Hoot-Con
Welcome to Hoot-Con 2026
Mark your calendars for March 6, 2026, when OWLS and Nicolet member library staff flock together at the Kimberly Municipal Complex for a full day of inspiration, discovery, and community. Hoot-Con is our annual one-day conference where ideas take flight—featuring a wide range of sessions designed to spark creativity, strengthen skills, and celebrate the amazing work happening across our libraries. Whether you’re looking to spread your wings or perch with colleagues to exchange fresh ideas, this is the place to be.
- Date: March 6, 2026
- Location: Kimberly Municipal Complex
- BadgerLink Resources for Public Libraries – BadgerLink is Wisconsin’s Online Library, a collection of over 60 online resources and databases. With so much to offer you as a librarian, as well as your community members, patrons, family members, friends, and colleagues, it can be overwhelming at a glance. This session will highlight the BadgerLink Resource Guide for Public Libraries and dive in to what’s really available, so you can be prepared to share BadgerLink resources with any Wisconsin resident at any time.
- Understanding AI: Building AI Literacy and Using AI to Enhance Access to Diverse Knowledge – This session builds practical AI literacy and explores AI as a tool for improving efficiency, expanding access to diverse sources of knowledge, and enhancing accessibility for both staff and patrons. Attendees will learn best practices, prompt-engineering fundamentals, and real-world applications for drafting, reviewing information and data, and gaining actionable insights—while maintaining ethical, transparent, and responsible use aligned with library values.
- Evaluating AI Tools: A guide for staff and patrons – This program is designed to help you make informed choices when using AI tools and when assisting patrons with AI, while reinforcing that users remain responsible for assessing risk and how they use AI generated output. This program provides a practical framework based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology AI Risk Management Framework. By the end of this training, you will be equipped to perform a Risk vs. Benefit assessment. This training is not about providing legal advice or pushing specific products but about providing the skills to assess a tool.
- Website Accessibility for Libraries: Practical Steps, Real Impact, and What’s Coming Next – This session introduces library staff to the basics of website accessibility, why it matters, and what new accessibility expectations mean for public library websites. We’ll focus on practical, high-impact improvements libraries can make right now—such as accessible calendar views, avoiding sliders, proper heading structure, and document practices. The session will also clarify staff roles, available support, and next steps to help libraries move forward with confidence.
- Beyond the Stacks: We’ve Got You Covered – Enhance your library’s visibility and impact far beyond its physical walls with outreach programs and community collaborations. This session will help you pack your “go bag” and be quickly prepared to participate wherever the road takes you.
- The Three Sisters Garden: Growing and Learning Together Through Indigenous Knowledge – This session explores our journey from soil study to seed library programs, highlighting our first experience with companion gardening programming and the integration of Indigenous knowledge in partnership with 1000 Islands Nature Center.
- I’m a Librarian Not a… : Tools, Techniques, and Tips to Create Engaging Programing When You’re No Expert – Karen (not a musician) and Peter (not a naturalist) share how they’ve created engaging music and nature programing at their local library.
- Basic Collection Analysis and Assessment Tools – Regular analysis helps ensure our library collections are healthy and doing what we need them to do to support our readers and the library’s goals. Holly and Meredith will introduce you to three helpful collection metrics—turnover rate, collection age, and usage by location. They’ll walk you through running the reports you’ll need in CARL, using the data from those reports to calculate these metrics, and what these results can tell you about your collection.
- Facebook for Library Marketing – Facebook remains the largest social media platform in the world, with 69% of people checking their Facebook daily. Find out how to make the most of Facebook for library marketing. Topics will include safety, the latest algorithms, monetization, and more.
- Evaluating, Weeding & Selecting Indigenous Titles – This session explores ways to evaluate, weed and select Indigenous titles for your collections. We will offer tools and resources, as well as some hands-on opportunities.
- Readers’ Advisory: This readers’ advisory session offers a chance to strengthen your advisory skills across today’s full spectrum of formats—books, audiobooks, films, and more. You’ll explore practical techniques for having richer conversations with patrons, understanding what truly appeals to them, and confidently recommending materials no matter how they prefer to read, watch, or listen. Attendees will leave with renewed energy and tips that make advisory work more intuitive, inclusive, and enjoyable.
- Community-Powered Programming for Young Children – Libraries are uniquely positioned to support young children and caregivers by partnering with community organizations that bring specialized knowledge, trusted relationships, and shared goals. This session highlights partnership-driven programs that enhance early literacy, whole-child development, and family well-being, while making programming easier for staff and more impactful for families.
- Reaching More Readers With Libby – Digital checkouts are a significant, and growing, percentage of library circulation – are your patrons taking full advantage of it? Do you understand the “behind the scenes” of the Libby app, the OverDrive Marketplace, and how titles get to your patrons? This session will share the tips and context that you need to help you teach and promote this wildly popular resource to your patrons.
- Cataloging Basics – This presentation will help library staff find the best records quicker. Attendees will be shown what search methods work best for finding records, how to identify if a record is complete, and given tips on streamlining workflows.
- Preparing for Polaris – With our ILS migration on the horizon, there may be some uncertainties or questions staff have. This session is meant to ease any anxieties staff may have by reviewing why we chose to migrate, what changes will be coming, what will stay the same, and how we plan to have all staff ready for go-live. Please bring any questions or concerns you may have.
- Roundtable: Specialty Collections Successes and Struggles – Do you have a special collection that is unique to your library and community? Is it something you’re proud of and would like to share with others? If so, please attend this roundtable to share the collection, how you sourced it and any challenges getting it into the catalog. Feel free to bring any materials you need!
- Roundtable: Programming – Join your colleagues from across the system for an interactive programming roundtable focused on sharing your library programs. Participants will discuss successful programs, lessons learned from challenges, and emerging ideas that best serve your community. Come prepared to swap ideas, and takeaways you can adapt to your library’s next program! Feel free to bring any materials you need!
| 8:30 – 9:00 | Sign-in Evergreen Room | ||
| Birch/Aspen | Cedar | Evergreen | |
| 9:00 – 9:45 | Basic Collection Analysis and Assessment Tools : Holly & Meredith | Programming: I’m a Librarian Not a… Tools, Techniques, and Tips to Create Engaging Programming When You’re No Expert: Karen & Peter | Understanding AI: Building AI Literacy and Using AI to Enhance Access to Diverse Knowledge: Jannisar |
| 10:00 – 10:45 | Roundtable: Specialty Collections Successes and Struggles: Mikki | Programming: Community-Powered Programming for Young Children: Alison | Evaluating AI Tools: A guide for staff and patrons: Colleen |
| 11:00 – 11:45 | Cataloging Basics: John | Programming: Three Sisters Garden: Growing and Learning Together Through Indigenous Knowledge: Sarah, Kim, and Brad | Readers’ Advisory: Kristie |
| 12:00 – 1:00 | LUNCH | ||
| 1:00 – 1:45 | BadgerLink Resources for Public libraries: Jen from DPI | Open | Facebook for Library Marketing: Jenny |
| 2:00 – 2:45 | Evaluating, Weeding & Selecting Indigenous Titles: Kim | Beyond the Stacks: We’ve Got You Covered: Mikki and Paige | Preparing for Polaris: Molly, Jean, Amanda |
| 3:00 – 3:45 | Reaching More Readers with Libby: Kristin | Roundtable: Programming: Molly, Mary & Simon | Website Accessibility for Libraries: Practical Steps, Real Impact, and What’s Coming Next: Chad |
Kristie Hauer (she/her)
Kristie Hauer is the Assistant System Director at Nicolet Federated Library System. She’s been working in libraries since 1999, the first five in elementary school libraries and the rest in public libraries. Kristie’s vast experiences and knowledge stem from holding the positions of library assistant, children’s department supervisor, branch manager, and director. Kristie earned her BA in English and Humanistic Studies from UW-Green Bay and MLIS from UW-Milwaukee.
Jen Champoux (she/her/hers)
Jen is on the Bureau of Libraries at DPI, where she works primarily on BadgerLink, providing training and support. She also writes BadgerLink’s Bulletin posts and mails out promotional posters and bookmarks. Reach out to her for all things BadgerLink!
Karen Stern (she/her)
Karen Stern is the Early Childhood Library Assistant at the Appleton Public Library. Besides regular weekly storytimes, Karen plans and implements programs featuring music and movement. Karen has an MLIS from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa.
Colleen Rortvedt (she/her)
Colleen Rortvedt is the Director of the Appleton Public Library. She started working at APL as a page clerk and has served as Teen Librarian, AV Librarian, and Assistant Director. Colleen sees libraries as places shaped by strong relationships between staff and the community, which is what makes each one unique and important to the life of a community.
Paige Crawford
Paige Crawford has worked at the Shawano County Library for 10 years. She is a Librarian who catalogs and does adult programming.
Mikki Moesch
Mikki Moesch has filled many rolls in her 25 years at the Shawano County Library. As the Assistant Director, she works more closely with branch staff as well as collection development of media and Library of Things items.
Alison Loewen (she/her/hers)
Alison is a Youth Services Librarian at the Mead Public Library in Sheboygan. For nearly 10 years, she has created programs and services that spark curiosity and connection, partnering with local organizations to support and strengthen families. She also was named WLA's Librarian of the Year 2025 for her work in early literacy and the Ready, Set, 4K initiative.
Meredith Miller (she/her)
With BS degrees in zoology, biology, and psychology from Colorado State University, Meredith fell into librarianship backwards when she was hired to run programming at the Scandinavia Public Library in 2007. It was there that she finally found her ikigai, culminating in taking over as director in November 2023. Meredith never met a craft she didn’t like, starts more seeds than she has time to tend outside, and can’t resist the tempting rabbit hole of a deep data dive.
Chad Glamann (he/him/his)
Chad is the Web and Marketing Coordinator at the Outagamie Waupaca Library System. With a background in web development and graphic design, he supports library staff through web and marketing consulting. Chad is passionate about helping libraries share the cool things they do.
Molly Reinke, Mary Perket, and Simon Baumgart
Molly, Mary, and Simon are just 3 of the amazing programmers at Waupaca Area Public Library. When we're not posing for professional pictures or cosplaying as Bob Ross, we're brainstorming fun and easy ways to up our programming at Waupaca Library.
