WEMTA 2025 - Ignite and Inspire: Impacting Learning Together

In this session you will learn how having a therapy dog in your library can improve school engagement and help develop a more inclusive, supportive school environment. Attendees will also learn practical steps that can be taken to implement therapy dog programs in their own school libraries. Facing opposition or district hoops and red tape, this presenter will share how she was able to overcome the obstacles to bring her certified therapy dog into her libraries. Information will include organizations to contact to find volunteer therapy dog teams willing to visit, process to get your own dog certified, where to purchase liability insurance, research to support having a therapy dog in the library, management ideas, and much, much, more!