Webcast Speakers
Krü Maekdo
Founder of the Black Lesbian Archives
Krü is a multimedia artist, archivist, astrologist and founder of the Black Lesbian Archives. A grassroots archival project created on June 25th, 2017 to preserve, uplift, and celebrate the lives, legacies, and cultural contributions of Black Lesbians.
Rooted in community memory and intergenerational healing, her work has bridged the gaps in both physical and digital representation by creating accessible spaces for storytelling through media, education, and archival justice.
Gabriella Garcia, MLIS
Head Archivist for the Lambda Archives
Gabrielle (they/he/she pronouns) is the Head Archivist at Lambda Archives of San Diego and a 2024 Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) graduate from the University of Washington. She was a 2023 Spectrum Scholar through the American Library Association (ALA) and the 2022 recipient of the Broadening Perspectives Scholarship through the Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA). They also hold a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Media Studies from Scripps College. He has a background in community, university, and private archives, in addition to arts and museum contexts.
Alexis Bard Johnson
Curator of the ONE Archives
Alexis Bard Johnson is the Curator at the ONE Archives at the USC Libraries. She oversees the exhibitions, programs, and art collection at one of the largest repositories of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer materials in the world. She most recently curated The Space We Take: Portraits from the Archive and Fairy Prince. Previously she curated Sci-fi, Magick, Queer LA: Sexual Science and the Imagi-nation, as part of the Getty’s PST Art initiative, Looking for Lesbians, and Archival Intimacies: Queer South/East Asian Diasporas.
Jamia Williams
Assistant Librarian Expert in Health Subjects & Research, University of Utah
Jamia Williams is a health sciences librarian. She is the co-owner of IronClad Media, a mixed-media consulting company. In her role, she helps people harness the power of their narratives while navigating the complexities of the digital landscape. She also leads the company’s social media management division, ensuring strategic and impactful online engagement. Beyond IronClad Media, she is the co-creator of the LibVoices podcast and The Diversity Fellow’s blog, platforms that amplify diverse voices and experiences in librarianship.
Cat Tang
MLIS Student, San José State University
Cat Tang (she/her) began the SJSU MLIS program in spring 2023 and is set to graduate in spring 2026. She is a 2025-2026 American Library Association (ALA) Spectrum Scholar and a two-time recipient of the SJSU iSchool Continuing Student Scholarship (fall 2024, fall 2025).
Natali Carmona Guzman
iSchool MLIS Student and iSchool VR Student Lead
Natali Carmona Guzman is an MLIS student at the SJSU iSchool. At the iSchool, she is the VR (Virtual Reality) assistant to the Director of Online Learning, Bethany Winslow. She assists Winslow with VR workshops, virtual events, and supporting students’ VR projects. In 2023, Carmona served as the membership coordinator for the UX (User Experience) student group, with a focus on increasing membership, particularly among BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students interested in the field of UX.
Jamia Williams
Assistant Librarian Expert in Health Subjects & Research, University of Utah
Jamia Williams is a health sciences librarian. She is the co-owner of IronClad Media, a mixed-media consulting company. In her role, she helps people harness the power of their narratives while navigating the complexities of the digital landscape. She also leads the company’s social media management division, ensuring strategic and impactful online engagement. Beyond IronClad Media, she is the co-creator of the LibVoices podcast and The Diversity Fellow’s blog, platforms that amplify diverse voices and experiences in librarianship.
Billey Albina
Therapist & Former Academic Librarian
Billey Albina is a master’s student at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work at the University of Toronto where she is focusing on clinical psychotherapy using mindfulness-based and trauma-informed practices. Prior to social work, she was an academic technical services librarian for 14 years at Bard College, Columbia University, and University of Vermont. Billey served in several leadership positions for the Core Metadata & Collection Section and the Program for Cooperative Cataloging. She co-edited the volume
Lisa Meléndez
Reference & Instructional Services Librarian at Suffolk County Community College; Yoga Instructor, RYT-500
Lisa Meléndez, Professor of Library Services at Suffolk County Community College, is an instructional and outreach librarian who regularly partners with the Office of Mental Health & Wellness on campus. Collaborations include offering workshops for Health Sciences students on stress management, Human Services students on self-care, and more general offerings related to promoting wellbeing in academic environments. In 2021, she received the Judith Rivas mini-grant from REFORMA NE to support a visual arts collaboration between the SCCC libraries and Latino Arts of Long Island
Mount Allen
Director of Network Engagement, SFJAZZ
During the 2012 International Association of Venue Managers Performing Arts Managers Conference in New York City, Mount Allen introduced the concept of non-higher-education performing arts venue participation in research and education networks. Since that introduction, he has worked to integrate advanced networking technology into the arts industry, highlighting the use of apps such as JackTrip and EduMEET, in Networked Music Performance involving world-renown jazz artists: Where latency truly matters.
Ashlee Johnson-Geisse
Founder, Brown Girl Farms
Ashlee is a queer black woman farmer, wife, and mother and founder of Brown Girl Farms in Hayward, California. Birthed from a belief that queer, black, women farmers need more representation and celebration in the growing world, Ashlee Johnson-Geisse created Brown Girl Farms. The farm serves to spread loving intention to community through market vegetables, African American heritage crops, and unique seasonal flower bouquets.
Tamearra Dyson
Executive Chef/CEO/COO, Souley Vegan
Tamearra Dyson is a second generation Bay Area native with roots tracing back to Louisiana. Growing up as the youngest of three children in a single-parent household, she experienced firsthand the hardships of food insecurity and the impact of limited financial resources on a family. Due to these circumstances, she found herself in an abusive environment when left with her father. Despite these challenges, Tamearra was driven to succeed and forge her own path.
Genesis Hansen
President of the California Library Association, Director of Library and Cultural Services for the City of Mission Viejo, CA
Genesis Hansen, CLA President
Director of Library and Cultural Services
City of Mission Viejo
ghansen@cityofmissionviejo.org
Term end: 2026
Tarunjot Chahal
Vice Chair, AANHPI iSchool Student Group
Tarunjot Kaur Chahal is a graduate student in Informatics and holds an undergraduate degree in Computer Science. As a South Asian American deeply interested in the intersection of technology, identity, community, and care, she has focused her research on the digital divide, health informatics, and the role of technology in public health. Tarunjot is particularly passionate about data analytics and has applied her technical skills to projects such as analyzing disease dynamics to better understand patterns in health outcomes.
Katie Albright
Student Success Librarian, Courtright Memorial Library, Otterbein University
Katie Albright, M.L.I.S. (Simmons University), is the Student Success Librarian at Otterbein University. Her research primarily focuses on the unique needs of first generation and lower income students, particularly with how the hidden curriculum affects their learning, sense of belonging, and retention. She also works in disability advocacy in the field of library sciences.
Sarah Tribelhorn
Sciences and Sustainability Librarian, San Diego State University
Sarah Tribelhorn is Sciences and Sustainability Librarian at San Diego State University. She has been instrumental in leading sustainability initiatives in the University Library, including the formation of a library Sustainability Committee and the library’s participation in the Sustainable Libraries Initiative Certification Program (SLCP) for academic libraries to benchmark sustainability within the library.
Sandra Michelle Echols
School Librarian, Bibliotherapist, New York
Sandra Michele Echols is a thought-leader librarian, Bibliotherapist, and educator with extensive experience managing public, academic, and school libraries. As a dedicated professor and mentor, she is passionate about interdisciplinary collaboration, applying artificial intelligence in education, engaging classroom experiences, developing leadership training, and adapting to the evolving education, library, and nonprofit industries.