2025 Minitex Technical Services Symposium

The Minitex Technical Services Symposium will be held in person on Monday, November 3, 2025 at the Minnesota History Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. 

Registration closed at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 24th.

Program

The 2025 theme is Navigating Uncharted Waters in Technical Services. 

As a cataloging community we navigate some known, but still many unknown waters. Does the rising tide of RDA, BIBFRAME, AI, and other emerging standards and practices really lift all cataloging boats? Who has a boat? How do we know what stars to follow that will lead us to our destinations safely? What rocks might we crash into on our journey, and where are the safe harbors? How do we advocate for the supplies and provisions we need? What new and exciting islands might we discover?

Whether you’ve felt adrift in a sea of constant change, overwhelmed by the rising swell of more responsibilities, or just want to drop anchor and connect with colleagues, this day is for you. Come aboard!

Registration

The registration fee for the Minitex Technical Services Symposium is $45.00 and includes a light breakfast, lunch, and parking. Note: There is a student discount (50% off) for students studying Library and Information Science. Contact Sara Ring for more information.

Note: Register by Wednesday, Oct. 22nd to be able to select your own custom box lunch option. If you register after Oct. 22nd, you will still have a box lunch ordered for you, but there will be more limited options to choose from on the day of the event. 

Schedule

Please note: The full program can be viewed at the bottom of this webpage.

8:30   -  Registration
9:15   -  Welcome 
9:20   -  Plenary Session #1: Uncharted Waters: Exploring AI, Ethics, and Guiding Principles for Libraries
11:15 -  Breakout sessions
12:00 -  Lunch
1:00   -  Breakout sessions
2:00   -  Plenary Session #2: Steering Through Change: Perspectives on the State of Cataloging in Minnesota Libraries
3:30   -  End

Plenary Sessions

Opening Plenary 

Uncharted Waters: Exploring AI, Ethics, and Guiding Principles for Libraries
Panelists will share their perspectives on artificial intelligence (AI) and how they are approaching it in their work. Topics and initiatives explored will include AI’s implications for technical services, the Responsible AI in Libraries and Archives project and its new toolkit to support ethical decision-making for AI projects, and the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) Task Group on AI and Machine Learning for Cataloging and Metadata, including its guiding principles and recent work.

• Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Cataloging Policies and Practices Librarian, University of Minnesota Libraries
• Hannah Scates Kettler, Associate University Librarian, Iowa State University
• Mike Olson, Assistant Professor and Cataloging Librarian, University of Wisconsin - La Crosse

Closing Plenary 

Steering Through Change: Perspectives on the State of Cataloging in Minnesota Libraries
Join your colleagues from across Minnesota’s libraries for an engaging Q&A conversation about the shifting tides of metadata work. Panelists representing different library types will reflect on challenges in their work - shrinking staff and/or resources, evolving standards, maintaining bibliographic control through platform changes - and share how they’re adapting to continue to meet user needs. We’ll explore our frustrations and opportunities for addressing our challenges together.

Presenters:

• Bobby Bothmann, Cataloging & Metadata Librarian, Minnesota State University, Mankato
• Lizzy Baus, Metadata Librarian, Macalester College
• Patrick Harrington, Cataloging & Metadata Manager, Hennepin County Library
• Elizabeth Tuckwood, Technical Services Librarian, Minnesota State Law Library
• Karla Sonnenberg, Information & Instructional Technology Specialist, Eastview High School

Questions

If you have questions, contact planning committee Chair Sara Ring at ring0089@umn.edu. 

Code of Conduct

All attendees are asked to abide by the Technical Services Symposium Code of Conduct, to create an inclusive and respectful experience for all.

About the Symposium

The Minitex Technical Services Symposium is a conference for technical services practitioners and related staff. Conference attendees will learn from peers and leaders in the field, build and maintain connections with others, and enhance the technical services work done in libraries. A planning committee representative of all types of libraries selects the Symposium theme that explores a topic or issue of interest to the community. Past themes have included linked data; diversity, equity, and inclusion in technical services; and activism and ethics in technical services. The conference takes place every odd year.

Planning Committee

• Lizzy Baus
  Macalester College
• Bobby Bothmann
  Minnesota State University, Mankato
• Kate Clayborne
  Hennepin County Library
• Cathy Coats
  University of Minnesota Libraries
• Christie Kess
  Dakota County Library
• Emily Kittelson
  Rochester Public Library
• Dani Kroon
  MnPALS
• Sara Ring (Chair)
  Minitex