We are excited to celebrate the 23rd year of the Women’s Leadership Institute with you! The theme this year is H.E.R.: Health, Economics, and Resiliency. We will have an outstanding keynote speaker, a panel on Artificial Intelligence after lunch, and three hours of concurrent sessions encompassing 25+ workshops. We will wrap up the day with a slew of door prizes! There are nine tracks this year and topics include Tech Smarts, Economics in Our Daily Lives, Resiliency, Supporting Our Mental Health, and more. There is definitely something for everyone!

Major Speakers

Keynote Speaker

Tamara M. King, MLIS, APR

Tamara M. King, MLIS, APR, serves as the new Executive Director of Richland Library, where she leads one of the nation’s most innovative public library systems in advancing access, inclusion, and community impact. Appointed to this role in 2025, she provides strategic direction and senior leadership across 13 locations, ensuring that Richland Library continues to “provide safe spaces where ALL PEOPLE can connect, thrive, and belong.”

Previously, Tamara served as Chief Equity and Engagement Officer, where she led transformative efforts to embed equity, accessibility, and engagement into the library’s core operations. She is the architect of Richland Library’s nationally recognized Let’s Talk Race initiative, which since 2016 has engaged more than 4,000 participants through nearly 250 facilitated conversations and trainings. The program’s free, open-source curriculum is now used nationwide, advancing meaningful dialogue on race, belonging, and social justice.

With over 25 years of experience spanning public libraries, broadcast journalism, and strategic communications, Tamara is a nationally respected thought leader in public relations and equity-centered engagement. She has developed award-winning crisis communication strategies and media facilitation trainings.

Tamara currently serves as a Director-at-Large on the Board of the Public Library Association and is a 2024 Riley Fellow through Furman University’s Diversity Leadership Initiative. She was named one of The Post and Courier’s “12 Black Leaders to Know in South Carolina” (2023), honored as a Library Journal Mover & Shaker (2019), and has received numerous awards from SCPRSA and IABC. She earned both her Master of Library and Information Science and Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of South Carolina, and holds an Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) from the Universal Accreditation Board.

Plenary Panel

An engaging panel of leaders discussing Artificial Intelligence in both our personal and professional lives.

Schedule of Events

Time	Event	Location
8:15 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.	Light breakfast and informal networking	Russell House Ballroom (207)
9:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.	Conference welcome	Russell House Ballroom (207)
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.	Keynote Speaker	Russell House Ballroom (207)
10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.	Concurrent Sessions Round One – Pick from nine sessions!	Various rooms, 2nd & 3rd floor, Russell House
12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.	Lunch	Russell House Ballroom (207)
12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.	Panel on Artificial Intelligence in Our Lives and Work	Russell House Ballroom (207)
1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions Round Two – Pick from nine sessions!	Various rooms, 2nd & 3rd floor, Russell House
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions Round Three – Pick from nine sessions!	Various rooms, 2nd & 3rd floor, Russell House
4:10 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Closing and Door Prizes!	Russell House Ballroom (207)

Supporting Denim Day

April is Sexual Assault Awareness month and the last Wednesday in April each year is Denim Day. April 29 is that day! Denim day encourages individuals to wear denim to combat the idea that rape and sexual violence are the fault or responsibility of the survivors.

According to the SC Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault 42.3% of SC women and 29.2% of SC men experience intimate partner physical violence, intimate partner sexual violence, and/or intimate partner stalking in their lifetimes. Attendees to the conference are welcome to wear denim!