both library and government settings. Her work has supported major initiatives such as the 2020 Census, COVID-19 response, bicentennial celebrations, and hurricane communications. She is pursuing an M.A. in Mass Communication with a concentration in Public Relations from the University of Florida. Lauren uses her professional experience and passion for libraries to showcase their value to the communities and people they serve.
About
Barry joined the Volusia County Public Library system as their Marketing Specialist in July of 2024. Prior to joining the library, he was the Chief Marketing and Outreach Officer for the Halifax Humane Society in Daytona Beach, FL where he was employed for six years.
Since joining the library, in addition to his marketing and outreach duties, he has designed and launched two websites, one for public access and one staff-only intranet site. The new public website is located at http://www.volusialibrary.org. When hired, management was unaware that Barry possessed extensive website design and coding skills, saving the library substantial output of expenses.
In addition to working full-time for the library, Barry also writes a weekly pet column for the USA Today Network, which is published by approximately 2400 newspapers nationwide. He has written the column for six years, and published two books, “Why Do People Have Pets?” and “Why Do Pets Have People?”, each containing 70 of his columns.
A lifelong writer, he authored a very popular novel, “The Christmas House”, which has been downloaded over 15,000 times as an eBook and audiobook. The recent sequel, “Martha’s Return, The Christmas House II” is also doing well. All books are available as hardcover, paperback, audiobook, eBook, and podcast.
Barry shares his life with his wife of 35 years, Cindy, and their three rescue dogs, Bentley (Golden Retriever), Brody (Golden Retriever/Irish Setter), and Mini-Cooper (Caviler/Cocker).
His band, The Taylor Road Band, plays about 30 events each year. Barry is the drummer in the band. For more information about Barry’s band, visit http://www.taylorroadband.com. For more information about Barry’s books, visit http://www.
https://my.nicheacademy.com/neflin-staff/course/85092?categoryId=27206
https://my.nicheacademy.com/neflin-staff/course/80642?categoryId=27206
About
I graduated in 2001 from USF in Tampa with an MA in LIS. I have been a Children’s Librarian, an Information Specialist, a Teen Services Librarian, a Government Documents librarian, an Instruction Librarian; however, through all of this, I am always a Reference Librarian. In 2014, I received a Certificate of Information Architecture from FSU. I love finding answers to people’s questions, digging through genealogy for patrons, and providing Reader’s Advisory. I am also a NEFLIN MTI graduate as of August 2025. Meeting authors is one of my favorite pastimes, as well as reading, making beaded jewelry, and snuggling with my cats. I started working at CCPL in March of 2023 and love my job.
About
Gemma Rose is a dedicated and dynamic librarian with over 20 years of experience working in public libraries throughout the state of Florida. A proud graduate of St. John’s University, she holds a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) with specialized concentrations in library management, archival management, genealogy, and museum informatics.
Gemma currently serves as the Assistant Branch Manager at the Flagler County Public Library. In her role, she oversees multiple departments including Reference, Passport Services, and Circulation, ensuring seamless daily operations and exceptional public service. She also leads the library’s Adult Programming division, where her creativity and commitment to community engagement shine.
Known for her ability to think outside the box, Gemma curates a wide array of innovative and inclusive events. Her programming has included everything from glass blowing demonstrations and kitten yoga to local author book festivals and historical musket shooting exhibitions. Her work not only enhances library services but also fosters lifelong learning, community connection, and cultural enrichment.
Throughout her career, Gemma has remained passionate about making libraries vibrant, accessible, and ever-evolving centers of knowledge and experience.
About
Technology Training for librarians and library users. In-person and on-demand. Author of Library Technology Planning for Today and Tomorrow.
Palm Harbor Florida 34683
About
For over nine years, I worked as a solo librarian at two small academic career colleges where I managed all facets of library operations (collection development, cataloging, instruction, reference, and more). Since 2017, I have worked as the Library Technical Services Program Coordinator at Florida State College at Jacksonville. In this position, I oversee the cataloging and acquisitions for 7 locations. In 2018, we began our digital archive (https://fscj.digital.flvc.org/islandora) where I have uploaded almost 10,000 items.
About
Mike Wells has most recently served as the Library Director at Wilmington College in Ohio. His previous roles include Library Director/Copyright Officer at Thomas More University (Kentucky), Systems Librarian at Northern Kentucky University, Library/IT Director at the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science, and Manager of the Center for Information Management at Miami University (Ohio). Mike has a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) degree from Kent State University and is a summa cum laude graduate of Capital University (Ohio). Mike has over 20 years of experience in information technology management. He was a recipient of the EBSCO Charleston Conference Scholarship in 2017 and was a nominee for the Frederick G. Kilgour Award (sponsored by LITA and OCLC) for outstanding research in libraries and information technology. He is a husband and father of three, an avid amateur radio operator, amateur baseball historian, and long-distance runner. His community involvement in Ohio has included serving in elected office and various public library support roles.
Links to previous presentations, resources and/or help guides.
Wells, Michael D. (2024) Enhancing User Experience in Small Academic Libraries: Enhancing User Experience in Small Academic Libraries: Leveraging Matomo Analytics as a UX Design Tool. https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2435&context=tcl
Wells, Michael D. (2020) Perspectives on Public Services: Bringing a Small Academic Library Back from the Brink. International Information & Library Review https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10572317.2020.1746028?journalCode=ulbr20
June 2024 – Professional Workshop: Association of Christian Librarians (ACL) National Conference, University of Northwestern – St. Paul, MN. “Aligning Library Spaces and Services to Meet Evolving Patron Expectations.” Co-Presenters: Thomas Sens (BHDP Architecture) and Scott Lloyd (Library Director, Mt. St. Joseph University)
November 2022 – Presentation – Charleston Conference, “The Polarization Antidote: How a Method for Comparing News Sources, and an Understanding of Bias, Can Counteract Divisiveness” w/ Harleen Kaur, Ground News and Michael Walmsley, Baker & Taylor
421 N. Woodland Blvd. DeLand, Florida FL 32723






