When to Tap-In and Tap-Out: Nurturing Resilience and Renewing Bonds in Library Teams
Session Description
Join us for an exciting exploration of a new innovation called "Branch Tap-Ins." This groundbreaking approach aims to enhance library staff's productivity, foster team dynamics, and promote resilience. In the trying times of the post pandemic era, front-line library professionals have faced numerous challenges, and Branch Tap-Ins emerged as a proactive response to support them through a trauma-informed lens.
This unique approach involves senior leaders and administrators temporarily stepping into branch roles, allowing the dedicated staff to enjoy a rejuvenating offsite retreat focused on team building and strategic planning. As a result, relationships between branch teams and administrators strengthen, and staff members experience a renewed sense of mission and enthusiasm. Administrators gain valuable insights into the daily operations, enabling them to create effective solutions.
Join us to explore this transformative innovation, learn from our experiences, and leave with actionable strategies to strengthen your library team's resilience and cohesion. This is especially relevant to library managers and administrators who are interested in boosting their team's productivity, enhancing their strategic planning skills, and promoting a culture of resilience. Don't miss this chance to elevate your library's team spirit and performance!
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Learning Outcomes
- Discover how the Branch Tap-Ins model prioritizes staff self-care, providing opportunities for rejuvenation and disengagement from daily branch life.
- Learn concrete methods to foster stronger connections between branch staff and administrative teams.
- Gain insights into how administrators can directly engage with public service and operations, better understand the challenges faced by branch staff, and apply trauma-informed leadership to enhance library services and staff resilience.
Presenter: Taina Evans
Taina K. Evans is a seasoned library executive with over 18 years of leadership experience at Brooklyn Public Library. She currently serves as the Regional Director for the Flatbush Region, where she oversees operations across 10 branches and manages a team of more than 120 staff. Her expertise spans workforce planning, talent development, and leading complex operational transitions.
A nationally recognized thought leader, Taina has successfully launched borough-wide, community-centered service models that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and drive meaningful social impact. She is known for building strategic partnerships with elected officials and community stakeholders to expand access to inclusive resources and virtual programming, particularly for vulnerable populations.
Presenter: Lameane Isaac
LaMeane Isaac has known Brooklyn Public Library for as long as she can remember. Growing up in a large family, the library was her place of peace and discovery—a quiet refuge filled with endless adventures through books. In high school, she began working at the Brooklyn Heights Branch, drawn by the sense of comfort and belonging the library provided. After completing her undergraduate studies, she returned to BPL more than 20 years ago as a Library Associate at Walt Whitman Library, later earning her MLS from Queens College and rising through the ranks to become a Regional Director.
As a dynamic and compassionate leader, LaMeane is dedicated to empowering and supporting staff at all levels, often emphasizing the importance of self-care and wellness in their daily work. She finds inspiration in collaborating with library users and community partners, which fuels her interests in podcasting, crocheting, self-care, and maternal health advocacy. When she’s not leading or learning, she enjoys spending quality time with her son.
Presenter: Sharon Palmer
Sharon Palmer is employed as a Regional Director at Brooklyn Public Library. In this role, she oversees ten neighborhood libraries and supervises over one hundred employees. Having worked at Brooklyn Public Library in various capacities, Sharon remains passionate about library services and is a strong advocate for collaboration and teamwork among staff. Additionally, she enjoys working with various community partners to positively impact communities. Sharon has been the recipient of three Bklyn Incubator awards that provides funding for staff to implement community-based projects: S.E.E (Shop, Eat and Exercise) Yourself Healthy, Cooking, Crocheting and Coping and Journey to Parenthood: How Library Staff can Support Pregnant People. Although Sharon’s primary roles focus on leadership, team building and project management, she enjoys planning and hosting innovative virtual programs for adults. Under Sharon’s leadership, staff at four libraries obtained the prestigious New York City Charles H. Revson monetary award for outstanding customer service. Additionally, Sharon previously presented on a variety of topics at the ALA, BCALA, NYLA and REFORMA conferences.
