Friday, March 20, 2026 on Youtube
The Games & Gaming Round Table (GameRT) of the American Library Association invites you to join us for the 2026 March Mini Con, a one day mini conference held on March 20th, 2026 from 10am-3:30pm CT. The conference is totally virtual and totally free. No registration is required! Follow the conference live (or watch recordings later) on GameRT’s YouTube channel.
This year’s theme is Gaming Outside the Box. Conference presentations explore innovative approaches to games and games-related programming in libraries in 15 minute lightning talks, including presentations on using archives and special collections materials for gaming events, supporting game design efforts in your library, and gamifying library outreach and instruction. You can view previous webinars and virtual conferences on GameRT’s Twitch and YouTube channels.
Find the full schedule details here.
10:00 CT – GameRT Conference Introduction
Block 1 – Games as Primary Sources
10:05 CT – Historic Board Games as Tools for Primary Source Literacy – Ursula Romero, University of Iowa
10:20 CT – Special Collections Joins the Party: an Experimental Library Game Night Program – Roger Justus, Abigail Morgan, & Rachel Makarowski, Miami (OH) University
10:35 CT – Bringing History to Life: Teen Murder Mystery Programs Inspired by Local Stories – Kelsey Bates, Kansas City Public Library
10:50 CT – Session Block 1 Question & Answer
Block 2 – Innovative Programming
11:20 CT – Adventures in Library Programming: Hosting Your First Role-Playing Game Jam – Shelly Salo Martinez, Middle Tennessee State University
11:35 CT – The Stories We Tell: Using Instagram Stories As An Online Community Worldbuilding Game – Katie & Julien Donahoe, Mt Lebanon Library and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
11:50 CT – Escape with Your New Favorite Book: Creating Readers’ Advisory Virtual Escape Rooms – Ann Baillie, Alsip-Merrionette Park Public Library
12:05 CT – Session Block 2 Question & Answer
12:20 – 1:00 CT Midday Break
Block 3 – Innovative Outreach
1:05 CT – If You’re Bored, They’re Bored: Saving the Library from a(nother) Lecture – Kimberly Foster, Loren Mixon, & Kathleen Childs, Coastal Carolina University
1:20 CT – Leveling Up Teen Librarianship: Incorporating Simulation Gaming into Restorative Justice – Ayoola White, Maplewood Memorial Library
1:35 CT – Thinking Outside the Lunchbox : D&D Outreach Done Differently – Andrew Palmer, Nashville Public Library
1:50 CT – Session Block 3 Question & Answer
Block 4 – Game Design
2:20 CT – Leveling Up Learning: Librarians as Strategic Partners in Game Development – Kara Schleck & Srikanth Vemula, Saint John’s University
2:35 CT – Libraries Have Been Here the Whole Time: Adapting Dropout’s Game Changer into a Library Event – Amber Sewell, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
2:50 CT – PlayLab as Method: A Library-Led Model for Co-Creating Games and Interactive Experiences with Students – Shuyi Liu & Hiromi Kubo, California State University, Fresno
3:05 CT – Session Block 4 Question & Answer
3:20 CT – GameRT Conference Conclusion