hiring librarians

[Karen G. Schneider]

One of the things that struck me in reading Martin Cohen's very succinct
list of requirements is that he sounds as if he is describing several
different people (and it's quite possible he's suggesting this--I'm not
implying he isn't!).  In other words, all of those skills are important in
maintaining a library website, but they don't necessarily need to be
concentrated in one person, nor do I think they could be, in most cases.
The person who is a whiz at Unix and C and Internet security and Perl is
not necessarily the same one who intimately understands HCI and other user
requirements.  The folks who maintain the Oracle database may not always
have a  real understanding of which fields are most appropriate, or what
the output should look like.  And (as is true in every profession) the
innovator/imagineer who dreams up the whole new way of doing things is not
often the same person who understands what it takes to keep the system
running from day to day.  For one thing, if it's a library website of any
magnitude, there is not enough time in the day to play all those roles!  Of
course, in small libraries, you have folks who wear many hats, but that's
always been true, and a small library can probably maintain a good website
with far less sophisticated tools than of the Unix/Perl sort.

However, this is not to say these tools aren't essential, but just the
opposite--that the new librarianship will have these skills distributed
throughout all workers.  Right now it is still common to hear someone say,
"I have someone good at the Internet, so I can fill those other positions
with traditional librarians."  This, I think, is crux of the problem--that
as others, including Martin, have suggested, we do librarianship no service
by allowing students to graduate and practice as "librarians" when that
phrase is meaningless insofar as it translates to actual technical skills
(and connotes a willingness and aptitude to focus and develop in technical
areas).  Many of us are self-taught, but just as it is possible to pass the
Bar without going to law school, we ought to be able to demonstrate (and
perhaps develop) core skills through some certification process--and we may
need to qualify what kind of librarian we are, just as doctors specialize.


We've had this discussion before, and it is truly relevant to WEB4LIB, but
not once on this or any other list have I ever heard a peep from the ALA
accreditation folks.  Has anyone else?  Where do they stand on requiring
technical skills?  What is their position on this?  How do they ensure it
is happening?  Anyone know?  Until we redefine how librarians are born, we
will not redefine how we live.




------------------------------------------------------------------
Karen G. Schneider * kgs at bluehighways.com * schneider.karen at epamail.epa.gov
Author, The Internet Access Cookbook (e-mail Neal-Schuman at icm.com)
Director, US EPA Region 2 Library * Cybrarian * Columnist, American Libraries
Visit our library at our new URL: http://www.epa.gov/Region2/library/
These opinions strictly mine!