Quality Assurance Workgroup

Sara Alegría has served as associate director of Learning Resources at Miami Dade College (MDC) for 13 years and as an adjunct instructor for 16. Prior to joining the College, Sara worked as a librarian, department chairperson, and team leader for Miami-Dade County Public Schools, where she organized the procurement and distribution of complimentary computers to students.
Sara earned a Doctoral degree with a dual major in Organizational Leadership and Instructional Technology and Distance Education from Nova Southeastern University in 2009.
Dr. Alegría is the youngest of five children of Cuban and Colombian immigrants. She was the first in her family to graduate from college and credits Miami Dade College for providing the opportunities she needed to succeed.

Maria has been a reference and instruction librarian for the Midtown and Downtown (and virtual!) campuses with St Petersburg College for 2 years. Previously, she was with State College of Florida for over 10 years, first as a library assistant, then a full-time librarian. While staffing the local and academic AAL desks, she has found her strength in being able to communicate information and teach concepts over chat or email. Every time she gets to look over the exemplary chat selections, she learns something new, which is the best part of being a librarian!

Kelly has been a librarian with Seminole County Public Libraries since 2019, and she is currently serving as the Assistant Branch Manager/Reference Supervisor of the North Branch Library in Sanford. Before moving to Central Florida in 2019, Kelly was a Branch Manager (4 years) and Children’s Librarian (8 years) in the North Florida area. She is happy to be doing reference work again as she feels this work is vital to helping her new community stay connected and informed.

Laurie has worked for Sarasota County Libraries in reference for several years. Before Sarasota County, she worked at the Temple Terrace Public Library near Tampa and the Bruton Memorial Library in Plant City. She logged into her first AAL shift around the time the service started and has been involved in some way ever since.

Andrew Beman-Cavallaro is a faculty research and instruction librarian for the social sciences at the University of South Florida. Andrew earned his bachelor’s degree in human geography from Florida State University, his first master’s degree in library and information science from University of South Florida, and his second master’s degree from University of Nebraska in United States history. Andrew was a public librarian before becoming a college library director for a decade. He teaches periodically in USF’s library and information science graduate program and is an affiliate faculty member at USF’s School of Information. Andrew’s research and publications include efforts regarding community college librarianship and AI/information literacy. Andrew’s further work includes research for the U.S. Department of Defense. Andrew regularly acts as a mentor in Florida’s library leadership institute and serves on committees in ALA and ACRL.

Adam Davis has worked for the Palm Beach County Library System for over 16 years. He is currently the System Services Director, overseeing operations at the Main Library, Marketing and Communications, and outreach efforts, including Talking Books for the Blind, Books-By-Mail for homebound individuals, the Bookmobile, Adult Literacy Project, as well as systemwide adult, teen, and children’s activities. Adam was first introduced to virtual reference service in 2004 in Illinois and believe it is a vital part of connecting Florida residents to the information they need. Adam received his undergraduate degree in Sociology and International Languages and Cultures (witch a focus in Spanish) and graduated a few years later with his Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He is also a proud graduate of SSLLI and NLLI.

Judy has been a librarian with the University of Central Florida since 2017, and she is currently serving as the Public Services Librarian at the UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management. From 2017 to 2019 she was the UCF Connect Librarian at the joint-use Valencia College Osceola campus. Before moving to Florida in 2015, Judy was the technical services librarian at SUNY Ulster in upstate New York. Chat reference has been an enjoyable part of each of her positions, and she learns something new every day.

Britt McGowan is a reference librarian who acts as the subject liaison for the Art, Communication, English, and Theatre Departments at the University of West Florida. She also coordinates interlibrary loan, along with a team of two information specialists. Prior to her current roles, she coordinated information literacy and instruction, supervised the Circulation Department, and worked as the reserves coordinator. She holds an MLIS from Florida State University (2009) and an MA in English from the City College of the City University of New York (2001).

Angie Price is the Biological & Life Sciences Librarian at the Marston Science Library for the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. She received her MLS from the University of North Texas and her master’s degree in biology from Miami University. Before transitioning to the academic world, Angie worked for the Memphis Public Library system in Memphis, TN for nearly 7 years, ranging in roles from children’s services to adult services librarian, as well as cataloging manager for the system. Prior to working in libraries, Angie worked for zoos and aquaria where she focused on nocturnal and cryptic animal species, becoming involved as well in biological fieldwork in Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Costa Rica, and multiple U.S. states. Angie currently serves as Secretary for the ACRL Sustainability Round Table (2024-2026 term), as well as working on the UF Libraries Green Team/Sustainability Committee.

Mary has been a librarian at the University of Central Florida since 2024 and currently serves as the UCF Connect Librarian, where she works closely with Valencia College. Additionally, she is the subject librarian for architecture. Before this, she was the Operations Manager for Library Cataloging and Acquisitions at Valencia College from 2022 to 2024. A proud UCF alumna, Mary authored The University of Central Florida Trivia Book, which was published in 2024.

Garfield has been working at the Borland Library (part of the UF Health Science Center Libraries) in Jacksonville, FL for 14 years. He is a library assistant who assists with reference and circulation desk responsibilities at this location. He has been a part of the AAL team since November 2020 (and has recently taken on a few Academic and Statewide shifts when coverage is needed). He is also a member of the team that created the new Ask a Librarian Chatbot for UF’s libraries. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science (minor in Computer Science) from the University of Maryland Global Campus. He is happy to join the Quality Assurance Workgroup and provide feedback on AAL chats.

Kellie has been working with the University of West Florida since 2013. She currently serves as the Head of the Reference Department and Social Media, Marketing, and Communications Coordinator for UWF Libraries.
Her research interests include libraries and marketing, social media, creativity, and mindfulness and the university student experience. She also serves as the libraries’ Evening Reference librarian and enjoys serving students both online and onsite during weekend and evening hours.

Andy Todd has been a librarian with the University of Central Florida for over 15 years. After graduating from USF in 2003, he started out as an adjunct librarian at the Joint-Use Library in Clermont and then transitioned into a permanent position at the EFSC/UCF Joint-Use library in Cocoa. Andy enjoys working at a regional campus library as this setting provides him the opportunity to share reference responsibilities (including chat hours) with the Eastern Florida State College librarians. He also serves as the Subject Librarian for the UCF College of Nursing. Andy won an Exemplary Chat Award in 2006 and has participated in the AAL QA Workgroup for over 10 years.