I am able to compare the environments and organizational settings in which library and information professionals practice
Introduction
Librarians work in diverse settings. These settings will tend to share many common features. At the same time, they are likely to vary in important ways. In order to be able to perform their jobs effectively, librarians must understand the characteristics unique to each library setting. The librarian working in a public library must appreciate factors specific to public libraries. Academic librarians, school librarians, etc. must do the same within their own institutional and organizational environments. Through my SLIS coursework, internship experiences, and personal experience as a library patron, I understand the unique characteristics that distinguish different library settings. I have written institutional profiles of libraries as well as gained direct experience of organizational settings through internships in two academic libraries. These internship experiences and my research on different libraries give me the ability to compare the environments and organizational settings in which librarians practice.
Commentary
The four major types of libraries are public, academic, school, and special. The user populations of each type have distinctive characteristics and therefore demand unique library services. Below I compare each type of library in four areas: user population, collection development, range of services, and institutional organization. This comparison illustrates some of the unique features associated with each type of library setting.
User population
Since the mission of libraries is serving the information needs of users, variations among user populations is a significant feature of the library setting and influences all aspects of library services. For the most part, the patrons of a public library are the local community. The demographics of such communities will vary considerably. A community may be racially and ethnically homogeneous or racially and ethnically diverse. At minimum, however, users will represent diverse age groups, diverse educational backgrounds, and, in all likelihood, some degree of racial diversity. This diversity, in turn, manifests as diverse information needs – needs which the public library must strive to meet.
This diversity may be contrasted with the user populations of academic, school, and special libraries. There is no necessary connection between any of these types of libraries and degree of racial and ethnic diversity. One university may have an ethnically diverse student body; another, a relatively homogenous one. The same can be said for school and special library users. Nevertheless, each of these types necessarily has a less diverse user population in at least one important respect: school libraries exclusively serve children while academic and special libraries serve adults. This distinction in user populations is one of the primary factors influencing collection development, services, and instruction.
Collection development
Regardless of the type of library, collection development is guided by two overarching concerns: satisfying the needs of users and protecting intellectual freedom. In all types of libraries, a commitment to intellectual freedom helps ensure that selection policies are not influenced by personal biases and that selection decisions aim at creating a diverse collection relative to the mission and user population of the library. These common concerns do not necessarily manifest as common practices. The librarian’s commitment to satisfying user needs and intellectual freedom may result in quite different approaches to collection development depending on the type of library.
Public libraries tend to have the broadest range of users and the most ambitious organizational mission (relative to the other types of libraries): meeting both the educational and recreational needs of patrons. Given that the members of even a relatively homogenous community will have diverse information needs (both educational and recreational), collection development policies and decisions in public libraries will strive toward breadth, with an emphasis on current, popular materials and less concern to include highly technical and/or advanced works. Public librarians are also concerned to build collections that meet the diverse format needs of users. In addition to collecting print materials, collection development will include music, film, and literature in multiple formats (CDs, DVDs, and MP3s).
Collection development in an academic library is somewhat different. Academic libraries have a responsibility to serve the needs of faculty and students rather than the community at large. The mission of an academic library is not to satisfy any information need, but to meet information needs specifically associated with university-level coursework and research within academic disciplines. This entails building a collection focusing on academic disciplines. Compared to a public library collection, the collection of an academic library will tend to include highly advanced, technical words and little popular material. These general characteristics notwithstanding, collection development policies among academic libraries will vary significantly, depending on the institution’s academic programs, courses, degree offerings, and faculty research needs. Obviously, the collection needs of a small, liberal arts college are not the same as those of a large research university with doctoral level programs.
Collection development policies in school libraries and special libraries are in some ways analogous to those in academic libraries. Both types have narrower user populations, relieving them of the responsibility to satisfy the breadth of interests of a whole community of users. At the same time, a more limited user population has unique and diverse needs of its own. Like academic libraries, school libraries have a responsibility to support the curricula of their schools. They must provide materials that are age-appropriate and materials that inspire children to read, i.e., high-interest fiction and non-fiction that engage students’ interests.
Special libraries are unique in that they focus on materials within specific fields, e.g., law, medicine, or business. Because the scope of the collection is relatively narrow, collection policies may aspire (depending on budgetary constraints) to achieve both depth and comprehensive coverage within a specific field. Moreover, the users of special libraries are often professionals who depend on current, comprehensive coverage of their field or business. In fields like medicine, another characteristic of the special library is an emphasis on maintaining the currency of the collection and weeding outdated materials.
Services
Library settings are also distinguished by their services. Even though public libraries, academic libraries, school libraries, and special libraries may all offer similar – even identical – core services, there may also be good deal of service variation across these different types. Again, this variation stems from the need to meet the needs of distinct user populations.
Public libraries often serve heterogeneous user populations: diverse age groups, ethnicities, and interests. In addition, the public library may function as a kind unofficial community center. These characteristics inspire a wide range of public library services: reference services, book readings for children (sometimes even toddlers), homework support, gaming nights, events for teens, computer literacy classes, reader’s advisory, display areas for local artists, a place for local clubs to meet, public lectures, etc.
In contrast, the services in the other three types of libraries reflect their narrower user constituencies. Academic libraries must have services to support the academic needs of students and faculty. In some cases, these services will overlap those of the public library (e.g., reference). In others, they may be distinctive. For example, academic libraries often provide online access to extensive databases of scholarly journal articles and reference materials. They also tend to provide extensive educational resources: online tutorials and research guides, screencasts, and information literacy sessions and classes on using the OPAC, finding journal articles, distinguishing scholarly from popular sources, etc. Academic libraries may offer their users electronic delivery of documents requested through ILL. Some have also created information commons: spaces in the library that provide advanced technical resources (computers, printers, scanners, and multimedia workstations), collaborative workspaces, and strong technical support.
Like academic libraries, special libraries often serve users who need advanced and/or technical materials. Unlike academic libraries, special libraries generally do not have the same educational responsibilities as academic libraries. Consequently, services focus on the quality and accessibility of the collection and reference. Librarians in special libraries may also be expected to perform research for clients and prepare reports of search results.
The services provided by school libraries will vary considerably depending on the level (primary or secondary), policies of local school districts, and school budgets. This variation notwithstanding, the reference services in school libraries will tend to focus on helping students find age-appropriate reading and/or other media to meet educational and recreational needs. In addition, they tend to focus on building age-appropriate collections, literacy promotion, reader’s advisory, story time (with primary grades), and information literacy instruction suited to the level and needs of students. This may involve instruction on basic research skills, evaluating web pages, plagiarism, etc.
Organization
Institutional organization is another area where library settings vary. In this case, the variation is associated primarily with the size of the library rather than the type of library. However, since there is some correlation between type and size (e.g., special and school libraries tend to be smaller than many public libraries and most academic libraries), the organizational structures of libraries may be meaningfully compared in relation to library type as well as library size. Moreover, certain aspects of library organization may be uniquely associated with the type of library. For example, academic and school libraries are situated within larger institutions, and this entails a somewhat different management structure in comparison to most public libraries.
Because public libraries vary so much in size, it is impossible to make generalizations about the organization of public libraries. The organization of a large, urban public library will be significantly different than that of a small, rural library. For the purposes of this comparison, I describe a typical organizational structure of a large public library. The organization of smaller public libraries may be inferred from this example. The smaller the library, the simpler the organizational structure (i.e., more library functions become the responsibility of fewer units).
Large, public libraries are organized into units: “boards of trustees, library administration, public service units, . . . support service units” and “technical services” (Rubin, 2004, pp. 362, 365). The public library is controlled by a Board of Trustees. Though the library director is the highest managerial authority in the library, she does not make decisions as an autonomous agent but acts on behalf of the Board. In addition to the director, the administration unit may include a “treasurer, assistant or associate directors, and heads of administrative departments such as personnel, planning, and information systems” (Rubin, 2004, p. 363). The large public library will generally have several different public service units. In addition to reference services and access services (or circulation), the library may also have an audiovisual department, an archives and/or special collections unit, and a special services unit (i.e., services for the blind and visually impaired, prisoners, nursing home residents, etc.). The units most commonly associated with technical services include acquisitions, serials, cataloging, and preservation. Government publications and integrated library systems may also be included within technical services (Rubin, 2004). Finally, the large public library will have several support units: maintenance, public relations, security, and integrated library systems. These units may be classified in different ways depending on the library, and few libraries will have all the units listed above.
Managerial control is somewhat different in the academic library. Academic libraries are situated within larger institutions. A Board of Trustees or Regents will exercise authority over a college or university as a whole. The Board’s authority over the library is therefore mediated by the president or chancellor of the school, as well as other high-level university administrators. The Board and university administration will tend to exercise less direct control of the library, leaving the director of the academic library with more autonomous, decision making responsibility. The director will report to an academic dean (for example), yet at the same time function as a quasi-independent manager of the library. (Of course, ultimate authority over the library still rests in the Board and university administration.)
Another unique feature of academic libraries concerns branch organization. A public library may have branches in order to provide more convenient services to patrons in different geographical locations. A large academic library, on the other hand, may have “branches” dedicated to particular subject areas or academic levels. The example that comes immediately to mind is the Library at the University of California, Berkeley. The UCB Library “consists of Doe Library, the Bancroft Library, Moffitt Library, and more than 20 subject specialty libraries serving a variety of academic disciplines” (University of California Berkeley Library, 2008).
Certain unique features of academic library organization also stem from the more advanced research needs of its patrons. Academic libraries are more likely to have rare and valuable materials in their collections. The importance of preserving those materials and making them accessible to users lends itself to stronger preservation and digitization efforts in academic libraries. While I was an intern at UCSC’s McHenry Library, the library acquired the Grateful Dead archive. Items in the collection are currently being digitized to help make the collection accessible online. While public libraries may rely exclusively on copy cataloging, the technical services unit or special collection unit(s) of an academic library is more likely to include staff responsible for original cataloging because of the unique nature of some items in the collection. In general, academic libraries are likely to have independent units dedicated to special collections because of the responsibilities associated with handling these unique and/or valuable materials.
Interlibrary loan and especially electronic document delivery may play a more prominent role in the academic library. Because of the importance of government-supplied information in academic research, an academic library is more likely to have a government publications unit associated with technical services or reference. Finally, collection management is more likely to be associated with a distinct unit in the academic library and distributed among specialists in different subject areas. UCSC’s McHenry Library, for example, has a collection planning unit staffed by subject specialists.
The organizational structure of school and special libraries is much simpler than that found in public and academic libraries. There are no “units” in many (if not most) school libraries, just a single librarian or media specialist responsible for every function of the library: selection, acquisition, reference, instruction, etc. The number of employees in a special library will also be comparatively small. In LIBR 204 I worked with a group of students writing several management documents for the North County Branch of the Santa Clara County Law Library. Both the main branch and the North County Branch were each staffed by a single employee. In both school and special libraries, then, the functions distributed among various units in many public and academic libraries will be concentrated in a single, or perhaps a few, employees.
Like academic libraries, school libraries are always situated within parent organizations: an individual school and, beyond that, a school district. Ultimate authority over the library rests with the school board, though the librarian may have a good deal of managerial discretion within the constraints of school and school board policies. Occasionally, school boards may take direct action over a school library, as occurred in the famous Pico case adjudicated by the Supreme Court. In this highly unusual instance, board members surreptitiously removed books from a school library they found personally offensive.
Unlike school libraries, special libraries may be situated within a larger organization (e.g., a business, a hospital, a foundation) or function as independent organizations. In the first instance, ultimate control over the library will be exercised by the parent organization; in the second, it will most likely rest with a Board of Trustees. In both situations, the degree of managerial autonomy of library directors will vary. A Board or parent organization may take quite an active role in managing a library’s affairs, or it may give the librarian a good deal of discretion.
Evidence
As evidence of my mastery of this competency I am submitting three assignments. The first is the final report I submitted for an internship at UCSC’s McHenry Library. As an intern, I worked in the reference unit and helped staff the reference desk, answer reference questions via e-mail, and teach an information literacy session. Working in the library, I naturally gained direct experience with the reference librarians’ organizational setting, e.g., the physical layout of the reference desk, staffing arrangements, and job responsibilities. Through many informal conversations at the reference desk I became acquainted with other issues. In particular, I learned that librarians may have to contend with upper-level management who lack effective management skills. The morale among librarians at the reference desk was strong, but it was often challenged by the authoritarian management style of upper-level management. Librarians expressed additional concerns. These include issues with lighting and ventilation, building security, and disability access to the library. In contrast to the idealistic images I entertained prior to this experience, the internship gave me a more realistic sense of the organizational setting in which some librarians work.
The second assignment is a paper I submitted for LIBR 204. The paper is an organizational analysis of a small public library and touches upon many aspects of a small library’s organizational setting: physical surroundings, user population, services offered, management structure, staffing arrangements, and relations with the community and local government.
The third assignment addresses a different aspect of a library’s organizational setting: the larger institution within which a library may operate. Specifically, I provide statistical (especially budgetary) information about the CSU, Monterey Bay campus and its library. This information about the CSUMB campus is important because it affects the financial resources of the library. Campus information is important for another reason. Academic libraries must meet students’ information needs. To a large degree, these are correlated with the relative percentages of undergraduate and graduate students and the types of degrees offered.
Conclusion
Libraries of all types have a common mission: to satisfy the information needs of users. This common mission, however, is the basis of institutional and organizational diversity. The users of academic libraries tend to be different from the users of public libraries. Satisfying the distinct information needs of these different populations entails significant distinctions among collections and services. Consequently, librarians will find themselves working in diverse environmental and organizational settings. These different settings exercise unique professional demands. Librarians must have an appreciation for this diversity and an ability to compare different library settings. This knowledge makes it possible for the librarian to help provide the best services possible – services appropriate to the setting and organization. Through my coursework, internship experience, and research, I have gained a strong grasp for the nuances of different library settings, preparing me to flourish within a diverse range of professional environments.
References
Rubin, R. (2004). Foundations of library and information science. New York: Neal-Schuman.
University of California Berkeley Library. (2008). Description of the UC Berkeley libraries. Retrieved August 19, 2009, from http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/AboutLibrary/description.html