FLA Executives for 2025–2026
President — Brianna Calomino
Brianna is a Digital Projects Librarian – Digital Scholarship at the University of Calgary, where she also occasionally liaisons for Classics and covers the Makerspace, learning new technologies. Prior to this position, she worked as an Open Services Library Staff member at Mount Royal University. She holds a BA in English from Queens University, and an MLIS from Western University. Brianna has a passion for open access, and outside of work she is a feral reader for fantasy/romance novels, a dubious yogi, and a mediocre hiker. She is new to Calgary and resides with her two special-care cats, Mr. Bingley and Heathcliff.
Vice-President — Joel Blechinger
Joel is an Instruction Librarian at Mount Royal University. He holds graduate degrees in English Literature and Library and Information Studies. His professional and scholarly interests are in critical information literacy, the philosophy of information, generative artificial intelligence and library instruction, conspiracist information behaviour, and labour and information work. In Joel’s spare time he enjoys reading, blogging about music, cooking, cycling, and cross-country skiing.
Past-President — Kathleen James
Kathleen James is the Student Success Librarian at the University of Calgary where she partners with students and faculty in chemistry and graduate business to provide research support, instructional guidance, and programming that promotes student success.
Jobline — Danny de Castro
Danny is currently teaching in the Library Technician program at SAIT. Previously, he worked in records and information management, as well as corporate, government, and post-secondary libraries. Danny holds an MEd in Adult and Workplace Learning from the University of Calgary, and a Master of Library and Information Studies degree from the University of Alberta.
Director of Membership — Brenna van Boeschoten
Brenna graduated SAIT’s Library Information Technology program in 2023. Since that time, she has worked as a Learning Commons Librarian for the Calgary Catholic School District and, most recently, as an Information Specialist at the University of Calgary. She is currently the Director of Membership for the Foothills Library Association.
Secretary — Nicole Bueckert
Nicole Bueckert is a recent graduate of the University of Calgary with her BA in English. In her most recent position, she worked as a research assistant on a Digital Humanities project. Her duties included logging metadata, consulting with special collections assistants at the NLS, and locating obscure periodical contributors within census records. She assisted with a workshop at the annual RSVP conference in July of 2025 where she taught digital mapping techniques to scholars. She also has previous experience creating educational resources for junior high, high school, and post-secondary students. Nicole hopes to start an MLIS program next year.
Treasurer — Liam Baker
Liam is a Digital Strategies, Learning and Engagement Librarian at the University of Calgary. He liaises for the Department of Geography, the Department of History, and the School of Architecture, Planning, and Landscaping (SAPL). He graduated from the University of Toronto’s iSchool with a MILS. His background is in history. He works with the Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Literacy, Ethics, and Integrity (CAILEI). His work with CAILEI involves the critical examination of Generative AI tools advertised for academic work.
Webmaster — Callen Law
Callen is a Library Technician with experience in academic and public library settings, currently working at SAIT’s Reg Erhardt Library. They are passionate about inclusion and accessibility in library spaces, collections, and displays, and believe that libraries should be a welcoming space for diverse communities. Outside of work, they are an artist and small business owner, creating and selling original queer art, and are actively involved in professional and volunteer leadership within both the library sector and local 2SLGBTQI+ communities.
Foothills Library Association 