From June 24-29, 2026, I had the marvelous opportunity to visit Chicago, Illinois for the 2026 American Library Association (ALA) Conference. It was a very intimidating experience at first as this was the very first time attending a professional conference. The chance to attend a national conference attracting librarians not only from the United States but also from around the world itself was a very thrilling prospect. With my added positionality as a first generation graduate student, there was much uncertainty I felt in anticipation of attendance. It became even more of an intimidating experience as I learned prior to attendance that I would have the opportunity to speak on a panel for an official ALA presentation, present a poster of my experiences on a research project with my colleague, and serve as a student representative on the convention floor. With two anticipated presentations and the role of speaking on my academic experiences to the library professionals, I was both excited and intimidated going into my very first conference with the bold letters spelling out “PRESENTER” on my ALA badge. 

Prior to the conference, I was hired by Dr. Michele Villagran as a Student Assistant to support her with supplemental projects and feedback on the Culturally Competent Research in Library and Information Science (CCRLIS) research project. I was going into this position with a passion for the consciousness of cultural backgrounds and how that affects information services and did not expect my work to go beyond support for the project itself. However, as a supplement to the CCRLIS project, Dr. Villagran suggested that the CCRLIS team draft a presentation to apply as presenters for the ALA conference. Our resulting presentation, “Culture & You: A Multi-Disciplinary Conversation on Everyday Cultural Research Practices,” thus included discussions of the CCRLIS framework and project progress, as well as the idea of research beyond formal research contexts and spaces. Dr. Villagran, Kristie Barlas, Jennifer Perez Lara, and myself all contributed our respective perspectives to the presentation and managed to secure an opportunity to present our powerpoint at the ALA Conference in Chicago. 

Our presentation slot landed on Saturday, June 27 at 2:30 p.m. CST. I remember going around the convention floor the days prior enjoying conversations with the exhibitors and all the free tote bags and books they would distribute, always thinking about the presentation in the moments leading up to the time slot. My portions of the presentation focused on everyday research in contexts within and beyond formal academic settings, as my expertise lies in public librarianship as opposed to my colleagues whose work centers around academic librarianship, as well as my work on podcast development for the supplemental CCRLIS project entitled “Bias by Us: Conversations on Culture & Research.” Throughout our time developing the presentation, I always found much support from my colleagues Dr. Villagran, Kristie, and Jennifer. They really emphasized the importance of my perspective as a public library-focused academic to broaden the scope of the CCRLIS project’s potential, which overall aided in my own confidence not only in contributing to the project but also as a presenter, speaking as an important figure in the librarianship field. The presentation itself was a great success as our team presented with much ease. Our presentation also included many discussion questions in which many attendees enthusiastically answered, providing their own experiences and perspectives on topics like cultural competency within their past and current work and potential for our CCRLIS framework within future projects. Through this presentation experience, I expanded my professional skillset with public speaking, project development, discussion facilitation, and team building, which are all vital skills that will aid in my pursuits of becoming a public librarian. I also gained many wonderful memories of library passion and vigor towards a more culturally conscious library industry serving all sorts of library patron populations, which I will most definitely carry with me as I continue my professional work. 

Furthermore, Dr. Villagran encouraged Jennifer and myself to apply for the iSchool Community Impact Poster Session at the iSchool Networking Reception to highlight our experiences working on the CCRLIS project. Jennifer and I were able to successfully land a spot in the poster session with our poster “First Generation Achievements: Student Contributions on the CCRLIS Project,” in which we discuss our contributions and perspectives with the CCRLIS project through the lenses of first-generation graduate students. As I mentioned on the poster itself, one of the difficulties I faced as I went into the role of Student Assistant was the lack of understanding I had around research and research projects. During my time as an undergraduate student at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), I majored in Asian American Studies with a minor in Film, Television, & Digital Media, with intentions to pursue the entertainment industry to uplift marginalized stories in media. I eventually pivoted towards librarianship for a more direct means of supporting marginalized communities which I found aligned more with my overall career goals, but left me with many new experiences to navigate as a first-generation graduate student and the only person in my personal life within the librarianship field. Discussions of my experiences navigating unfamiliar territory with Dr. Villagran and Jennifer eventually led to our development of the poster, as Dr. Villagran emphasized the importance of highlighting such perspectives in a field that often possesses a disparity of diverse perspectives and representation. 

The iSchool Networking Reception itself was a great success. My colleague Jennifer and I presented our poster, highlighting our shared experiences and growth from our time with the CCRLIS project to to many SJSU iSchool students, faculty, and alumni. We were met with much enthusiasm and interest in our own stories in addition to the CCRLIS research project and supplemental projects, including interest in being featured guests on the podcast I developed with Dr. Villagran. Some people even came forward and had conversations with us about being first generation students themselves, expressing their understanding of concepts we highlighted such as imposter syndrome often found in first generation communities. It was also wonderful to see other students’ projects, learning what other achievements fellow SJSU iSchool students have been able to accomplish. It was great to see the breadth of opportunities the school has afforded MLIS students throughout their time in this graduate program. 

In addition to such presentations, through the travel grant provided by the school to support my opportunity to attend the ALA conference, I served as a Student Representative for the iSchool at the San José State University iSchool booth on the ALA exhibition hall floor. I met many of my fellow students as they passed by, prospective students who were potentially interested in joining the program, and general attendees looking for free swag who ended up asking a question or two. Being able to share my expertise about my time within the SJSU iSchool MLIS program not only granted unfamiliar ALA attendees the knowledge of the program itself, but it also indirectly provided affirmations for myself to realize and recognize the accomplishments and wisdom I have accumulated as a graduate student. 

Overall, my time at the 2026 ALA conference in Chicago all felt very surreal. As the SJSU iSchool program is primarily a virtual experience, having the privilege to attend an in-person event on behalf of SJSU was quite the blessing. I recall within my first few moments of attending the conference that many of my nerves of uncertainty subsided as I met more and more librarians and library field professionals who carried themselves with such passion and joy for providing library services to their local and greater communities. To meet people within the program with such grand goals of making a difference within the library and information science field and within their respective locales is something I hope that all current and prospective MLIS students have the opportunity to take part in. On top of the hard skills I gained and developed from my responsibilities at the conference, I felt reaffirmed in why I chose this career path to begin with: to be an advocate for all communities in their pursuits of library and information services.