Under Whose Authority? Power and Purpose in Academic Libraries 

What are the boundaries of academic and intellectual freedom within academic institutions, particularly in this socio-political moment? How does the academic library as a memory institution claim neutrality while also acting as the authority on which technologies, information, and resources should or should not be prioritized, protected, and shared? What is the academic library worker’s relationship with authority and positional power, and how can we use our roles to enact institutional, sectoral, and social change? Making sense of some of our sector’s biggest questions can only be addressed together. Join us for a day of ideas, grassroots conversations, and dynamic presentations from folks who have spent their careers reflecting on these questions. 

Call for Proposals:

OCULA Council welcomes proposals from across the university and college library sector. This year’s virtual conference will focus on power and purpose in the academic library sector. We welcome sessions of varying lengths and levels of interactivity from the full spectrum of library workers, from technicians to administrators, librarians to student workers. Sessions can be presented live or pre-recorded. 

Review and submit to our Call for Proposals by Sunday March 23, 2025 at midnight. 

Suggested Topics

• Academic/Intellectual Freedom and sociopolitical discourse
• Libraries as the information authority
• Library neutrality in times of sociopolitical change
• Political and ethical considerations of Artificial Intelligence adoption

Event Details

• Date: Wednesday May 7, 2025
• Time: 10AM – 4PM ET
• Format: Virtual + On-Demand for 6 months
• Program Details & Registration: Early April

About the OCULA Spring Conference

The OCULA Spring Conference is a one-day conference that brings together library staff from academic institutions on a specific topic or theme. The annual event is planned by a sub-committee of OCULA Council and takes place in the spring of each year. This event was historically held in-person but has been virtual since 2021. 

View the Past Events section (below) for information on past conferences.