While the AMICAL 2026 Conference had to be postponed, we’ve moved online several of its sessions that had a timely focus on consortial development. We’re calling this new event the Online Spring Summit.

The Summit includes four sessions over three days primarily intended for AMICAL member group leaders. As explained below, however, one session is open to all AMICAL members.

Consortial programs from ideas to action: Program and grant design workshop

Open to all AMICAL members

April 2 | 14:00 Paris time (see local time) | 90 minutes

This workshop is focused on shaping concrete program ideas for AMICAL and pairing them with realistic grant and funding strategies in cases where this is needed. Participants should come with ideas for new initiatives, or for substantial developments for existing initiatives. The session will emphasize building momentum, laying the ground for continued work beyond the workshop.

The workshop will be facilitated by Barbara McFadden, originally invited as keynote speaker and workshop facilitator for AMICAL 2026. Barbara led large-scale inter-institutional collaborations for the Big Ten Universities and has consulted widely on collaboration in higher education.

To participate, complete at least the highlighted sections of the Idea Canvas worksheet and send it to contact@amicalnet.org by end of day April 1. We’ll reply with the Zoom link for the session.

Even a rough or preliminary idea is welcome — the more of the worksheet you complete, the more you’ll get out of the session.

Note: Submitting your worksheet is the only way to receive the Zoom link.

Get a copy of the Idea Canvas worksheet

(If you don’t have a Google account, you can download and complete it as a Word Document.)

Questions?

Reply to this email or reach us at contact@amicalnet.org

Dear colleagues,

In light of the evolving situation in Iran and the region, we have decided to postpone AMICAL 2026, which was scheduled for 31 March – 2 April at the American University of Sharjah. We want to ensure that all attendees feel safe at our events and, given the uncertainty, we do not feel we can proceed with the conference at this time.

We will follow up with additional information as we assess further the situation and how we may be able to reschedule the event.

Above all, we wish safety to all colleagues and their loved ones who may be affected directly by the situation.

–AMICAL 2026 Organizers & AMICAL Executive Committee

There’s still time to submit your proposal for AMICAL 2025 (May 19–28, 2025)!

The conference will bring staff and faculty across the consortium to address key challenges and opportunities in libraries, pedagogy, and academic technology at American international liberal arts institutions.

We’re particularly interested in proposals that address the following topics in ways relevant to AMICAL members:

• AI in teaching, learning, and institutional strategy
• Digital pedagogy and scholarship
• Leadership in academic support units
• Information and digital literacies
• Open education and resources
• Library services and technology

Key dates

• January 24: Draft proposals due for Interactive Sessions
• February 13: Final deadline for all proposals

Upcoming info sessions

Join us to learn about the available session formats and to get feedback on your proposal ideas:

• Info Session #3 – 21 January 2025, 11:00 Paris time (see local time)
• Info Session #4 – 4 February 2025, 11:00 Paris time (see local time)
• Info Session #5 – 10 February 2025, 11:00 Paris time (see local time)

Don’t miss this opportunity to share your work and collaborate with colleagues who understand your institutional context!

View the Call for Proposals →

Questions? Contact us at contact@amicalnet.org

Mark your calendars for AMICAL 2025, which will take place online May 19–28, 2025!

AMICAL’s annual conference aims to bring colleagues across the consortium to work on issues important to libraries, pedagogy and academic technology at American international liberal arts institutions.

The majority of the program will consist of sessions proposed by members. Whether you’re a faculty member, librarian, or technologist, you’ll find opportunities to share inspiring work, discuss common challenges, and develop practical solutions alongside colleagues who understand your context.

Call for Proposals

The call for proposals is now open through February 13.

We invite proposals that address the following topics in ways relevant to AMICAL members:

• Responses to & engagement with AI in teaching & learning
• Campus-level AI strategy & implementation
• Digital pedagogy & scholarship (incl. digital liberal arts, oral history, virtual exchange)
• Leadership in libraries, centers for learning & teaching, or academic technology
• Information & other literacies (AI, digital, data, media, etc.)
• Open education & OERs
• Library resources, services and technology
• Support for research & scholarship (incl. open access)
• Teaching writing & writing centers

View the Call for Proposals →

(Note that proposals using the “Interactive session” format must also submit a draft proposal by 24 January 2025.)

We’ll be holding a number of information sessions. Here are the registration links for the first two:

• Info Session #1 – 17 December 2024, 11:00 Paris time (see local time)
• Info Session #2 – 9 January 2025, 11:00 Paris time (see local time)

You can sign up to either of these sessions to learn about the available formats and how to submit a strong proposal. We will also answer any questions you may have and offer advice on any proposal ideas you wish to share for feedback.

Suggest a keynote speaker

As we craft the program, we’re also seeking suggestions for keynote speakers who can offer inspiration and insight to our group on high-level, future-facing topics.

Suggest a Keynote Speaker →

Our recent survey of AMICAL member interests highlighted the importance of learning and sharing on the topics above. Help us build a conference program that answers that need!

We’re excited to announce that AMICAL has partnered with SPARC to provide a limited number of complimentary registrations to attend virtually the Open Education Conference, a hybrid event taking place 8–10 October 2024.

The Open Education Conference is an annual convening for sharing and learning about open educational resources, open pedagogy, and open education initiatives. View the program to explore the diverse range of speakers, topics, and sessions. The majority of sessions are accessible to virtual attendees.

Apply for a registration waiver by Thursday 26 September

If you are interested in Open Education, and believe it would be valuable for your work to attend this event, you may request an AMICAL-facilitated registration waiver, which would allow you to register for the event at no cost to you. (The normal registration fee is $100.)

We ask that applicants review the program, commit to attending the conference, and to share their experience with other AMICAL members. AMICAL will organize that sharing and may include posting take-aways on AMICAL Connect, providing feedback on the event, or participating in future AMICAL discussions on Open Education.

Note that sessions generally fall between 9:00–18:30 US Eastern Daylight Time (15:00–00:30 Paris time). If you can’t attend the live sessions, you will be able to watch the pre-recorded presentations, and get post-event access to session recordings and materials shared by presenters.

Because of the limited number of registration waivers available, AMICAL can only issue a small number per institution. Priority will be given to applicants nominated by their AMICAL Representative as being likely to have substantial impact on OER and Open Educational Practices at their institution. You may therefore wish to reach out to your AMICAL Representative to let them know you’re applying. The remaining waivers will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis and distributed equally across institutions.

👉 Apply for an AMICAL registration waiver for Open Ed 2024

The deadline for applying is 11:59 PM Thursday, 26 September.

AMICAL will confirm if we can issue you a registration waiver by Monday, 30 September. Otherwise, we will send you instructions for self-funded registration.

If you have any questions, email us at contact@amicalnet.org.

AMICAL 2024 is a wrap – thank you to everyone who joined us during these two weeks!

Recordings & material from other presentations

Recordings from all AMICAL 2024 presentations are now available.

Access note: These recordings are limited to Conference registrants and colleagues from AMICAL institutions. Only the keynotes by Rainie Lee & Rebekkah Smith Aldrich are publicly available. So please share them appropriately.

All slides and other material provided by the presenters are being added to the online schedule (Sched) as we receive them.

Stay connected

The best way to stay informed of AMICAL’s events and activities, and connected with peers across the consortium, is to sign up for AMICAL Connect, the consortium’s online platform. Registration is open to all faculty and staff from AMICAL members institutions, and only takes a minute.

Colleagues from outside of AMICAL can register for our general mailing list.

We hope you have a wonderful and restful summer, and we’ll connect again in the fall!

Registration is now open for AMICAL 2024, and the full schedule has been posted!

The conference will run online 27–30 May and 3–6 June 2024, between 11:00 and 16:00 Paris time, and will offer insightful presentations by, and lively discussions with, AMICAL colleagues and invited experts.

All staff and faculty from AMICAL member institutions interested in libraries, pedagogy and academic technology are welcome to attend the conference. There is no registration fee — event costs will be covered by AMICAL and sponsorships.

The Conference will be especially relevant to:

• Librarians, especially instruction librarians and library directors
• Faculty developers and coordinators of centers for learning & teaching
• Faculty interested in innovative pedagogy and collaborations with librarians and/or technologists
• Instructional designers and academic technologists

Forward this announcement to any potentially interested colleagues at your institution!

Keynote speakers

• “At the heart of the whirlwind: The library’s role in supporting mental health and well-being” – Kelly E. Miller, Associate Dean for Learning and Research Services and Director of Mindfulness and Well-Being Programs at University of Miami Libraries(Thursday, May 30)
• “The coming AI epoch: A new age of enlightenment? A new threat to humanity?” – Lee Rainie, Director of Imagining the Digital Future Center at Elon University (Monday, June 3)
• “Our grandest challenge” – Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, Executive Director at Mid-Hudson Library System & Co-Founder and Board President of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative (Thursday, June 6)

Member presentations

AMICAL members will offer more than 25 presentations exploring the evolving landscape of education, particularly in the face of artificial intelligence.

Topics addressed will include ethical use of AI in classrooms, its impact on libraries and teaching methods, and strategies for faculty and student success in the digital age. There’s also a focus on collaboration, community and openness.

If you have any questions about the Conference, email us at contact@amicalnet.org

See you at the Conference!

The call for proposals is now open for AMICAL’s premier online event, which will take place online 27 May – 6 June 2024!

The Conference is designed to connect you with colleagues, inspire fresh thinking, and empower you to shape the future of learning at your institution. The program will feature thought leaders outside of AMICAL, along with presentations from peers across the consortium.

We invite proposals on all topics relevant to libraries, technology and/or pedagogy at AMICAL member institutions. Staff and faculty members from all AMICAL member institutions are welcome to submit proposals.

Don’t miss this chance to share your expertise and connect with the AMICAL community!

Deadline to submit: 7 April 2024

Let’s transform the learning landscape at AMICAL member institutions together!

AMICAL invites you to our third online Mid-Year Forum on 13–21 February 2024!

Led by AMICAL members or invited speakers, Forum sessions address timely issues in libraries, technology, and pedagogy.

This year’s sessions will focus on generative AI & pedagogy, Wikipedia editing assignments, course-integrated Digital Liberal Arts, and library leadership. Participants will come away with recommendations, project ideas and strategies to apply to their own work.

Sessions are open to faculty and staff from AMICAL member institutions, and there is no registration fee.

The Forum welcomes all members, but will be of particular relevance to:

• Instructors of any discipline
• Instruction librarians
• Library directors
• Faculty developers
• Instructional designers and technologists

View the schedule & register for sessions →

We’re proud to announce that we’ve partnered with SPARC again this year to offer a limited number of complimentary registrations allowing colleagues from AMICAL member institutions to attend the Open Education Conference, taking place online 7–9 November 2023, at no cost. AMICAL members can apply for the complimentary registrations as explained below.

The Open Education Conference (“OpenEd”) is an annual convening for sharing and learning about open educational resources, open pedagogy, and open education initiatives. This dynamic gathering celebrates the core values of open education that strive to realize education ecosystems that are accessible, affordable, equitable and inclusive to everyone, regardless of their background.

You can view the program for a full list of speakers, topics and sessions.

Note that sessions will run 10:00–19:00 US Eastern time. If you’re not able to attend the live sessions, registrants can

• watch the pre-recorded presentations
• get post-event access to session recordings and materials shared by presenters

Apply for a registration waiver by 26 October

If you are interested in Open Education, and believe it would be valuable for your work to attend the Open Education Conference, you may request an AMICAL-facilitated registration waiver, which would allow you to register for the event at no cost to you. (The normal registration fee is $100.)

We ask that applicants review the program and commit to both attending and sharing about your conference experience with other AMICAL members. That sharing will be organized by AMICAL and may include things like:

• Sharing on AMICAL Connect a particularly interesting or useful take-away from this event
• Responding to future requests from AMICAL for simple evaluative feedback on Open Ed 2023 and this waiver initiative
• Participating in a later event for discussing Open Education topics among AMICAL members

Because of the small number of registration waivers available, AMICAL can only issue a small number of waivers per institution, which we’ll prioritize as follows:

• We will give first priority to applicants who have been named by their AMICAL Representative as the ‘priority applicant’ for their institution, as most likely to have substantive impact on OER and Open Educational Practices at their institution. You may therefore wish to reach out to your AMICAL Representative to let them know you’re applying.
• After that, we’ll prioritize the remaining applications according to the order they were received, while distributing them evenly across interested institutions (1 per institution, then 2 per institution, etc.)

👉 Apply for an AMICAL registration waiver for Open Ed 2023

The deadline for applying is Thursday evening, 26 October.

AMICAL will confirm if we are able to issue you a registration waiver by Monday, 30 October. Otherwise we will send you instructions for registering at your own expense.

Image: The two project leads (second and third from left in front row) gathering feedback from other faculty developers at AMICAL 2023.

This is the fifth in a series of posts about outcomes of the Project Incubator at AMICAL 2023.

The Project Incubation program has provided us with a unique opportunity to address the challenges faced by Centers for Learning & Teaching (CLTs) across the AMICAL consortium and beyond. Our project aims to offer a replicable framework to support faculty developers in strategic planning, advocacy, and self-evolution of CLTs. In this blog post, we will reflect on our experiences in the Project Incubator program, outline our next steps, and extend an invitation for collaborative engagement with other CLTs.

Reflections on our team’s experience with the Project Incubator program

• Research on CLTs: Our participation in the Project Incubator program stemmed from the realization that CLTs have been operating without a comprehensive framework for development and assessment. The program provided us with the incentive to research existing literature, to understand the challenges and potential solutions, thus fostering a deeper appreciation of the importance of our project.
• Collaborative Learning and Exchange: The Project Incubator brought together two individuals with widely different CLT infrastructure/ resources and model of institutional governance to share their experiences, insights, and expertise. It enriched our learning allowing us to explore innovative approaches.
• Overcoming Challenges: Developing a replicable framework for CLTs comes with its own set of challenges. Through AMICAL’s facilitation of an in-person meeting, we were able to find solutions that have enabled us to refine our project.

Pre-Conference

• Framework Refinement: Building upon the comprehensive ACE-POD Center for Teaching and Learning Matrix, we reviewed and modified the framework to align it with the post-COVID new norms in teaching and learning. This adaptation ensures that our model remains relevant and effective in the changed educational landscape.
• CLT Self-Study and Alignment: We conducted a self-study of our respective CLTs using the modified framework. This assessment helped us gauge the current status, level of development, and alignment of our centers in terms of organizational structure, resource allocation, infrastructure, and programs/services. It provided a baseline for future planning.
• Institutional Engagement: To garner institutional commitment and support, we then engaged with academic leadership to understand their expectations regarding the role of CLTs. Our self-evaluation of CLTs was consolidated with the feedback from the leadership, thereby ensuring that our assessment of our centers and areas for improvement as flagged, were aligned with the institutional strategic policies. This also helped us identify areas where intentional commitment of the institution is required

Next steps for our project

As we move forward from the Project Incubator program, we have outlined the following next steps for our project:

• Collaboration and Action Planning: Working in partnership with another CLT, helped us develop collaborative action plans for effective and efficient functioning. This pilot collaboration will serve as a model for wider collaboration among all CLTs within the AMICAL consortium. The feedback and insights gathered during the conference will inform our action plan.
• Invitation for engagement to other CLTs across AMICAL: We intend to invite all heads of CLTs interested to join this collective effort to
  • Review their units: As we provide a modified ACE-POD matrix for CLTs, we encourage CLT directors to review their centers based on this framework. The guidelines and model will help universities assess and develop realistic plans for program and infrastructural development
  • Enlist Institutional Leadership Support: The self-assessment and the resultant evidence based action plan will hopefully garner support from institutional leadership and secure the necessary backing for their growth
  • Resource Sharing and Collaboration: We hope to develop a platform for sharing professional development (PD) resources among CLTs. All will contribute and access these shared resources, facilitating the growth and development of faculty developers across the AMICAL consortium and beyond
  • Propose a book on CLTs across AMICAL institutions- an edited version to highlight the multiple variations of establishing, developing and growing CLT

Our participation in the Project Incubator program has been transformative, providing us with the tools, knowledge, and collaborative network to drive change in CLTs. As we move forward, we remain committed to refining our framework, engaging with academic leadership, and fostering collaboration among CLTs. We hope others will join us in this journey of self discovery, of empowering Centers for Learning & Teaching, enhancing faculty development, and ultimately improving student learning experiences. Together, we can create a lasting impact on higher education institutions worldwide.

AMICAL is currently seeking candidates from within the consortium for three open Coordinating Committee Officer positions for the 2023–2025 term.

The elected Officers will participate in all aspects of the Coordinating Committee’s work.

The Coordinating Committee’s work & composition

The Coordinating Committee as a whole works closely with AMICAL staff to:

• develop, steer and evaluate consortial programs and initiatives, ensuring progress toward objectives that align with the consortium’s mission, vision, values and strategic goals.
• identify and pursue funding sources to develop new grant-funded goals and programs.
• provide operational and financial oversight by approving policies and directions for the consortium’s activities.
• represent the variety of member interests, both in terms of institutions, and in the professional roles and interest areas that characterize our programs.

The Coordinating Committee is composed of:

• five voting Officers, four of which are elected and the other being the Consortium Director.
• a number of non-voting advisory members: the chairs of the Standing Committees and conveners of the Interest Groups.

The current Vice-Chair will take over the Chair position in order to ensure continuity, as described in the Operational Guidelines that regulate the election process.

So three of the four elected Officer positions are currently open.

Desired characteristics for Officers

We are looking for candidates who can evaluate issues from a consortial perspective and represent interests beyond their institution and professional role.

We especially encourage candidates who:

• are in a professional role addressed by AMICAL’s programs: librarians, faculty developers, faculty, instructional designers/technologists
• have experience that cuts across the above professional roles (e.g. through direct experience working in other roles, collaboration with colleagues in other roles, etc.)
• have experience in fundraising and/or strategic planning
• have been actively involved in AMICAL events and programs over several years

Expected time commitments for Officers

Officers form the core of AMICAL’s Coordinating Committee, and their active and reliable participation is crucial for decision-making and program execution.

Officers should be willing to spend an average of at least 2-4 hours per month on committee work, including online meetings, grant application reviews, and asynchronous discussions.

We appreciate that officers volunteer their time for the benefit of the consortium, and respect the need to prioritize local work responsibilities. We understand that some officers may need to modulate their AMICAL work, offering less of their time in some months and more in others.

How can I nominate myself or someone else?

Any staff or faculty member from a FULL Member institution can be nominated. (Institutional status is noted in this list of member institutions.)

If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else, you must ask an AMICAL representative from any institution (not necessarily your own) to submit the nomination. Representatives have already received instructions about this.

Before nominating someone else, be sure to confirm with them that they are willing to stand as a candidate.

The last day for representatives to submit nominations is 21 September.

The elections will then take place between 25 September and 12 October. Results will be announced, and new terms will begin, in mid/late October.

What candidates need to do

Candidates should, in parallel with their nomination being submitted and also by 21 September:

• update their AMICAL profile
• send to contact@amicalnet.org a statement of 150 words or less, which will be shared with all AMICAL members, addressing:
  • why you are qualified to provide this form of leadership for AMICAL — in particular, how you fulfill the “desired characteristics” described above
  • how you would contribute to the “Coordinating Committee’s work” described above

Questions?

If you have any questions about nominations or the election, you can reach out to us at contact@amicalnet.org.

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The AMICAL 2023 Elections Committee:

• Ekaterina Kombarova (AMICAL Coordinating Committee Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, American University of Central Asia)
• Maha Bali (AMICAL Coordinating Committee Chair, American University in Cairo)
• Jeff Gima (AMICAL Consortium Director, American University of Paris)
• Alex Armstrong (Program & Technology Officer, AMICAL Consortium)

This is the fourth in a series of posts about outcomes of the Project Incubator at AMICAL 2023

The IFLA-AMICAL book project team, comprised of Meredith Saba (American University in Cairo), Michael Stoepel (American University of Paris), and Christine Furno (American University of Sharjah), has slowly developed this project throughout the past year. Initially started as a project of AMICAL’s Information Literacy Initiatives Committee, we co-presented a panel and poster session at last summer’s IFLA conference in Dublin, Ireland in July 2022. At the same conference, we attended a presentation that promoted publishing opportunities with IFLA. Meredith followed up with the IFLA series editor, Janine Schmidt, to discuss a potential book project idea that would showcase authorship across AMICAL and IFLA through the lens of public and research-support services.

In early May 2023, we received positive news that the book project proposal was approved by the IFLA Professional Council and DeGruyter Book Series editor and corresponding track, Reference and Information Services Section (RISS).

About the book: Changing information services and user experiences

This book publication will focus on changing information and research support services across international academic libraries in the post-pandemic era. The scope of the book will focus on 4 main areas addressing the following themes:

• The user experience
• Tracking user journeys
• Marketing and outreach efforts
• User-centered learning and research support services

We are accepting submissions from both IFLA and AMICAL members.

AMICAL Conference 2023: Project Incubator and Feedback session

Turning towards the recent AMICAL conference, the Collaboration Sprint was an invaluable experience for us to launch the project management initiatives. During this time, we accomplished several key targets:

• finalized call for chapters,
• established a project timeline for proposal submissions, first and final draft due dates, and a publication deadline,
• created the book project website that outlines the call for chapters, submission guidelines, form, and deadlines, about the project and editors,
• created the email amical.ifla.book@gmail.com, and
• designed a rubric for accepting/declining submissions

This site has already been successfully used as a promotional tool to solicit chapter submissions across the IFLA and AMICAL communities.

Our interaction with AMICAL participants during the “Feedback Session” was another beneficial exercise in garnering interest and receiving feedback from colleagues. We had the opportunity to discuss the book project with a variety of members with whom we could pitch and promote our project, demo the book project website, and receive constructive feedback. Upon reflection, we reviewed the project timeline and adjusted deadlines to better accommodate the schedules of our potential authors.

At present

The call for chapters has launched!

• We are currently accepting chapter proposals until Tuesday, August 15, 2023.
• Further details including the submission form are available here: Call for Chapters
• 2 of 3 Q & A Zoom sessions have been completed with 1 more scheduled for:
  • Thursday June 29, 5:00 p.m. Paris time (see local time)
  • Request the Zoom link for this Q&A session by emailing amical.ifla.book@gmail.com.

Next steps

• We will host 1 more Q & A Zoom session on June 29, 2023.
• The rubric for proposal acceptance/decline will be added to the website once it is finalized.
• Review of submissions will begin soon after August 15, 2023.
• Consult on the process with the new IFLA Editor, Joseph Hafner, McGill University, who will be taking over from Janine Schmidt later this year.

We look forward to hearing from our AMICAL community regarding your potential contribution. Please contact us at amical.ifla.book@gmail.com,

The team for the IFLA-AMICAL edited book project

Colleagues currently working on the IFLA-AMICAL Book Project: Changing Information Services and User Experiences:

• Meredith Saba, Instruction and Reference Librarian (AUC), meredith.saba@aucegypt.edu
• Michael Stoepel, User Services Librarian (AUP), mstoepel@aup.edu
• Christine Furno, Engagement and Outreach Librarian (AUS), cfurno@aus.edu

This is the third in a series of posts about outcomes of the Project Incubator at AMICAL 2023

The rising costs of traditional textbooks and issues of affordability by students are a primary concern for the library, faculty, and students. Open Educational Resources (OERs) remove restrictions around copying resources & reduce the cost of accessing educational materials. It was the need of the hour to introduce OERs into our academic teaching culture. Our project incubator idea was a product of both international (American University of Beirut) and national inter-institute (Library x Center for Learning and Teaching x Faculty member) collaboration.

As a part of the project incubator team, we had a fruitful learning experience, especially during the Collaboration Sprint session. It provided us an opportunity to

• collaborate and have one to one discussion with another international university (Dalal Rahme of American University of Beirut)
• have a deeper understanding of the concept of OERs
• discuss the issues and challenges in-person
• get feedback on our work
• discuss solutions and insights on how to tackle future problems when implementing the project at our institute

Most importantly, AMICAL has given us the opportunity to interact with experts from all around the globe, for an extended period of time during the conference, especially in the Feedback session. Our team got a chance to reflect and their perspectives are mentioned below:

Library’s perspective

Project Incubator was an opportunity to gain knowledge on:

• adopting, adopting and modifying OERs,
• licensing (Creative Commons),
• locating & searching various OER platforms,
• generating LibGuides etc.

CLT’s (Center for Learning and Teaching) perspective

CLT got an opportunity to learn about

• different kinds of tangible (monetary incentives, grant opportunities) and intangible (teacher’s award, certificates) incentives and
• ways like workshops and information sessions to motivate their faculty in adopting OERs in their courses

Faculty member’s perspective

• Incorporating OER into my Writing and Communication course would encourage collaboration and creativity not just for me but for my students too. For instance, I would encourage my students to find and evaluate OER resources relevant to our topics, fostering their critical thinking and research skills.
• Another important reflection point added to my perspective was to not alter the entire course at once but to make alterations step by step.

Moving forward…

• Faculty member who attended the AMICAL Conference, Adeel Khalid, will incorporate OERs to his Writing and Communication course as a pilot
• Library has started searching for OERs in the forms of books, classroom activities, reading, writing, listening and speaking comprehension, and grammar. They plan to develop discipline-wise OER guides for the faculty
• Library will develop OERs training modules for the faculty
• CLT, in collaboration with the Library, will roll out training and workshops for faculty’s professional development to raise awareness on the usage of OERs
• CLT and Library will look for funding opportunities for Library’s capacity building on developing OERs and for faculty’s professional development

Let’s engage!

Feel free to connect with us at farrukhshahzad@fccollege.edu.pk if you or your university are interested in:

• introducing OERs on your campus and need our support in navigating your way, based on our collaborative experience
• helping us through the process and have the expertise in adapting, adopting, or creating OERs

Adoption of Open Educational Resources at FCCU Team

1. Adeel Khalid, Lecturer in Dept of English (Forman Christian College)
2. Anish Arif, Education Developer & Coordinator at the Center for Learning and Teaching (Forman Christian College)
3. Dalal Rahme, Data Services Librarian (American University of Beirut)
4. Madiha Asghar, Circulation & Reader Services Librarian (Forman Christian College)
5. Mehreen Tahir, Information Commons Librarian (Forman Christian College)

Jeff Gima (AMICAL Director) and Maha Bali (AMICAL Coordinating Committee Chair) present the award to Asma Al-Kanan (connecting remotely) at AMICAL 2023.

AMICAL is a 30-institution consortium with a paid staff of about 2 FTEs. Like any good membership based organization, we rely on members to contribute and often lead in the organization of our consortial programs, initiatives and events.

In spite of the broadly shared good will and volunteer efforts that all colleagues who participate actively in AMICAL make at various moments, it’s important to recognize when a member has offered their time and efforts in exceptional ways, and consistently over many years, for the benefit of other consortium members broadly.

AMICAL’s Coordinating Committee officers therefore agreed that this year’s Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service by an AMICAL Colleague should go to Asma Al-Kanan, University Librarian at the American University of Kuwait. In selecting Asma for this award, the officers cited the exceptional and sustained volunteer efforts she has made in support of consortial goals, in particular her:

• Steady, thoughtful stewardship of AMICAL’s Leadership & Assessment Committee since 2018, organizing regular events and initiatives with other library leaders across the consortium
• Continuous work since 2018 on developing and implementing AMICAL’s Library Benchmarking Survey, based on the ACRL Academic Library Trends and Statistics Survey but customized for AMICAL members
• Generous, effective and exceptionally patient collaboration and leadership in hosting and co-organizing the AMICAL 2020 Conference at the American University of Kuwait

Asma was unable to attend the AMICAL 2023 Conference in person, so we had to present the award to her virtually (see the photo leading this blog post). She shared with us these comments in reaction to the award, however:

“I’m greatly pleased to be selected for this award! It is truly an honor. AMICAL has offered opportunities and support to libraries and educational projects throughout the years such as professional development, annual conferences, access to resources, collaborative projects and a network of professional community. I’m grateful for all that and it keeps me encouraged to give back to this wonderful community. Being part of AMICAL has been so rewarding, as well as voluntary work and service.”

Asma’s work with our Leadership & Assessment Committee, with its consortial initiatives supporting library directors across the consortium, continues actively. We deeply appreciate the work she has done, and continues to do, in helping colleagues to enrich and make use of the shared resource our consortium represents.

On behalf of AMICAL’s Coordinating Committee Officers
Maha Bali, Chair (Associate Professor of Practice, American University in Cairo)
Ola El Zein (Head of Medical Library, American University of Beirut)
Ekaterina Kombarova (Deputy Director, Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology, American University of Central Asia)
Clélie Riat (Director of Library Services, Franklin University Switzerland)
Jeff Gima (AMICAL Consortium Director, American University of Paris)

Previous recipients of the Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service by an AMICAL Colleague have included:
• Maha Bali (American University in Cairo)
• Elisabetta Morani (John Cabot University)

Image: Teaching resources posted on AMICAL’s EcoJustice OER demo site

This is the second in a series of posts about outcomes of the Project Incubator at AMICAL 2023

Environmental justice, and environmental sustainability more generally, have become urgent priorities for this generation of students and global citizens. But these are also topics whose interdisciplinarity and specific relevance for different global populations make them perfect challenges for the international liberal arts learning environments of AMICAL member institutions.

AMICAL’s EcoJustice OER Initiative has been working on ways to help educators at our institutions to share, as Open Educational Resources, materials that can support teaching and learning in these areas. Inspired by Antonio Lopez’s ecomedialiteracy.org (“Ecomedia Literacy Resources for Teaching and Research”), EcoJustice OER aims to gather a broader range of educational and extra-curricular resources, from assignments to syllabi to ideas for campus-level initiatives, that relate in any way to environmental justice, or to environmental sustainability more broadly. EcoJustice OER’s cross-consortium faculty-staff team has been working together since our participation in the 2022 Triangle Scholarly Communication Institute, where we laid the groundwork for a project to curate pedagogical resources related to ecojustice and sustainability. Since then, we’ve been working on the editorial and technical frameworks and on outreach to potential project contributors.

EcoJustice OER at the AMICAL 2023 Project Incubator

Most recently, our participation in the Project Incubator at the AMICAL 2023 Conference helped us prepare to launch the project formally. During the first stage of the Project Incubator, a day-long “Collaboration Sprint”, we were able to

• clarify our initial models for organizing and hosting content:
  • website for project presentation and hosting a collection of resource description pages
  • granular resources (syllabi, assignment models, etc.) hosted elsewhere (Google Docs, slide sharing platforms, contributor’s repository, etc.) but linked from our resource description pages
• make decisions about adapting our resource collection’s metadata schema for our intended contributors and users – in particular, using relatively broad disciplinary categories like those used in OER Commons
• develop resource submission forms, according to the above decisions and adapted for different categories of resource (teaching/learning resource, syllabus, extra-curricular initiative, useful link)
• develop initial resource description pages for the small collection of resources we’d already gathered
• build out a demo website on WordPress.org for presenting the project and an initial curated collection of resources (see screenshot above)

During the second stage of the Project Incubator, a “Feedback Session” integrated into the conference’s Community Idea Exchange (poster) session, we had a chance to demo the website and submission form for interested colleagues. The exchange with colleagues produced valuable observations that we’ll be implementing – notably:

• We need to better communicate the opportunity represented by the website: colleagues can contribute towards environmental justice by enabling others’ teaching and work in this area
• We found several AMICAL colleagues with ecojustice-related teaching materials already developed, or in the works, whom we’ll be reaching out to as potential contributors!

What’s next?

Summer is never an easy time for moving collaborative projects forward, but we’re hoping to do the following between now and Fall 2023:

• Rebuild the project’s website on AMICAL’s own web hosting platform
• Review long-term considerations for format and metadata decisions (e.g. anticipated linkages or portability of content to major repositories like OER Commons)
• Finalize our resource submission forms
• Reach out to targeted individuals for initial submissions during a pilot phase
• Revise and launch website, promoting consortium-wide submissions and use of the collection
• Seek funding to support development of the curated collection (editorial processes, content development, site development and maintenance, etc.) as well as professional development (training in using, creating and adapting OER)

Help us reach potential contributors at AMICAL institutions

In the meantime, we would appreciate hearing about any faculty or staff at AMICAL member institutions who might be interested in using or contributing to this collection of resources. Get in touch, or send us suggested contacts from your institution, by writing to contact@amicalnet.org.

The EcoJustice OER team

Colleagues currently working on the EcoJustice OER Initiative include:

• Alex Armstrong, Program & Technology Officer (AMICAL Consortium)
• Antonio Lopez, Chair & Associate Professor of Communications and Media Studies (John Cabot University)
• Elena Berg, Associate Professor of Environmental Science (American University of Paris)
• Jeff Gima, AMICAL Consortium Director (American University of Paris)
• Nadine Aboulmagd, Senior Instructional Designer at The Center for Learning and Teaching (American University in Cairo)

One of the goals of AMICAL’s current grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is the development of “Community and Infrastructure for Collaboration”. We’ve been pursuing this through a broad range of efforts supporting connections across consortium membership – connections between institutions and connections across campus roles in libraries, technology and teaching. This post marks the first of a series focused on just one of those initiatives: the AMICAL 2023 Project Incubator.

Goals

Drawing inspiration from the Triangle Scholarly Communication Institute, in which a group of AMICAL members participated last year, we created a similar opportunity specifically for AMICAL members to work face-to-face on collaborative projects. Members were invited to apply for the AMICAL 2023 Project Incubator program with cross-institutional teams working on projects related to libraries, technology and/or pedagogy. The AMICAL Conference is one of the rare opportunities for our members to meet in person, so we integrated the Project Incubator into the larger program of AMICAL 2023, allowing the teams to:

• have an extended period of focused time for working in-person as teams
• get feedback on their projects from over a hundred peers from AMICAL’s 30 member institutions present at the conference

Structure

Following our pre-conference encouragement for teams to work on initial project development, we organized at the conference two sessions for the teams:

• Collaboration sprint: 6 hours of focused time on the pre-conference day, for each team to work on their own project. Most of this time was unstructured, and each team was allowed to organize the time in the way they found most useful. Plenary opening and debriefing sessions allowed us to build a sense of shared experience and collaborative spirit.
• Feedback session: teams presented informally their projects and solicited feedback from interested conference attendees as part of a larger, 75-minute Community Idea Exchange session (similar to a poster session)

Details about our organization of this program can be found on the AMICAL 2023 Project Incubator page.

Project teams

Here are the project teams that were accepted for the AMICAL 2023 Project Incubator:

• IFLA-AMICAL Book Project (“Changing Information Services and User Experiences”)
  • Meredith Saba, Instruction and Reference Librarian (American University in Cairo)
  • Michael Stoepel, User Services Librarian (American University of Paris)
  • Christine Furno, Engagement and Outreach Librarian (American University of Sharjah)
• Rethinking CLTs (strategizing CLT development across AMICAL institutions)
  • Angie Popova, Director of the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology (American University of Central Asia)
  • Rukhsana Zia, Head of the Center for Learning and Teaching (Forman Christian College)
• Adoption of Open Educational Resources (OERs) at FCCU (collaboration with AUB)
  • Mehreen Tahir, Liaison/OER Librarian for Sciences & Humanities (Forman Christian College)
  • Madiha Asghar, Liaison/ OER Librarian for Social Sciences & Humanities (Forman Christian College)
  • Anish Arif, Faculty Development Coordinator, Center for Learning and Teaching (Forman Christian College)
  • Adeel Khalid, Lecturer (Forman Christian College)
  • Dalal Rahme, Data Services Librarian (American University of Beirut)
• EcoJustice OER initiative (curating pedagogical resources that support environmental justice)
  • Elena Berg, Associate Professor of Environmental Science (American University of Paris)
  • Nadine Aboulmagd, Senior Instructional Designer at The Center for Learning and Teaching (American University in Cairo)
  • Alex Armstrong, Program & Technology Officer (AMICAL Consortium)
  • Jeff Gima, AMICAL Consortium Director (American University of Paris)

Watch for other posts in the coming weeks with updates from the Project Incubator teams!

The recordings for AMICAL 2023 are now available on YouTube!

The conference, which took place from May 24-26, 2023 at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco, brought together staff and faculty from the consortium’s 30 international liberal arts institutions to share their challenges, solutions, and inspiration for improving libraries, technology, and pedagogy.

Due to the highly interactive nature of most sessions, we were only able to record the plenary sessions (the opening session and the two keynotes).

Opening session

Remarks by:

• Paul Love, Library Director, Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane
• Christopher Taylor, Vice President For Academic Affairs, Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane
• Jeff Gima, AMICAL Consortium Director, AMICAL Consortium / American University of Paris

Sharing knowledge, transforming higher ed

Cathy Davidson, Senior Advisor on Transformation to the Chancellor and Distinguished Professor of English, Digital Humanities, and Data Analysis and Visualization at the Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY)

The academic library and the relational turn

Lorcan Dempsey, International independent librarian, writer, adviser (formerly OCLC’s Vice President for Research and Membership, and Chief Strategist)

Highlights reel

As a little bonus, we are also sharing the highlights reel that was played during the closing session:

This year’s final deadline for our Small Grants program is coming up on the 3rd of April 2023. It is earlier than usual due to the conclusion of our grant funding on 31 July 2023.

This program funds training, staff exchanges and projects that support AMICAL’s mission in the priority areas of library or technology leadership, information or digital literacies, and digital liberal arts.

Program guidelines and how to apply are available on our website.

Note that applications for grants of €500 or less (“micro-grants”) are reviewed on a rolling basis outside of the normal application cycles. These will continue to be reviewed through June 2023 (as long as the conclusion of the grant-funded activity is completed by 31 July).

To help you submit successful applications, AMICAL staff will be available to discuss your application at an informal, half-hour Q&A session.

If this day or time is not workable for you, we can schedule additional dates, or setup individual meetings.

Recent successful grants

In previous cycles of this academic year, the Small Grant Review committee received and reviewed 7 applications, all of which were awarded either full or partial funding:

Title	Applicant	Institution	Category
AUSACE 2022: Journalism In A Time Of Fake News	Kim Fox	American University in Cairo	Professional development
AUP-St Louis University MFA Brainstorming Session	Biswamit Dwibedy	American University of Paris	Staff exchange & peer training
MENAWCA 2023 Biennial Conference - Writing Centers: Multidisciplinary and Multimodal Spaces for Engagement	Maya Akiki	Lebanese American University	Professional development
Digital Humanities Summer Institute (DHSI)	Hicham Zahnan	American University of Beirut	Professional development
Level 1 “Systematic Review Services Specialization” SRSS April 12&19	Joyce Draiby	Lebanese American University	Professional development
The MELCom International 44th annual conference	Roula Sfeir	Lebanese American University	Professional development
Presentation at the 43rd Annual IATUL Conference - March 2023	Meredith Saba	American University in Cairo	Professional development

Responses have already been sent out to all the applicants.

We’re excited to announce that registration is now open for AMICAL 2023, the consortium’s 20th annual conference! The deadline is March 2.

We have updated the conference website to include information about registration, financial support, accommodation, visa information, and the venue, as well as a tentative schedule.

To help orient you, we have summarized the most important content from those pages in this email:

🎯 Program overview

Each year the AMICAL Conference brings together staff and faculty from the consortium’s 30 international liberal arts institutions. AMICAL members and invited experts will share their challenges, solutions and visions for the future of libraries, technology and pedagogy in our uniquely international and intercultural environments.

Three invited guests will inspire and guide us:

• Keynote: “Sharing knowledge, transforming higher ed”
  • Cathy N. Davidson
  • Senior Advisor on Transformation to the Chancellor and Distinguished Professor of English, Digital Humanities, and Data Analysis and Visualization at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY)
• Keynote: “The academic library and the relational turn”
  • Lorcan Dempsey
  • International independent librarian, writer, adviser and formerly Chief Strategist at OCLC
• Workshops: “Institutionalizing the digital liberal arts” and “Managing the end(?) of digital projects”
  • Jeffrey W. McClurken
  • Professor of History & American Studies, Chief of Staff and Clerk of the Board of Visitors at the University of Mary Washington

Member-contributed sessions will include dynamic presentations, interactive sessions and workshops that address topics such as:

• The future of Libraries and Centers of Learning and Teaching
• AI in higher education
• Collaborations across units (libraries, writing centers, CLTs)
• Cross-institutional projects
• Information and digital literacies
• Innovative pedagogy and student engagement
• Digital tools and methods in teaching and research
• Academic integrity
• Open education and open educational resources (OERs)

The event is divided into three distinct components:

• Pre-conference day (24 May) – 4 parallel tracks for specific roles and accepted workshop applicants
  • Track 1: for library directors and AMICAL representatives
  • Track 2: for coordinators of faculty development and/or CLTs
  • Track 3: for colleagues who have been working on digital liberal arts projects
  • Track 4: for Project Incubator teams
• Main conference program (25–26 May) – open to all attendees
  • Keynotes
  • Community Idea Exchange presentations
  • Workshops
  • Interactive sessions
  • All-conference dinner & social events
• Sightseeing tour (27 May) – option for any attendees wishing to see more of Morocco

The tentative schedule of sessions will give you an idea of topics that will be addressed and some of the colleagues you’ll be able to interact with at this year’s conference. (We will be updating this page to include the full abstracts soon!)

👩‍🏫 Who should attend

This year’s conference will give particular focus to colleagues who see themselves as change agents, intending to have a broad impact on their institution or the consortium in the areas of libraries, academic technology and pedagogy. These colleagues may include:

• library directors
• faculty development coordinators
• writing center coordinators
• instruction librarians
• faculty
• instructional technologists and designers
• coordinators of First Year Experience programs
• IT directors
• academic leadership
• leaders of AMICAL committees, projects, and initiatives

The program will be of special interest to colleagues interested in collaborating with their peers across AMICAL, or who can inform that collaborative work in some way.

If you’re not an AMICAL member, note that a limited number of guest attendees can be accommodated, by invitation. Contact us before registering, indicating how AMICAL and its mission relate to you and your institution.

🧑🏽‍💻 Apply for the pre-conference workshop on digital projects

As part of the pre-conference “Digital liberal arts track”, we are offering a workshop entitled “Digital methods and tools across disciplines: Sharing, connecting and collaborating”, led by Najla Jarkas, AMICAL’s Digital Liberal Arts Mellon Fellow..

During this workshop attendees will have the opportunity to share their experiences of integrating digital methods and applications in their teaching and scholarship, and find opportunities to network and collaborate in developing their work with AMICAL members in the field. The workshop is designed for AMICAL members who have integrated digital methods and tools in their teaching, or supported colleagues who have done so. It is not a training event to learn about digital tools.

Find out more details and apply →

(Deadline to apply: Thursday 23 Feb 2023)

👍 Register for AMICAL 2023

A warning about “travel agency” scams
We have had reports of “travel agencies” contacting expected conference attendees, offering to help book their travel. These are not affiliated with either AMICAL or Al Akhawayn University and seem to be some form of scam or phishing attempt. For any information related to the conference, always refer to our website, which will be kept up-to-date, and email contact@amicalnet.org if you’re in doubt about anything you are sent.

Some important guidelines:

• Make sure to check if you need a visa and what the process of acquiring one is for your nationality. Most participants will not require one, but those who do should get started right away on the process.
• The Financial support page explains the support being offered at various levels to help enable conference attendance for AMICAL members.
• Due to limited space, registration will use a priority system.
  • Those with the following roles, whose presence is needed for the conference program, have registration slots reserved for them:
    • Program Committee members
    • Speakers in the conference program
    • Project Incubator team members
    • Participants in AMICAL’s 2022-2023 Digital Liberal Arts Cohort programs (Digital Collaborations or Digital Oral History)
    • AMICAL Coordinating Committee officers
    • AMICAL Representatives
    • Library directors
  • Additional attendees will be accepted by order of registration, giving priority to directors/coordinators of areas targeted by the event:
    • Faculty development / centers for learning & teaching
    • Writing centers/programs
    • Information literacy (library instruction) programs
    • First-Year Experience programs
    • Academic technology
    • Instructional design

Register for AMICAL 2023

For more information about the conference, you may also visit the AMICAL 2023 website, which includes extensive information about the program and attending the event.