Competency B

“Each graduate of the Master of Library and Information Science program is able to…describe and compare organizational settings in which information professionals practice.”

Introduction

There are several types of information organizations in operation in the United States. The main ones include public libraries, academic libraries, school libraries, and special libraries usually associated with institutions like private companies, medical institutions, and military. In addition, the rise of digital information has also led to digital-only libraries that exist virtually rather than physically. Missions, clientele, funding, staffing, and governance, as well as the types of services differ between these libraries and librarians need to understand these difference in order to provide the best service possible. For example, an academic librarian whose clientele include both professors and students in the area in which they specialize would probably not recommend the same materials they would normally recommend to a hobbyist interested in a high-level understanding of the field. As librarians, we may have the opportunity to work in any of these environments and understanding how they differ helps us understand the specific requirements that grow out of the mission, users, governance, and services normally provided by the type of library.

Public Libraries

Public libraries serve cities and towns of all types. They exist to support community improvement and life-long learning opportunities through access to books, media, and services (McCook, 2015).  As of September 2015, there were 9,082 public libraries in the U.S. housed in 16,536 buildings (American Library Association, 2015b).

Mission

Public libraries are anchor institutions for their communities. They are “democratic community anchors with unlimited possibilities to promote education, equity, social and racial justice, place, and community” (American Library Association, 2015a). While each public library develops a mission based on the needs of the community in which they are embedded, in general, the mission of public libraries is to meet the “educational, recreational, informational, and cultural needs of its community” (Rubin, 2010, pp. 173). Public libraries are community, information, educational, independent learning, popular materials, early learning, reference, and research centers. Even in the “digital age”, most public libraries are deeply rooted in the community as a physical space.

Clientele

In 2015, 46% of all people, ages 16 or older had visited a public library or book mobile, with people of Hispanic origin being the largest group of users who use the library at least once a week. The group with the highest usage are women with higher levels of education. The public library is very important to the community with 65% of those who were 16 and older indicating that closing their local public library would have a major impact on their community and 32% saying that closing their local public library would have a major impact on them or their family (Pew Research Center, 2015). Anyone in the community can get a library card and access the library services and materials.

Funding, Staffing, & Governance

Most of the public libraries in the U.S. are run by the municipal government. The town or municipality in which a library is embedded is normally funded by local taxes. Public libraries are usually administered by a group of citizens who are either appointed by a governing body or elected by citizens of the city or town.  Public libraries may also get funds from the federal government and grants for specific projects.  Managers and other staff members of the public library are employees of the local government or civil servants for whom civil service policies determine the conditions for employment. Many of the employees may specialize in an area of need for the library, such as children or young adult librarians or those with needed technological skills. The library director may work directly with the library board on developing the library mission, long-range plans, and budgets. Volunteers and volunteer organizations, such as the “Friends of the library” may supplement the needs at the library, especially for areas where there may be a budget shortfall. 

Services

One of the most important services public libraries provide is access to the internet. Over 97% of all public libraries provide free internet access and 98% offer technology training.  Other important services include education and learning programs (99.5%) and summer reading programs (98.4%).  Nearly 80% help with job applications and resumes as well as interview skills. Almost all public libraries help with on-line completion of government forms (American Library Association, 2015a).  The Pew Research Center (2015) also found that many Americans want libraries to:

• “support local education;

• serve special constituents such as veterans, active duty military personnel and immigrants;

• help local businesses, job seekers and those upgrading their work skills;

• embrace new technologies such as 3D printers and provide services to help patrons learn about high tech gadgetry”

Some of the services that public libraries have garnered awards for include:

• Free access to books, digital resources, downloadable media, databases

• Access to computers, internet, 3D printers, media labs, other tools for content creation and sharing

• Lifelong learning programs

• Programs that service local needs

• Cultural programs

• Culture preservation activities (McCook, 2015).

Academic Libraries

“Academic libraries provide resources and services to support the learning, teaching, and research needs of students, faculty, and staff” (American Library Association, 2015b). Academic libraries serve colleges and universities whose purpose is to support the mission of the larger academic institution in which it is rooted.  There are 3,793 academic libraries in the U.S.; 2,489 are associated with colleges and universities that offer degrees that take 4 years and longer while 1,304 are attached to schools that focus on degrees that take less than 4 years to complete, such as junior colleges (American Library Association, 2015b). 

Mission

The mission of academic libraries typically reflect that of the parent college or university and may focus more on either teaching or research. For example, a large university that emphasizes research and graduate programs may be more concerned with acquiring the most up-to-date journals, dissertations, and special collections while a college more focused on teaching may acquire materials that support the courses that are taught (Rubin, 2010).  As academic institutions infiltrate cyberspace, the missions may reflect a more global reach than that of just the physical location.

Clientele

The academic library serves the students and the faculty as well as other staff members of the university or collage. Academic librarians may be part of the faculty of the institution and therefore need to work on research and publish either in their specialty area or on Library and Information Science subjects. In this case, they may be their own clients. There may also be an agreement with the local public library for patron access to the academic library’s material. Finally, while the main clientele may be students and professors, these users are becoming increasingly geographically distributed. For example, the MLIS that San José State University’s iSchool offers can be taken from literally anywhere in the world that has internet access. The library is committed to making sure that students get the material they need no matter where they live.

Funding, Staffing, & Governance

The budget for most academic libraries comes from the parent institution but it may be supplemented with money from research grants, special projects, donations, and student fees. On average, half of the budget goes to salaries, and between 68% and 74% of material budgets are spent on on-going resources purchases such as subscription costs (American Library Association, 2015c).  Academic librarians typically have another subject-matter degree and if they are part of the faculty, most likely have a Ph.D. As members of the faculty, they may be required to conduct research, publish papers, and present at conferences. Having a subject-matter degree means the librarian has the domain knowledge to ensure that materials sought by professors and graduate students are timely and relevant.  Most academic libraries are run by a director or dean who is appointed by the parent institution.

Services

Academic librarians, like librarians at other types of institutions provide instruction on information literacy. For students this is critical because they must be able to determine what constitutes credible sources for papers and other scholarly projects. Academic librarians must also help with demonstrating the value of the library in the form of continuously evaluating programs, material collections, and educational activities (Gilman, 2015). In addition, the increased use of digital collections by faculty, students, and staff means that librarians must be constantly assessing the digital holdings. Another service that academic librarians provide is that of serving on committees such as campus, state, and national organizations for governance or advocacy purposes.

School Libraries

School libraries serve students from kindergarten to grade 12. According to the American Library Association, there are 98,460 school libraries in the U.S., 81, 200 in public schools, 17, 100 in private schools, and 160 in BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) (American Library Association., 2015b).

Mission

The mission of school libraries are “to ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and information. The school library media specialist (librarian) empowers students to be critical thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers, and ethical users of information” (Rubin, 2010, pp. 193).  School libraries need to be an integral part of the educational mission of the school in order to fend off perceptions that they are just an expensive accessory.

Clientele

Generally, librarians work with children from kindergarten (and possibly pre-school) through the 12th grade, as well as their teachers. School librarians may have responsibility for teaching the children information literacy and digital citizenship as well as computer technology skills, but they may also assist teachers in finding and acquiring specific materials for their courses. School librarians may also work with parents for finding age-appropriate materials and parent volunteers for events like book fairs and sales.

Funding, Staffing, & Governance

School libraries are part of the school they are embedded within and are therefore governed by school board policies (Rubin, 2010). School librarians generally enjoy the same autonomy as the teachers in the school and are not normally controlled by the school board unless there are complaints about the materials. The school principal is typically the supervisor for the library media center.  The budgets for school libraries are usually developed as part of the school’s budget. School libraries do not normally get additional or federal funding. Unless someone from the community donates funds or materials, the library is dependent on the amount of money the school gets for its entire budget.

Services

School librarians wear many different hats. They are responsible for promoting basic literacy and reading, teaching information literacy and digital citizenship, and they provide materials to the classroom teachers for curricular support (Harlan, 2015).  They are also experts on learning models such as inquiry-based learning, connected learning, and problem-based learning.  School librarians help with getting kids ready for college. Without instruction on information literacy, college freshman have difficulty conducting research. According to the American Library Association (2015a), they have “difficulty:

• coming up with keywords (75%)

• sorting through irrelevant search results (57%)

• identifying and selecting sources (51%)

• integrating writing styles from different sources (43%).

Probably the scariest issue for kids who have not been taught information literacy and digital citizenship is that 70% of U.S. job recruiters have rejected candidates based on their online reputations, meaning kids frequently don’t know they should be or how to build those reputations.

Special Libraries

Special libraries are in specialized environments, such as hospitals, corporations, museums, the military, private business, and the government. Because of the diversity of special libraries it is difficult to come up with a general definition, mission, general set of clientele, funding and governance model, and services.  Rubin defines special libraries as “information organizations sponsored by private companies, governmental agencies, not-for-profit organizations, or professional associations” (2010, pp. 211). Dee et.al (2015) describes special libraries as being “uniquely focused on diverse and specialized resources with a limited subject scope, serve specialized and limited users, and often deliver technologically advanced specialized services”. Special libraries seem to take up a “miscellaneous” or “catch-all” category that doesn’t fit into the previous categories of public, academic, and school libraries.

Mission

The mission of a special library is tied to the organization with which it is associated. So, for example a corporate library mission may be concerned with providing the right material at the right time to help foster innovation within the company. For special libraries, the services, collections, and funding are closely tied to the goals and mission of the organization.

Clientele

The typical client of the librarian working in a special library are individuals working for the organization. In many cases, the special library may not even be a collection of physical materials. Clients can either be those who are already familiar with the collections and how to access the material they need and those that need help finding the material they need.

For example, at HP, we have a digital library but no physical books. We do not have access to books, but we do have access to many of the large technology databases and if we need to get a copy of an article and it is available through one of the databases HP subscribes to, we can download it and print it on-site. On the other hand, if the article is not available, we have an agreement with the British National Library to supply those articles digitally. Other clients of HP special librarians are managers and directors who need relevant trend and market information quickly. In general, the library is restricted to researchers where it is assumed we already know how to get the information we need and managers who ask the specials librarian to find, review, and condense information to PowerPoint presentation bullets.

Funding, Staffing, & Governance

Funding is greatly dependent on the budgets of the main organization. It is not uncommon to see materials and collections cut when budgets get tight. 20 years ago, HP had a huge on-site library where I currently work. It served about 4,000 employees and it was not restricted to those whose positions required it. About ten years ago, the library was closed, the librarians let go, and the books either sold or trashed because the company decided that it didn’t have the money to continue paying for the space and the librarians. This occurred across the company, which had about 300,000 employees at the time. All but about 3 librarians were let go and those that remained became personal research assistants to higher management. As I have learned, this is the case with most corporate libraries as they have gone completely digital and there is no perceived value for having physical collections.  It may be, that special libraries have the most difficulty remaining relevant because of this perception that digital collections are enough.

Services

Special libraries provide services that help to meet the goals and objectives of the overall organization. Special librarians research and find answers to specific questions rather than having the client find the information themselves. The number of users they help is usually pretty small and they tend to procure information that is narrowly focused and useful for practical purposes instead of for instructional purposes (Rubin, 2010). Special librarians may also be the point of contact for digital library subscriptions, the negotiators for subscription contracts, and are typically the most knowledgeable about the digital collections.

Digital (Virtual) Libraries

Digital libraries are “information products and services that are organized, described, and delivered through technology” (Gregory and Rudersdoft, 2015). Digital libraries can be services provided by physical libraries or they can be completely virtual and provided by information organizations that do not have a physical presence. Virtual libraries such as those that are found in the 3D environment, Second Life, have successfully provided "nontraditional information services utilizing the unique virtual reality context to emphasize and support social engagement and communication" (Chow et.al., 2012).

Mission

Most digital libraries can be described as services provided by public, academic, or special libraries rather than a separate organization. This is mostly true except for virtual environments that do not have a physical presence. For example, the Rockcliffe University Consortium has one of the largest and most well-known libraries in Second Life. Its mission as a global online organization is “dedicated to the advancement of service, education, and research in 3D virtual environments (S.E.R.V.E.) through collaborative ‘work-as-play’ initiatives including networking, journals, conferences, forums, academic programs, research and development, and virtual prototyping. Our core competencies center on just-in-time education methods and best practices using virtual technologies” (Rockcliffe University Consortium, 2016).   Another virtual library in Second Life, called the Community Virtual Library “provides free library resources and services to the residents of Second Life.  CVL provides a demonstration virtual library with open source content, and has exhibit, presentation and meeting space available to CVL members and affiliated groups” (Community Virtual Library, 2016). Another type of digital library that does not have a corresponding physical presence is The Digital Public Library of America which “brings together the riches of America’s libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available to the world. It strives to contain the full breadth of human expression, from the written word, to works of art and culture, to records of America’s heritage, to the efforts and data of science. DPLA aims to expand this crucial realm of openly available materials, and make those riches more easily discovered and more widely usable and used” (Digital Public Library of America, 2016).

Clientele

Different from the previous four types of libraries, it can be difficult to determine who the actual users of the digital library really are. Restricting access, like San José State University does to either students or local patrons helps in some cases, but if those that are utilizing the digital collections only never set foot into the library, it may be difficult to assess the needs of those using the collection. They may have a library card number but they may not even know what demographic the user falls into. What age group do they fall into? Are they male? Female? Transgender? Are they parents and how many kids do they have and how old? And determining the demographics of the users may be more difficult because it is much easier to blow off a survey request presented electronically than it is when asked face-to-face. It is also easier to not quite tell the truth. Interestingly, I moderated a virtual discussion on avatar identity in Second Life recently. What I learned from this experience is that most people would prefer that those they interact with on-line not know what they look like in the physical world. There are many reasons for this including security, safety, embarrassment of physical appearance, and lack of ability. The point is that contrary to what we are used to in the physical world, virtual interactions may not be a realistic representation of what would occur in the same situation in the physical world.

Funding, Staffing, & Governance

Funding for digital libraries that exist as part of the services provided by public, academic, and special libraries is normally provided in the budget of the library for collections. For other types of virtual libraries, funding may come as part of grants. For example, the Digital Public Library of America has grants from Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Arcadia Fund, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Institute of Museum and Library Services, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Whiting Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.  Other virtual libraries like Rockcliffe and the Community Virtual Library on Second Life are funded by donations from people who attend events and use the libraries. Governance for these virtual entities may be done by the owners or creators or by a democratic election within the community that uses the services. In many cases, such as those that have an existence in Second Life, staffing is provided on a volunteer basis.

Services

Probably the most important skill that a digital librarian needs to have is to stay up-to-date on technological changes (Gregory and Rudersdorf, 2015).  This allows the digital librarian to offer the most up-to-date services available. In physical locations, librarians are typically available to help patrons find the information they need. If the patron is off campus, then they will either need to enlist help from librarians through email or chat if they are not familiar with how to use the services and they are unable to have their questions answered through the on-line user manuals. For virtual libraries such as those in Second Life, the types of services range from reader advisory, instruction (including information literacy and orientations to the 3D environment), educational events such as lectures and conferences, as well as virtual book, art, and other educational displays. Some of these may be interactive where the ability to talk or chat with people in real-time exists or informational displays where people can interact with the materials at their own pace.  Other types of virtual services such as those available at the Digital Public Library of America are two-dimensional, hyperlinked information in the form of text and images, again allowing users to discover and learn at a pace that is most comfortable for them.

Coursework & Work Experience

The combination of my coursework during my MLIS, volunteering at the local public library, along with the relationships and experience I have had with the special library at the company where I work has prepared me for this competency. In INFO-200, I learned about the different types of libraries and how they were organized based on mission, usage, clientele, and governance. In INFO-204, I learned how managers run an information organization based on the type of organization they work in. I had an assignment in which we were required to interview a practicing manager and then submit a paper capturing what I learned about the library the manager runs, as well as job responsibilities and every day issues that crop up. I include as part of the evidence for this competency the paper I submitted for this assignment as it shows what I learned about managing a special library. I also learned how managers identify the big questions their organizations face when determining what problems and issues to focus on. I include in my evidence a discussion post where I identify three big questions that special libraries face.  In another assignment for the same course, I worked with a group of people on determining the best resources for fostering collaboration among special libraries. I am also including this assignment as evidence because it shows my ability to identify important resources that specifically target a type of library, in this case special libraries, based on a particular goal (in this case, fostering collaboration). In INFO-287: Seminar in Information Science — Virtual Environments: Immersive Learning for Libraries and Archives, we had an assignment in which we were required to locate professional organizations for libraries and other educational groups within virtual worlds. I am including this as evidence because it shows my experience with determining how to connect with organizations that support virtual world libraries. In INFO-287: Seminar in Information Science — Virtual Worlds: Life in Tudor times, we had an assignment where we were required to visit a virtual world library and report back on the types of book and other virtual displays. I am including this evidence as it shows my ability to evaluate the collections and services provided by a virtual library.  

For many years, I have worked with our corporate library both as a research scientist and as a library liaison between our small group and the main library at corporate headquarters. As the liaison, I worked with the corporate librarian at headquarters to help determine the types of digital collections that we would use halfway across the world. In the process I learned how to use all the databases we subscribed to as a company. By the time I moved back to the U.S. in 2009, all the separate physical libraries had been shut down and there was only one librarian left. I worked with her to help determine what the research community needs for their work. Finally, I have worked several summers at my local library district for the summer reading program wherein I help get kids signed up and give out prizes when they complete the program.

Evidence

The first evidence I am submitting is called “Vans_Interview Director of Corporate Research Services_2.doc ” and it can be found on the evidence page for this competency. In this paper I describe an interview I conducted with the Director of Corporate Research for a large technology company. As a special (corporate) librarian, she described for me her job duties over the years, starting out as a librarian in a physical library at the company and continuing to her current position as the go-to person for company executives for information in support of decision making within the company. She also describes her frustrations during yearly contract negotiations with digital content providers and the fall-out with changes in copyright laws. This very eye-opening interview helped me to understand how librarians at special libraries juggle the information requirements of executive and research staff, shoe-string budgeting issues, and other challenges like copyright law in order to provide services in a timely and relevant manner to their clientele.

The next evidence is called “Big_Questions.pdf” and can also be found on the evidence page. This discussion demonstrates my ability to determine what types of issues are faced by special libraries. The questions I came up with can be found on page 2 and show my grasp of the types of challenges with which special libraries need to deal.

The next evidence is “Special Libraries_submitted_2.doc”, again found on the evidence page.  This assignment for INFO-204 was a group assignment in which we were required to come up with a series of resources that helped to address the issue of collaboration between special libraries. Included in these resources were organizations that special libraries could turn to for support, people whose position and expertise could be utilized for help, collections materials that special libraries can use to develop collaborations, and publications that directly handle the issue of collaboration between special libraries. Through this assignment, I learned how develop a disparate set of support materials that addresses a specific issue for a particular type of library.

The next two articles of evidence relate to virtual libraries. The first, “Assignment 3_2.docx” on the evidence page, is an assignment that was completed for INFO-287: Seminar in Information Science — Virtual Environments: Immersive Learning for Libraries and Archives. This assignment required us to find professional organizations that support libraries, educational, or non-profit activities in virtual worlds. The main idea here is develop a professional network of people you can reply on for mutual support. On pages 2 and 3 of the assignment, I show that I am a board member of the largest community library in Inworldz, and as part of this professional organization I help to organize book displays, art exhibits, and other virtual events that occur at the virtual library. This evidence shows I am able to develop the professional network I need to help in the running of virtual libraries.

The final evidence is “Ning Discussion_2.docx”, the last link on the evidence page. This is a discussion that was posted during INFO-287: Seminar in Information Science — Virtual Worlds: Life in Tudor times. This assignment required us to visit a virtual library or museum and evaluate the displays, products, and services available there. I visited the Rockcliffe virtual library and the evidence is my evaluation of that virtual library. This evidence show my ability to evaluate collections, services, and displays in virtual libraries as well as other virtual information organizations.

Conclusions

I believe that my coursework at SJSU iSchool, my experience as a corporate librarian liaison, and my volunteer work at the local public library has prepared me for this competency. While much of my experience has focused on special and virtual libraries, I believe the evidence shows I have a good grasp on the general issues of staffing, budgets, and governance while understanding the differences between missions, services, and clientele for different types of libraries. I feel I would be able to transfer my knowledge and skills from the coursework and work experience to any of the types of libraries discussed here.  

References

Abram, S. (2015). Librarianship. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

American Library Association. (2015a). The State of America’s Libraries: A report from the American Library Association, 2015, Rosa, K. editor. American Libraries Magazine, special issue. Retrieved from: http://www.ala.org/news/sites/ala.org.news/files/content/0415_StateAmLib_0.pdf, Accessed April 1, 2016.

American Library Association. (2015b). Number of Libraries in the United States. Retrieved from: http://www.ala.org/tools/libfactsheets/alalibraryfactsheet01, Accessed April 1, 2016.

American Library Association (2015c). Library Operating Expenditures: A Selected Annotated Bibliography. Retrieved from: http://www.ala.org/tools/libfactsheets/alalibraryfactsheet04, Accessed April 1, 2016.

Chow, A.S., Baity, C.C., Zamarripa, M., Chappell, P. Rachlin, D. and Vinson, C. (2012). The information needs of virtual users: A study of Second Life libraries. Library Quarterly, 82(4), pp. 477-510.

Community Virtual Library. (2016). About page. Retrieved from: http://www.infoisland.org/about-cvl, Accessed April 1, 2016.

Dee, C.R., Abram, S. and Hunt, D. (2015). Information centers: Special libraries. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

Digital Public Library of America. (2016). About page. Retrieved from: http://dp.la/info/, Accessed April 1, 2016.

Gilman, T. (2015). The learning and research institution: Academic libraries. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

Gregory, L. and Rudersdorf, A. (2015). Digital resources: Digital libraries. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

Harlan, M.A. (2015) Literacy and media centers in the twenty-first century: School libraries. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

McCook, K. (2015). Community anchors for lifelong learning: Public libraries. In: Information services today: An introduction, Hirsh, S., editor. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD.

Pew Research Center. (2015). Libraries at the crossroads. Retrieved from: http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/09/15/libraries-at-the-crossroads/, Accessed April 1, 2016.

Rockcliffe University Consortium. (2016). Main page. Retrieved from: http://urockcliffe.com/, Accessed April 1, 2016.

Rubin, R.E. (2010). Foundations of library and information science, 3rd edition. Neal-Schuman Publishers. New York, NY.