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Angela Stanley
Georgia Public Library Service
Bio
Angela Stanley serves as Assistant State Librarian and Assistant Vice Chancellor for Library Innovation and Collaboration with GPLS, part of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. She previously directed GPLS’ Archival Services and Digital Initiatives unit and has worked in public libraries of all shapes and sizes. She is Past President of the Society of Georgia Archivists and currently serves on the Governor’s Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council.
Barry Robinson
UGA Libraries
Bio
Barry Robinson is the IT director at the UGA Libraries in Athens, Ga.
Bette Finn
Georgia Institute of Technology
Bio
Bette Finn is a subject librarian at Georgia Tech. She earned a Master of Librarianship from Emory University and a B.S. in Applied Psychology from the Georgia Institute of Technology. She provides customized research assistance, instruction, and outreach services to faculty, staff, students, and researchers.
Brittany Bryan
EBSCO
Bio
Brittany has over 20 years of experience in continuing education, marketing, strategic communications, public relations, and sales, with a focus on working with state and local government agencies, K-12 schools, and public libraries. As a Regional Sales Manager at EBSCO, she helps support educators and libraries by providing valuable resources that empower lifelong learning. Brittanyhas a deep understanding of EBSCO’s tools on GALILEO and enjoys finding ways to help communities engage with these resources and make the most of what they offer.
In her spare time, Brittany is passionate about giving back to her community. She enjoys helping nonprofits and community groups share their stories and actively volunteers with local voter services and city planning organizations, focusing on initiatives that promote civic engagement and community-driven development.
Donald “Donnie” Summerlin
UGA Libraries
Bio
Donnie Summerlin is the Digital Projects Archivist at the University of Georgia Libraries, where he manages the ongoing effort to digitize and preserve Georgia’s historical newspapers. He earned a BA in history from UGA, an MA in history from Georgia College & State University, and an MLIS from Valdosta State University. His writing credits include articles published in the Georgia Historical Quarterly, Archival Outlook, and the Georgia Library Quarterly.
Elizabeth White
University of Georgia
Bio
No bio available at this time.Emily Smith
Sage
Bio
No bio available at this time.Gail Morton
Mercer University
Bio
Gail Morton is a Science Research Services Librarian at Mercer University.
GALILEO Support Team
Bio
No bio available at this time.Jef Whatley
GALILEO
Bio
No bio available at this time.Jeff Gallant
GALILEO
Bio
Jeff Gallant has been with ALG since 2014 when it was a pilot program. He regularly consults with new open education programs and presents on program management, strategic planning, grant programs, data collection, and reporting. He has been a mentor in the SPARC Open Education Leadership Program since its inception in 2017, a mentoring faculty member of the AAC&U Institute on OER since its inception in 2021, and a co-author of The OER Starter Kit for Program Managers.
John Stephens
GALILEO
Bio
John Stephens is the Assistant Director for Licensing and Collections at GALILEO, and previously worked in libraires at Georgia Gwinnett College, Mercer University, and University of Georgia. John’s professional interests include open access, web accessibility, copyright, and anything related to negotiations and library acquisitions.
John Wilson
Georgia Southwestern State University
Bio
John Wilson serves as Director of Library Services at Georgia Southwestern State University's James Earl Carter Library and teaches courses in Fundamentals of Information Literacy. Wilson earned a MLIS degree at Valdosta State University.
Joshua Kitchens
Georgia Public Library Service
Bio
Joshua Kitchens is currently the director of archival services and digital initiatives for the Georgia Public Library Service. Josh previously served as the director of archives and information studies programs at Clayton State University. He was responsible for managing the program and teaching various courses, including Law and Records, Digital Preservation, and many others. Before working at Clayton State, Josh was an archivist for special collections at the Georgia College Ina Dillard Russell Library. He was responsible for digital collections, the library’s institutional repository known as the Knowledge Box, and university archives.
He holds a bachelor's degree in history from Georgia College, a master's degree in applied history from George Mason University, and a master of archival studies from Clayton State University. Joshua is also a Certified Archivist.
Joshua Wier
GALILEO/GIL
Bio
No bio available at this time.Julie Walker
Georgia Public Library Service
Bio
As state librarian, Julie has established the Georgia Public Library Service as a responsive and trusted partner to Georgia’s libraries, and as a national leader in library innovation and collaboration. As vice chancellor for Libraries and Archives, she oversees GALILEO, Georgia's virtual library; GIL, the gateway to information resources held in University System of Georgia libraries; Affordable Learning Georgia, offering open educational resources to USG students; Georgia State Archives; and the Georgia State Records Center. In 2023, she was appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp to the Georgia Council on Literacy. She was elected president of the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), an independent organization of the principal library officials in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two territories, in 2022. In 2017, she was awarded the Nix-Jones Award, the highest honor of the Georgia Library Association that recognizes substantial contributions to the library profession. Julie serves as a member of the Board of Visitors of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science, the advisory board of Valdosta State University’s School of Library and Information Science, and the advisory committee of the University of Georgia’s Certified Public Manager program. She is chair of the Georgia Certification Board for Librarians and serves on Georgia's Digital Connectivity Advisory Council. She is a graduate of the University System of Georgia’s Accelerated Leadership Academy and USG’s Executive Leadership Institute and Leadership Athens.
Ken Bonney
Niche Academy
Bio
Ken Bonney is the Director of Customer Success at Niche Academy. He has spent nearly 26 years in the library industry, training and or consulted over 400 library systems. In his spare time, he is the ILS Administrator for the Hawaii State Public Library System and has spent six years on his community library board. Ken has a BA and MA from BYU, and post graduate work from UCLA. He is also striving to be a campfire level ukulele player.
Lee Olson
Mercer University
Bio
Lee Olson is the Head of Research Services at Mercer University’s Jack Tarver Library on the Macon campus and serves as liaison for engineering, technology, and mathematics.
Lisa Jones
EBSCO
Bio
Lisa worked as a systems librarian in both academic and public libraries for 14 years before joining EBSCO. Working with EBSCO's Discovery Service and the administrative sites are where her focus is for training. She also serves as an adjunct professor for Central Texas College in the Computer Information Technology & Systems department. She works from her home in the Tampa Bay area and primarily serves customers in the US and Canada as well as English-speaking Caribbean.
Lisa Varga
American Library Association
Bio
Lisa Varga has been named associate executive director of the American Library Association's Public Policy and Advocacy Office in Washington D.C. She will begin the position in April 2025. She has served the past 15 years as executive director of the Virginia Library Association (VLA), a leading professional organization representing over 5,000 library professionals across Virginia. As the VLA's leader, she championed the vital role of libraries in communities. In 2024, Library Journal recognized her contributions by naming her Librarian of the Year. Lisa is a member and Immediate Past Chair of the Virginia Beach Public Library Board. She is an active member of the Virginia Society of Association Executives and the American Library Association Policy Corps, where she plays a key role in the Unite Against Book Bans program. Lisa is a sought-after speaker, presenting locally and nationally on a range of library and association-related topics.
Lucy Harrison
GALILEO
Bio
Lucy Harrison is a University System of Georgia associate vice chancellor and executive director of GALILEO. She has served in her position since 2016. Before that, Harrison was the director of library services for the Florida Virtual Campus, and she also served in various roles at the College Center for Library Automation in Florida. She received her master's degree in library and information sciences from Florida State University.
Mark Wilks
Infobase
Bio
Mark has worked in Higher Education for the past 27 years for various Publishers and EdTech companies. Currently as the Business Development Executive at Infobase he is responsible for overseeing any current and new collection subscriptions at all academic libraries in Georgia. Mark takes pride in being able to offer the robust collections from Infobase and represent a company with such a long history of excellence in education.
He is the father of two, grandfather to two, a veteran and avid outdoorsman.
Mary Willoughby
Digital Library of Georgia
Bio
Mary Willoughby is the Digital Collections lead for the Discovery and Digital Services department at UGA Libraries, where she manages in-house digitization and preservation workflows and supports the digitization efforts of cultural heritage organizations around the state through the Digital Library of Georgia.
Mike White
GALILEO
Bio
Mike White is a GALILEO support analyst. In his role, Mike provides functional and tehnical support to library staff across Georgia, as well as managing services such as EBSCO Discovery Service. For the past 14 years, he has worked at the University of Georgia, including nine at GALILEO and five in USG customer service. He earned his bachelor’s degree in information technology from Clayton State University. In his free time, White is an internationally published freelance photographer.
Nakita Afaha
GALILEO
Bio
Nakita Afaha joined ALG in May 2023. She holds a master's degree in adult education, a bachelor's degree in business education, and an education specialist degree in instructional technology. Her experience includes managing online student success initiatives at the University of West Georgia, designing OER and library resource-based courses with USG eCampus, and coordinating online programs at Georgia State University. Her expertise in student success continues to evolve, as she now manages open education initiatives for ALG.
Nicole Lawrence
UGA Libraries
Bio
No bio available at this time.Olivia Bushey
Mercer University
Bio
Olivia Bushey is the Research Service Librarian for the Humanities at Mercer University’s Jack Tarver Library on the Macon campus. She has worked before in the public library in areas of Archives, Genealogy, and Reference.
Paige DeLoach
Sage
Bio
No bio available at this time.Patricia Ball
Cobb County Public Library System
Bio
Ball is currently manager of the Stratton Branch of Cobb County Public Library System. She has been an active member of ALA since becoming a librarian which spans more than 30 years. She has served on various ALA, PLA and previously LITA committees. Some of her committees and sub-committees include Office of Information Technology Policy; Committee on Legislation; Chair of E-Government Services Committee which was a subcommittee out of the ALA Washington Office (served 6 years). Currently serves with the Digital Inclusion Working Group; Co-Chair of Digital Literacy Advisory Group until June 2025 (PLA) and has previously served on the Copyright and many more subcommittees, committees and division groups. Dr. Ball is a passionate advocate for equal access to library services for all. She is also committed to serving the unserved and underserved in her community. She believes that broad band is a right for every citizen. Works to help elevate the inequalities of the Digital Divide.
Patricia Kenly
Georgia Institute of Technology
Bio
Patricia Kenly is a Collection Development Librarian and also serves as the Government Information Librarian at Georgia Tech. Previously, she was the Business Reference Librarian. Before coming to Georgia Tech, she was a librarian at the University of Central Florida (1991-2001). Patricia received an MBA from the University of South Florida, an MS in Library Science from Florida State University, and a BS in Government from FSU.
Rachel Evans
UGA Libraries
Bio
Rachel Evans currently serves as the user experience (UX) librarian within the discovery and digital services department at the University of Georgia Libraries since January 2025. Rachel previously served as the University of Georgia Alexander Campbell King Law Library's Metadata Services and Special Collections Librarian from 2018 to 2024, and UGA School of Law's Web Developer and Digital Media Specialist from 2012 to 2018. She has also served various roles in three other libraries since 2008, earning her bachelor's degrees in art and music from LaGrange College and her Master of Library and Information Science from Florida State University.
Robbie Barber
Tucker High School (DeKalb County Schools)
Bio
Dr. Barber is an electrical engineer from Ga. Tech who wandered into a school library. She works with high school students and teachers on finding the best resources, using the technology available, and locating the perfect book. Dr. Barber does classes & presentations on tech-infused ideas in the classroom. A member of the K-12 GALILEO Marketing Committee.
Russell Palmer
GALILEO
Bio
Russell Palmer is an assistant director at GALILEO, where he is in charge of the support services team. He and his team work on the development of GALILEO, new intergrations (such as OpenAthens), sand ystem report requests. Prior to GALILEO, Palmer worked at LYRASIS for 14 years in various positions. He received his master's degree in library and information science from Florida State University.
Sarah Causey
UGA Libraries
Bio
Sarah Causey is the interim Head of the Map and Government Information Library at the University of Georgia Libraries. She also serves as the Federal Depository Regional Librarian for the state of Georgia and manages the repository program for Georgia state agency publications.
Sean Boyle
GIL/GALILEO
Bio
No bio available at this time.Susan Bragg
Georgia Southwestern State University
Bio
Susan Bragg is a Professor of History at Georgia Southwestern State University. She teaches courses in 20th c. American history, the African Diaspora, and gender studies. Bragg earned a Ph.D. in history at the University of Washington and has published in the field of 19th and early 20th c. civil rights politics. Her current research focuses on race, gender, and the politics of 20th c. children’s literature.
Tara Carpenter
Lyrasis
Bio
Tara Carpenter is the Implementation Manager for the Palace Project at Lyrasis, where she leads configuration, support, training, and nationwide adoption and engagement efforts for participating libraries. She has a background in public libraries and museums, most recently serving as Adult Education Program Manager at Desert Botanical Garden and Branch Manager at Maricopa County Library District. Tara received her MLIS from San José State University and her BA in Political Science from the University of Connecticut.
Valerie Wilson
Georgia Public Broadcasting
Bio
As a GPB Education Outreach Specialist, Valerie Wilson works with professionals across the state providing classroom resources, professional development, and mentorship at no cost to the teacher or the school system. Valerie is an 18-year veteran educator who specializes in equipping young people with social, emotional, and academic mindsets for success. Her passion for youth has provided opportunities to impact teens through speaking, teaching, coaching, mentoring, and tutoring. When not working, she most enjoys spending time at home with her husband and two sons.