Welcome to the SEAALL 2025 Institute: Training Future Ready Librarians (341).

The SEAALL Institute is made possible by a grant from the AALL/Bloomberg Law Continuing Education Grants Program.

• V(AI)LL in Action: Designing a Workshop Series for Academic Librarians (341)
• • Description: Teaching legal technology can feel daunting, especially if you’re not coming from a tech-heavy background. We’ll discuss how we leveraged our expertise as researchers and educators to design engaging, effective courses that demystify technology for students. Participants will see real-world examples of our course structure, assignments, and teaching strategies, as well as the resources we relied on to develop our own knowledge along the way. You’ll walk away with actionable ideas, confidence, and the tools to create or enhance legal tech instruction at your own institution.
  • Speakers: Emily Pavuluri, Law Librarian for Research Services and Lecturer in Law, Vanderbilt Law and Kyle Turner, Librarian for Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives and Lecturer in Law, Vanderbilt Law

 Institute Session 2

• The Lightbulb Moment: Teaching Law Students about AI (341)
• • Description: In this session, Jason will explore the process of creating and teaching a law school course on "Law & Artificial Intelligence." This course aims to equip future legal professionals with the skills to navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of AI in legal practice. The presentation will focus on the challenges and opportunities of developing a new curriculum, including how to engage students with practical AI exercises, address ethical considerations, and ensure the content remains relevant to modern legal practice.
  • Speaker: Jason Tubinis, University of Georgia School of Law

 Noon

 Institute Session 3

• Law Library Leadership - Current Issues and Future Trends (341)
• • Description: A moderated conversation with four academic law library directors about the current state of law librarianship as well as future trends. The panel will feature (1) a librarian with longer service as director, (2) a newer director, (3) a librarian who has served as director in multiple libraries, and (4) a director with a focus on the future of technology in law library contexts. Discussion topics may include the current state of law library leadership, what to expect in the future, issues in leadership and management, how directors think about their work, what keeps them up at night, and what about a director career is most rewarding.
  • Speakers: Mark Engsberg, Emory University; Caroline Osborne, University of North Carolina; TJ Stripe, University of Georgia; Kris Niedringhaus, Georgia State; Christina Glon, Emory University

 Institute Session 4

• Climate Change and the Environment: Legal Research Instruction, Pedagogy, and Praxis (341)
• • Description: Legal education increasingly is grappling with climate change and the broader ecological crisis, yet robust environmental legal research instruction, pedagogy, and praxis remain under-represented in professional development settings and under-chronicled in the literature. This program works towards filling this gap in covering a range of curricular approaches adopted by panelists in recent years. These include standalone research courses, environmental modules within advanced legal research courses, and international and foreign environmental research modules.
  • Speakers: Ellie Campbell, UNC Law Library, Joy Hovestadt, Yale Law Library, Sue Silverman, Brooklyn Law School, Nicolas Stump, WVU Law Library, Michael VanderHeijden, Yale Law Library

 Session 1

• New Lawyers, AI, and the Future: Are They Ready? (341)
• • Description: This program will explore the current legal tech and AI curriculum offerings at US law schools matched with the expectations and needs of law firms hiring new associates. Are we adequately preparing law students in the current curriculum and in law library workshops? Law students' current legal tech and AI skills and attitudes will be discussed, as well as law firms' expectations for new lawyers. The speaker(s) will present findings from an AI survey and a review of course offerings at US law schools as part of the presentation, The session will end with a Q&A.
  • Speakers: Marin Dell, Barry Law School, Eric Voigt, Faulkner University - Jones School of Law

• Reaching the Next Generation of Law Librarians (345)
• • Description: Law firm, government, and academic law libraries all have an interest in expanding and diversifying the next generation of legal information professionals. The legal information profession is shrinking dramatically, such that we are having difficulty filling positions with qualified candidates and are significantly lagging allied professions in diversification. In this session we will identify data demonstrating the need to bolster the profession of law librarianship, identify barriers to accessing a career in law librarianship, and explore some creative approaches to expanding and diversifying the profession.
  • Speaker: Jennifer Bedier, Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library, University of Arizona

 Teddy Talks (341)

• The Relevance of Natural Language versus Terms and Connectors - Amy Taylor, University of Georgia
• Making Legal Research Skills Stick Using Active Learning Techniques - Gerard Fowke, Georgia State University
• Detrimental Reliance and the Primacy of Primary Source Research - Ryan Valentin, University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law
• NextGen Bar Exam 2024: What's New and What's Next - Ashley Arrington, Texas Tech School of Law
• I Don't Know What An Algorithm Is and At This Point I'm Too Afraid to Ask: A Gentle Introduction to Algorithms, Machine Learning and AI - Dan Quiggin, Georgia State University

 Session 2

• Spring Training for Summer Associate Season (341)
• • Description: Each summer, firm librarians attempt to anticipate what law students do, and don't, know about legal research as they onboard a new class of summer associates. And each spring, academic librarians attempt to anticipate what their students will, or won't, need to know about research before they leave campus for summer employment. In this program, librarians with both academic and firm experience will share their experiences and challenges working with summer associates and aspiring summer associates, and attempt to answer the question “what do summer associates *really* need to know”?
  • Speakers: Meredith Capps, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP & Emily Pavuluri, Vanderbilt University Law School
• Inclusive Outreach for the Modern Library (345)
• • Description: This session will explore innovative strategies for law libraries to engage with diverse communities and promote social justice. Topics will include fostering inclusivity, building community partnerships, measuring outreach impact, and supporting staff development. Participants will gain practical insights to enhance their library’s role in empowering individuals and addressing legal needs, with opportunities to create actionable plans for driving meaningful change.
  • Speakers: Eliza Boles, Head of Research and Instructional Services, University of Tennessee College of Law and Daniel A. Mendoza, J.D. Candidate, University of Tennessee; Law Library Fellow, Lincoln Memorial University

 Session 3

• Fake News is Lethal: How Critical Media Literacy Aids to Avert the Violent Consequences of Disinformation (341)
• • Description: There is a direct connection between violent attacks against marginalized groups (e.g., against Haitians in Ohio after the 2024 Presidential debate and violence against Asians during the COVID shutdown) and the spread of misinformation and its more menacing cousin, disinformation. In both instances, spreading false information has affected our ability to improve public health, ensure public safety, maintain a stable democracy, and more. Developing critical media literacy skills equips future lawyers to evaluate sources and detect bias. At this session, librarians will learn how to use critical media literacy to stay ahead of mis/disinformation and fight back with information/media literacy.
  • Speakers: Zanada Joyner, Associate Director for Collections & Information Discovery, University of Maryland School of Law; Amy Stalker, Dept. Head Perimeter College - Alpharetta & Dunwoody, Georgia State University; La Loria Konata, JM, MLS, MPA, Policy Studies Librarian, Georgia State University Library
• Legal Tech 101: Teaching When You're Learning Too (345)
• • Description: Teaching legal technology can feel daunting, especially if you’re not coming from a tech-heavy background. We’ll discuss how we leveraged our expertise as researchers and educators to design engaging, effective courses that demystify technology for students. Participants will see real-world examples of our course structure, assignments, and teaching strategies, as well as the resources we relied on to develop our own knowledge along the way. You’ll walk away with actionable ideas, confidence, and the tools to create or enhance legal tech instruction at your own institution.
  • Speakers: Will Monroe, Assistant Director for Instructional Technology, Library Faculty, LSU Law and Aimee Self Pittman, Reference Librarian, LSU Law

 Session 4

• Teaching Workshops for Law Librarians (341)
• • Description: The UNC Law Library hosts a series of internal teaching workshops each semester, designed to improve teaching skills and foster collaboration among its librarians. These workshops create a dedicated space for UNC law librarians to exchange ideas, share expertise, and develop innovative teaching strategies in a supportive environment. Join two UNC law librarians as they outline the structure, topics, benefits, and challenges of the workshop series.
  • Speakers: Nicole Downing & Andrew Wisniewsky, UNC Law Library
• Are Julius Caesar's Soldiers Burning Down our "Alexandria Library" Collections (345)
• • Description: Changes in ABA Standards have led academic law libraries to repurpose spaces, often reducing physical collections and risking the loss of valuable historical, international, and scholarly legal information. This shift raises concerns about preserving irreplaceable knowledge, akin to the burning and destruction of the Library of Alexandria. Experienced law librarians will share insights on the long-term impacts and best practices for balancing space and information preservation.
  • Speakers: Ismael Guillon, Mercer Law Library; Cynthia Barnes, Reference Librarian & Associate Professor of Law, Barry School of Law; Vicenc Fileu, Associate Dean for Library Services & Professor of Law, Nova Southeastern University
• SEAALL Executive Board Meeting (346)

 Demo & Discover Sessions (403)

• Vendors will provide demonstrations in the Exhibit Hall

 Session 5

• LIT in Learning: Understanding and Supporting Gen Z with Adult Learning Theory (341) 
• • Description: Post-pandemic, many Gen Z students have shown a reluctance to engage fully in rigorous legal analysis and instead get trapped in a cycle of memorization and recitation. Adult learning theory offers strategies to better engage Gen Z learners, emphasizing active learning techniques that promote autonomy, collaboration, and critical thinking. Attendees will leave with practical tools to motivate Gen Z individuals, improve their working outcomes, and creating an environment that nurtures both learning and well-being in today’s evolving legal landscape.
  • Speaker: Savanna Nolan, Instruction & Faculty Services Librarian, University of Georgia School of Law

• Law 756 AI and Legal Research: From Creation to Execution (345)
• • Description: This session will cover our course, LAW 756 AI in Legal Research: Foundations and Information Organization from creation to execution.  We will discuss our approach to teaching law students about generative AI and its use in legal research, with remaining time for questions from the audience.  Participants will receive our syllabi for LAW 756, in-class exercises, and a list of readings utilized. 
  • Speakers: Michael McArthur & Julie Wooldridge, Duke University School of Law
• Dollars & Sense: Personal Finance Well-being Practices of Professional Identity (346)
• • Description: ABA Standard 303(b)(3) mandates law schools to provide opportunities for students to develop professional identity which the ABA interprets to include “well-being practices,” a term that implies instruction in life-long habits. This presentation explores the lasting well-being effect of good financial practices and argues that developing financial literacy falls within the scope of Standard 303(b)(3). It does so by exploring the conception, development, and implementation of a one-credit Personal Finance Literacy for Young Lawyers reading group course. Additionally, it should provide attendees interested in this topic with some bibliographic sources to add to their collections or for further self-education.
  • Speaker: Daniel Brackmann, University of South Carolina