Fmr. Assistant Director/Adult Services Librarian
Walpole Public Library
Molly Riportella is the former Assistant Director of the Walpole Public Library in Walpole, MA. Previously she was the Head of Adult Services Librarian at the Westwood, MA Public Library. She completed her undergrad at the University of Massachustts Amherst and obtained her Masters in Library & Information Science (MLIS) from Simmons College.
Molly’s professional interests focus on outreach initiatives designed to meet people where they are. In 2019, she co-authored 'Librarians not Bibliogists: Reclaiming Readers’ Advisory from For-Profit Subscription Services', and presented at the Massachusetts Library Association Annual Conference. In 2021, Molly served as a judge for the 2020 Massachusetts Book Awards: Adult Non-fiction category. A born facilitator, Molly continues to lead Walpole Public Library’s “Sundae Scaries” a speculative fiction book club (with sundae cups!) hosted on Sunday afternoons at Napper Tandy's, a local pub.
In 2022, Molly began laying the groundwork for the BiblioUnderground, Inc., a grassroots LIS social justice movement and aspiring non-profit network whose mission is to turn victims of domestic violence (DV) into survivors by creating and distributing “Book-it 2 Freedom Kits" (Bi2FKs): phones, programmed by library staff with DV resources, hidden within discarded library books.
Sunday, June 25, 2023
3:30 PM – 5:00 PM CT