Welcome to the Liberty Chapter Newsletter, a quarterly blog post that will highlight chapter initiatives, committee activities and the achievements of our members.
Time to Renew Your 2026 Chapter Membership
By Latrina Keith, Membership Committee Chair
Be on the lookout in your email in late January for your membership renewal reminder for 2026.
Membership fees are due on February 1, 2026. To become a new member, please click here.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Trina Keith, the Chair of the Membership Committee, or e-mail us at support@libertymla.org
Thank you for your continued support of the Liberty Chapter!
Liberty Chapter Event Recap: Vision Board Workshop
By Allison Piazza, Chair
On January 14, a group of Liberty Chapter members manifested their 2026 goals at the 2nd Annual Vision Board Workshop, sponsored by the EDI Committee. This program, run by Allison Piazza, was a low-key opportunity to work on goals while chatting with other members of the Liberty Chapter.
Committee Spotlight: Archives Committee
By Jaclyn Morales, MLA, AHIP
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The Archives Committee is responsible for the collection, organization, and maintenance of designated records from the officers and committee chairs of the Liberty Chapter. Chaired by Travis Nace, the committee recently showcased the draft of the Liberty Chapter’s Collection Retention Policy at the Liberty Chapter Annual Meeting, in a poster presentation entitled, “Preserving our History: Building the Liberty Chapter’s Digital Archive.”
The goal in establishing a formal policy was grounded in the committee’s commitment to preserving our new chapter’s collective history. The committee is made up of a diverse group of academic and hospital librarians, many who are former archivists or have a wide range of knowledge in archival activities. As a result, monthly meetings are held where members learn from one another in a collaborative environment. The committee goals for 2026 include having the Collection Retention Policy approved by the Board and establishing a plan for moving and consolidating the legacy chapters’ print archives. Members interested in being a part of the Archives Committee can contact Travis Nace at travis.nace@temple.edu.
NNLM Updates from Region 1 and Region 7
By Rie Goto, Communications Committee Chair
- Region 1 Annual Report is available to download. The report covers activities from May 1, 2024, to April 30, 2025.
- Love Data Week 2026! This year’s Love Data Week will take place from
February 9 to February 13, 2026. The theme this year is “Where’s the Data?” This theme encourages people to consider the lifecycle of data from the time it is collected to when it is stored and preserved. Learn more about this event here! The National Center for Data Services will be hosting a class titled “Data for Everyone: An Introduction to Spreadsheets” on February 12 at 3 pm EST. Sign up for this class here.
NNLM Training Opportunities
Looking for something to fit your schedule? Some classes are always available.
Visit the NNLM Training Calendar for a full list of upcoming classes.
Advocacy Section
By Jordan D. Correia
How to Be a Community Member
This is a more informal advocacy section this time around, bordering on an opinion piece. But I am tired and angry and frustrated, and I’m sure many of you feel the same.
I want to talk about how to become a member of your community. I think a lot of us have heard the word community more in the last few weeks than we have our entire lives. And I think we look at this title and think it's obvious how you can become part of your community. But I believe it's actually quite difficult: people move around a lot, your job is in a different city than where you live, there's so much distrust going on, and it's easy to become insular and reclusive when everything is being pushed online. Connecting to the people you may see on a daily basis feels threatening and the longer you go without reaching out, the more awkward it feels to do so.
There's hundreds of blog posts, TikToks, and Instagram Reels about how to connect with a community, some of which are quite useful. But the main piece of advice is: cultivate a hobby, join a support group, discover an identity, or develop an interest and then find a group focused on that. Finding those like you is crucial, but equally important is locating a group where you can share perspectives on the unique issues you face as part of a whole community with different people who are facing varying consequences of those issues. For example, I can go to a fiber arts group a city away, make great friends, and they still will not understand why my city once again has a boil-water advisory for the second time in six months. But you know who will? Someone else in my building. And we can talk about who to contact for answers.
I have two actions that I take to help me be more of a member of my communities. They can be difficult to do, take time, and there's definitely criticism for them. First, you need to care about your patrons outside of your job description. I know we enjoy having a scope of what our job entails; trust me when I say I’m well aware that we’re often asked for the world. We, as medical librarians, are valued and praised and give so much and then are asked for more. But I think we conflate having a scope in our jobs with not being a person, excuse the harshness. If someone expresses concern about an issue like how the federal government is rearranging loans for graduate programs, or how they don't know if they can practice in the state they are from because of the laws being passed, or they respond with "not great" when asked how they are, the easiest thing to do is to redirect the conversation or say "sorry to hear that" and move on. You can't fix their problems, so why bother engaging? And that's true, but you can lend an ear, you can lend sympathies, you can relate. We can be professional, remain in our capacity, and also offer words of encouragement. These acts are not only for specific professions or people. They are quick (about two minutes!), meaningful, and revolutionary. And it often means a great deal to the person on the receiving end. That's how you start a relationship, that's how you begin integrating in your community and supporting others.
The second action might be much easier to some: say hi to your crossing guard. That's it. "Hi, have a good morning, stay warm." To your crossing guards, your postal workers, your sanitation workers. If they're near a convenience store, offer to buy them a cup of coffee. If you are nervous or shy, if you have just moved somewhere, if you just haven't had the time to really get involved in your community, say hi. This builds confidence, leads to other conversations, and garners more connections. Every activist, every community member, everyone starts somewhere. Start with a hi.
Please fill out THIS FORM or use the QR code below with issues you have faced, would like to hear resources about, or anything else you feel the advocacy section should address.
Member Spotlight: Erin Sheedy!
By Rie Goto, Communications Committee Chair
Erin (she/her) is a Medical Librarian at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City, which is the oldest orthopedic hospital in the United States. James Knight founded The Hospital of the New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled in 1863 to treat wounded Civil War soldiers. Erin is the solo librarian at HSS and she is a jack-of-all-trades. She supports research at HSS by constructing searches and assisting with reviews as well teaching classes on databases, citation managers, and more specific topics like AI and publishing. She also runs all the library operations, including managing the budget, subscriptions, and frequently fixing the printer.
Why did you become a librarian?
"I became interested in libraries while working as a research assistant while studying history. I worked closely with our history subject librarian to compile materials, and I thought it was wonderful how she got to learn a little about a lot through helping with research projects."
What has been the most interesting project you have worked on?
"Before I joined HSS, I worked at Boston Children's Hospital. There, I developed a presentation about predatory publishing and paper mills, which was both concerning and fascinating."
Is there a skill you want to learn?
"I want to learn more about research data management!"
What do you think is so special about the field of Health Sciences / Medical /Hospital / STEM Librarianship compared to other library positions?
"Every day I learn something new and get to support patients and doctors in advancing medical research."
What’s your hobby outside of work?
"I play trivia weekly with my friends and like to do yoga!"
What is something you have on your 'bucket list'?
"I want to walk from the top to the bottom of Manhattan."
Is there anything about you that others might be surprised to know?
"I was on Jeopardy! in 2023."
What/who is your favorite Librarian character in popular culture?
Definitely Parker Posey's character in Party Girl (1995) because she is so fun and goes against the typical librarian trope!
Wow! We need to know more about your Jeopardy! experience!!! Welcome to New York, and welcome to the Liberty Chapter, Erin!
If you want to be featured or know someone you want to introduce, please fill out this form.
Kudos for Chapter Members
Congratulations to our fellow Chapter members!
By Monifa Carter and Sarah Gabrielle Bauman, Membership Committee
Racheline G. Habousha, MSLS, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, D. Samuel Gottesman Library
Congratulations on your retirement, Racheline!
Racheline Habousha, former chapter chair (2012-2013) of the NY-NJ Chapter of MLA, has retired on December 15, 2025 after 50 years of dedicated service at the D. Samuel Gottesman Library of Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Nancy R. Glassman, MLS, MPH, AHIP, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, D. Samuel Gottesman Library
Congratulations to Nancy Glassman on her promotion to Interim Director of the D. Samuel Gottesman Library of Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
John Mokonyama, MS, MBA, MSLS, AHIP-D, Penn Medicine, Chester County Hospital
Congratulations to John and his library for supporting a new residency program!
In 2025, Penn Medicine, Chester County Hospital (CCH) reached a major milestone with the unexpected but successful launch of its first Family Medicine residency program. Initially planned for 2026, the program began a year early following Crozer Health's closure. Through rapid collaboration among Penn Medicine leadership, CCH, and residency leadership, an accredited program was transferred. This allowed residents to remain together, continue caring for their patients, and preserve vital primary care services in Delaware County. In June, the program proudly celebrated its 2025 graduating class, marking an essential achievement in the hospital’s expanding role in medical education.
From the program’s earliest days, the library became an essential research partner. Under the leadership of Medical Librarian John Mokonyama, the library has worked closely with residents and faculty, supporting literature searches, research development, quality improvement projects, and publication efforts. Residents have shared that librarian guidance “turned clinical questions into clear, publishable projects,” while faculty noted that this support “raised the scholarly bar” for the program. One resident described the library as “a calm, trusted resource during a hectic first year at a new location.”
With strong support from hospital leadership and faculty, the Medical Library has established itself as a trusted research resource and looks forward to growing with the residency program. We plan to continue playing a vital role in medical research, professional development, evidence-based care, and research excellence.
