CFP: MiALA 2026 Annual Conference (Traverse City, Michigan – May 6-8, 2026)

CFP: MiALA 2026 Annual Conference (Traverse City, Michigan – May 6-8, 2026)

T
he Michigan Academic Library Association (MiALA) is now accepting presentation proposals for its annual conference, which will be held
May 6-8, 2026,
at the
Park Place Hotel and Conference Center in downtown Traverse City, MI
.
This year’s theme is
Finding Our True North: Creating Connections to Light Our Way
.
Amid an era of rapid and often unsettling change in higher education, Michigan’s academic libraries remain vital centers of integrity, inquiry, and connection. Committed to upholding intellectual freedom, access, inclusivity, privacy, and the pursuit of truth, our “True North” is the shared compass that guides our work and keeps us grounded. We invite the academic library community to reflect on how it can embody our profession’s enduring core values, even when external pressures threaten to pull us off course. This year’s conference seeks to illuminate how academic libraries across Michigan are building resilience, fostering collaboration, and staying true to our values.
We welcome proposals on topics covering any aspect of academic libraries. We are especially interested in those proposals that explore how academic libraries are reaffirming their “True North”—the guiding principles that sustain and inspire our work. Proposals are currently being accepted for the following formats:
Presentations, panels, or moderated discussion sessions (45 min.)
Interactive workshops (105 min.)
Lightning Talks (10 min.)
Note: Poster presentation proposals will open in early December. Participation from librarians, library staff, LIS students, and administrators from all types of academic libraries is encouraged. MiALA membership is not required to submit a proposal.
Please submit your presentation proposal using
the application form
by January 12, 2026.
There is also a
Breakout Session Collaboration Sheet
available to find potential collaborators around a topic or idea.
Questions about proposals can be sent to Stephanie Swanberg  at
sswanberg@msp.edu
.
Questions about the conference in general can be sent to
conference@miala.org
.
Join us as we come together in Traverse City to reflect, reconnect, and rediscover our collective direction. Let’s amplify the stories, strategies, and sparks of inspiration that remind us of who we are and why our work matters.