Renewals is now seven years old (the Renewers Facebook community is six, too – and our social media channel on Instagram is four years old). Renewals’ Facebook and Instagram communities continue their growth, with member/follower numbers at 2,467 and 1,266 respectively; Blue Sky (239 followers) and Threads (438 followers) social platform presence is about one year old. Renewals is no longer providing updates via the Twitter/X platform.
I’ve continued reporting on several of my ongoing data collection projects (view the latest briefs), and this year I added two new projects:
- Leaving Low-Morale Experiences – Employment Treatment During Resignation Periods
- Moral Injury During Low-Morale Experiences
In July 2024 I was invited to join Dominican University’s School of Information Studies as the 2024-2025 Follett Chair. The invitation offered me opportunities to engage with DU SOIS faculty members and students, and to connect DU faculty and staff in general, and more specifically as I clarified my promotion and practice of Critical Hope in the LIS industry. In October 2024, I offered a two-part Follett Forum Series that introduced my low-morale experience research to an expanded audience. Earlier this year, I also taught a special topics course (LIS 805) focusing on Critical Hope practice and Self-Preservation in modern librarianship (view course briefs). Later this Spring, my chairship will culminate with the Follett Lecture, happening on April 10 (you can register if you’d like to attend in-person – or view the live stream).
As I continue refining and expanding Critical Hope praxis, I’ve partnered with my dear friend and long-time collaborator Ione T. Damasco (University of Dayton) on two projects:
- Convening for Critical Hope: A Gathering for Consideration and Practice in Libraries – a community-building event introducing the Critical Hope framework and offering reflection on pathways to practice (March 14, 2025)
- Call for Proposals for Book Chapters: Catalyzing Critical Hope in Libraries: Narratives of Challenge and Change (forthcoming from ACRL). View the full proposal and submission details.
I’ve been honored to work on the Curatorial Ethics project, an IMLS-grant funded opportunity led by curator-scholar Dr. Kimberly Springer, and I continued work on an ongoing/forthcoming curriculum project.
Commentary and discussion about workplace morale continues in social media and news – this year I engaged with one podcast:
- Surviving the Stacks (October 2024)
Organizations invited me to lead Renewals professional development events, including:
- Northeast Ohio Regional Library System (May 2024)
- Consortium of Academic Research Libraries in Illinois/Professional Development Alliance (September 2024)
I was also invited to offer keynotes and webinars to universities, libraries, and professional library and archives organizations and continuing education providers:
- Library Journal/School Library Journal (April 2024, June 2024, and October 2024)
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Library (April 2024)
- Illinois Chapter of the Association of College & Research Libraries (April 2024)
- Illinois State University Library (April 2024)
- University of Illinois Chicago (July 2024)
- Stony Brook University Libraries (September 2024)
- Association of Research Libraries (October 2024)
- Consortium of Southern Biomedical Libraries (October 2024)
This year I also engaged internationally – in November 2024 I offered a virtual keynote to library workers in the Republic of Korea, hosted by Yonsei University’s Research Institute for Academic Library Development and the Korea Society for Information Management. As a person who has a keen personal and scholarly interest in Korean history, culture, and library worker experiences, this was particularly exciting for me, and I hope to revisit our South Korean colleagues in person soon.
Renewals Coaching is in its third year, and Renewals Executive Coaching is in its second year -and I’m continuing my collaborations with people who want career clarity and/or support as they navigate within or transition from dysfunctional workplaces. This year, clients share:
“[Kaetrena] helped me dive deeper into my feelings and place names to behaviors while leading me on a new pathway to recovery.” – S.S.. Renewals Coaching Program Client
“Kaetrena is empathic and supportive and encourages self-compassion, but the coaching goes well beyond that. She keeps the discussion conceptual–talking about systems, authority, power, etc.–to create not just a better feeling about oneself as a leader, but also greater insight and understanding of how people in the workplace operate.” – J.C., Renewals Executive Coaching Client
“I learned that I can define my own success and recognize my own achievements outside of my supervisor. Working on my CV and cover letter was very helpful since I see now that this had been a roadblock for me…Working on these documents helped me really see my accomplishments and made me realize that even if I am not recognized at my current workplace, I do have valuable skills and experience!”- M.G., Renewals Relaunch Client
This year, I’m offering my first pop-up Coaching service – while I’m in Minneapolis in April for the Association of College & Research Libraries, I’m offering mini-sessions in Minneapolis – brief coaching sessions for focused conversations on a variety of topics – from low-morale recovering and leading through dysfunction to self-preservation planning and career reimagining. I’m excited to offer support in this way as I continue my travels.
To help me expand areas of impactful inquiry in coaching, I earned another certificate from the National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine (NICABM):
- How to Work with Self-Narratives that Sustain Suffering (3.75 CEUs)
I’ve also been continuing my work with organizational administrative teams who want to signal cohesion and responsibility for welcoming organizations. If you’re a formal leader who wants to coalesce your executive/administrative team to mitigate and reduce low-morale experiences in your workplace, Renewals Roundtable may be for you.
I expanded my efforts to build community this year, too – I launched The Renewals Newsletter in April 2024 and released six issues, including my special report on Low-Morale Experiences & COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Subscribe to get future issues! In May 2024, I taught a session of my Library Juice Academy-hosted course, “Deconstructing the Low-Morale Experience in Academic Libraries.” In July 2024, I co-led the 2024 Minnesota Institute, persevering through the Global Travel Outage and pivoting within 48 hours to a hybrid instruction model to meet the needs of cohort members who made it on-site and those who couldn’t make it to the University of Minnesota campus (including the other faculty members and guest speakers- and me!). Additionally, I was honored to be participate and be in community with the Conference on Academic Library Management (CALM) Forum – a two-day event where a group of engaged colleagues reimagined LIS and leadership professional development through a people-centered lens.
I am continuously rejuvenated as I re-commit to my work in all of these areas and more! This year’s update, as always, is offered in honor/memory of my maternal grandmother, Lillian (Dennis) Delaney Edney (1925 – 2022), who filled my earliest memories and life with examples of love, compassion, and the pursuit of clarity and joy. Today is her 100th birthday.
Through my mission to inspire authentic collegiality, and to promote well-being, share the gifts of creativity, and cultivate empathetic, engaged leadership in the workplace, I will continue to improve. Please look forward to it.
All Best,
P.S. If you’d like to see our progress throughout the years, browse prior Anniversary updates!
