IT Territory has been Marked…

Behind Closed Doors

Character in the Classroom

Strategy for Success!

Loyalty Oath for Faculty Librarians?

Conflicting Viewpoints

What do you WANT from us?

I am so tired of hearing librarians ask our users, “What do you want from us? How can we be relevant to you? Please tell us what to do!” It seems to me that WE need to tell them what we have to offer and why they need us. It is pitiful to watch these exchanges. The faculty from other parts of campus are confused that we don’t seem to be grounded in our value and therefore, pause to question our value. It is not a good strategy.

The Library Team

I understand that the faculty status of librarians is important to them but I am not sure why yet. Is it that they want the status of educators or is it just that they want the nine month contract and the same pay as other university faculty?

I completely agree that librarians are educators but I am not sure that faculty status for all makes sense. There is the issue of the job of being a librarian, responsible for a library – collection and services. This is not a nine month job and for some it can be very time intensive. It also requires a team mentality when working with others in the library, especially the staff. Unlike other departments where the staff may include only the department secretary, we must work together with a large staff integral to the successful management of the library.

Split Collection…

…means confusion for the library user. That is a given. When you have part of your collection in Dewey and part in LC, there are going to be problems. Everyone seems to agree that it is not a good thing but no one has done anything about it. Yes, there is some re-class that happens sporadically with no real rhyme or reason, in dribs and drabs. But the majority of the collection is split in location so users cannot effectively browse for topics of interest and they must go to disparate locations to get books on the same topic depending on when they were added to the collection.
It is an abomination from the perspective of librarianship and no one seems to care!!! There is a pervasive sense of powerlessness, real or imagined? Or is it a malaise or is it indifference or is it a lack of understanding or what?? I have heard said that if we don’t outsource this now there won’t be anyone to outsource to in the near future – everyone who had this issue has resolved it?