Library Jobs, 2011

The October 15th issue of Library Journal is always a "must read," especially if you're looking for a job in the information profession. This year's cover article, "A Job by Any Other Name: A Few Bright Spots Shine for the Class of 2011," provides happier news than recent past years, though salaries in the western US have apparently dipped.

The most fascinating part of the article, however, is the titles of the jobs recent grads are acquiring:

Top Five Job Titles: 

Archivist

Digital Services Librarian/Coordinator

Information Resources Manager

Learning Resource Center Manager/Coordinator

Reference Librarian (who says reference is dead?)

New & Unusual Job Titles (LJ's phrase, not mine):* 

Digital Asset Manager

Emerging Technology Specialist

Health/Science Informatics Administrator/Analyst

Technology Development Librarian

User Experience Designer

What's important to understand here is that the article is addressing recent MLIS grad placements, so all the jobs listed above relate to entry-level positions. If you didn't know before, I'm hoping you'll certainly see now why Management is a core course.

*I doubt that any of these titles will seem "new" or "unusual" to my students!

West Hollywood Library

Lately I’ve been feeling almost despondent about the failing economy and its effect on public libraries.  Not only are services being cut at a time when library usage is at an all-time high, but my students can’t find jobs when they graduate.

My spirits were lifted considerably yesterday, however, when I attended the grand opening of the new West Hollywood branch of the County of Los Angeles Public Library.  The two-story facility is beautiful but simple, with a magnificent view of West Hollywood and the Pacific Design Center directly across the street.  And two of my former students have just been hired there as permanent librarians, which for me was even more exciting than seeing the hundreds of people flooding into the new library!  It was a wonderful occasion and a perfect reminder of just how important public libraries continue to be to their communities.

The library (on the right) and Pacific Design Center across the street

Crowds rushing in

Interior: Decorative tree above and alongside the staircase

Interior: Wooden ceiling with curved features

Children's storytelling room (exterior made to look like a packing crate - fun!)

The view from the 2d floor interior: West Hollywood

Parking lot murals: Shepard Fairey (top) and Kenny Scharf (bottom)

Approaching the library from the south - Pacific Design Center reflected in the glass

P.S.  Too crowded to get photos, but two of my favorite parts of the new branch: the circulation desk has been replaced by self-checkout machines and a “customer service” desk, plus the librarians work at a desk that implores patrons to “ASK ME.”  Love it!

Remembering 9/11

I was appalled when I read in the L.A. Times (“A Challenge for Teachers and Students” by Teresa Watanabe) this morning that, at least in California, instructors are given only 45 minutes to teach students about 9/11.  Now I don’t happen to think that 9/11 is the single most important event ever in U.S. history.  But I do believe that it has, so far, been the most influential event of the 21st century and that if young people are to, at all, objectively consider why our country is where it is today, then they must learn about and discuss the ramifications of this critical event.  If teachers aren’t allowed to conduct these conversations, then it’s up to public librarians to do so.

I was president of the California Library Association (CLA) when the terrorists struck on 9/11.  Although I was grieving like everyone else, I also saw the opportunity for librarians to take a lead in the local, as well as national, healing process.  And so I wrote a column, called “Light in Times of Darkness,” for CLA’s now defunct newsletter California Libraries, urging my colleagues to use their professional skills to help others move through their mourning and confusion. Ten years later, I believe this admonition remains just as relevant. If you think so, too, then please read on.

“Light in Times of Darkness”

The ruins of what once was the World Trade Center are still smoldering as I write this column.  Emergency crews are working around the clock to rescue people trapped under the rubble.  Medical personnel, counselors, and religious leaders are all caring for the survivors.  Everyone has a role to play in overcoming the crisis.  Even my husband, who works in radio here in Los Angeles, is on 24-hour alert in case a late story breaks and all hands are required at the station.  In the library profession, many of us are asking ourselves what we can do to help others in such a time of dire national need.

Like most of you, I was riveted to my television set watching the unbelievable events unfold on September 11th.  As a human being I was outraged by the deliberate acts of violence perpetrated against the innocent people of New York City and Washington, DC.  As a librarian and educator, however, I was fascinated by the reporters trying to cover the details of the disaster as objectively and thoroughly as possible.  Although horrified, I was nonetheless grateful for the FAA’s visual documentation of the flight paths taken by the hijackers and even for the amazing footage that captured the destruction of their ultimate destinations.  As shocking as these images were, they remain primary evidence of the careful planning that went into the execution of these heinous acts.  Even more poignant were the accounts of the people who viewed and/or experienced the disaster first-hand.  Their stories create a context which supports the enormity of the events of that day.  Pictures of airplanes flying into buildings may provide us with irrefutable fact; but it’s the eyewitness accounts that help us understand the underlying truth of what really happened.

Unfortunately, in the days following the disaster, the media have become so frenzied to report whatever they see, the full picture is sometimes obscured by the sensationalism of the moment.  As Los Angeles Times commentator Howard Rosenberg recently noted, TV newscasters have a bad habit of reporting information without first sorting it out.  That, of course, is why we are so important.  Unlike other professionals, librarians are obligated to objectively provide the information people need to make sense of this national tragedy.  

So how do we proceed?  We do this by practicing keen collection development skills that emphasize accurate and balanced sources of information.  Certainly our shelves are full of materials describing and lauding the American way of life; but books about our possible enemies must also be represented to help us understand what motivates their actions.  Furthermore, we must assist our users in navigating the sometimes murky depths of the Internet.  Which pieces of virtual information are trustworthy and which are not?  Which are created with the sole purpose of inciting hatred and prejudice and which are not?  We may choose not to block access to inflammatory websites, but we must then be equally vigilant in promoting more reliable and objective sources of information if these are indeed what our customers want.

As reference librarians, we must also keep up-to-date on the issues of the day so we can answer our patrons’ questions intelligently.  Although we ourselves may not be able to ease their minds, we should at least know enough of the situation to make an appropriate referral.  In addition, we should provide space in our facilities where people can talk to each other about their concerns and fears.  There is much we can do to help others cope with the crisis and prepare for the days ahead. In particular, we can invite local officials to hold a town hall meeting in the library’s community room; present programs and storytimes that inspire hope and leadership; bring in experts to discuss emergency planning; and create bookmarks or webliographies of local social service agencies.  

By providing access to all necessary information the library remains an ever-important source of enlightenment, especially in times of darkness.

Source:  California Libraries (October 2001): 1, 13.

The Side Gig

Although I swore I’d never attend another ALA conference in New Orleans (too damn hot!), I couldn’t resist the opportunity to be on a panel of librarians who, like me, work several jobs. The program was called “The Side Gig: How to Supplement Your Income in Tough Economic Times” and featured seven women, including me, who hold down a variety of jobs—everything from dog-walking to moonlighting as hourly reference librarians. Some even contribute articles to a number of information-based websites, like Groupon and Patch.com. It was fascinating to hear just how creative librarians can be when full-time employment isn’t available.

My own story is slightly different. For the past 16 years, I’ve voluntarily chosen to work part-time. In 1995, I quit my full-time public librarian job to pursue a Ph.D. in library science. Since receiving my doctorate in 2000, I’ve managed to cobble together the equivalent of 40 hours (or more!) of work a week, despite being employed only part-time. I prefer working at home and really like the variety of opportunities that come my way. Besides, if I were laid-off from one of my part-time gigs, I could live on the income from the other job(s), if necessary. I am also lucky to have a husband whose well-paying job is fairly secure.

Tips on Becoming a Part-Time Teacher

I work part-time for the California State Library. I consider this my “real” job because it’s permanent and pays benefits. I’ve also taught MLIS courses for more than two decades—first for the San José State University’s School of Library and Information Science (1991-2000) and since 2000 for the UCLA Department of Information Studies. Teaching can be emotionally as well as financially rewarding, but is, of course, not for everyone.

If you are thinking of becoming, say, an adjunct professor who teaches an occasional master’s-level course—or even classes for a local library technology program—I strongly recommend that you start small by first making presentations before non-library groups (e.g., Rotary, campus clubs, etc.). This will help test whether you like public speaking and allow you to practice organizing your thoughts into a coherent and compelling presentation. If you do well, you might then decide to volunteer to be on a library conference panel or offer to guest lecture as part of a library course.

The next step would be to pull together a full-blown workshop (2-4 hours) on a professional or personal topic you know well. Potential opportunities include local library conferences, university extension courses, and even “learning annex” type workshops. Do you have what it takes to hold people’s attention for several hours? Are you able to present your knowledge in a way that encourages others to learn from you?

Conducting a successful workshop can be bliss; but teaching a multi-week course is often something altogether different and much more complicated. How does one create a semester-long curriculum covering lots of different topics? Which criteria should be used to grade papers? How do we keep our students consistently engaged from week to week? One of the best ways to answer these questions is to team-teach with an experienced instructor before venturing out on your own. This is especially important if it’s been several years since you’ve been inside a classroom yourself.

Once you’re ready to become a part-time instructor, you can contact local schools and let them know what topics you teach. Salary often depends on a combination of teaching and work experience, plus level of education (i.e., Ph.D. vs. MLIS).

Tips on Freelance Consulting

In addition to teaching, I also occasionally accept freelance consulting gigs to either (1) manage a short-term project or (2) evaluate existent library services or programs. The secret to marketing yourself as a consultant is to develop an area of expertise (through research and/or experience) that few others have. Then, as much as possible, share your knowledge by publishing articles and presenting at conferences. You will also want to subscribe to relevant e-lists and immerse yourself in the literature about your area of expertise.

Once your name becomes associated with an area of expertise, you may get offers to speak at conferences or advise on projects. You should seriously consider all opportunities that come your way, even if it means going outside your comfort zone. I have a fairly notorious fear of flying. And yet, I have traveled to libraries around the country, conducting workshops on subjects I know well and am particularly passionate about. You can also create your own opportunities by applying for research grants in order to develop your expertise even further.

Final Words of Advice

1. Do a thorough self-inventory of your strengths and weaknesses. What skills and/or knowledge can you offer others as either a teacher or consultant? What limitations might keep you from pursuing certain opportunities—overly-committed work schedule? geographical restrictions? fear of flying?—and how will you overcome them?

2. No matter which path you take, stay connected to the library profession by keeping up with the literature and remaining active in library associations. Even while I was a doctoral student, people knew my name because of my work through the California Library Association.

3. Cultivate a strong network of colleagues. Good jobs will come your way if you’re a good worker, but it’s often “who you know” that gets you in the door.

4. Take advantage of opportunities that come your way and always follow-through. Cultivate a good reputation by meeting expectations.

5. And finally, if you’re going to work several jobs, be sure to create boundaries for yourself so you’re not completely consumed by work. This is especially important if you work at home, where it’s very easy to plug yourself into your computer from the moment you get up until you go back to bed that night. Trust me—you do not want your life to become the “side gig.”

Libraries Without Librarians

A Library Without a Librarian

A library without a librarian is like
A beehive without bees
A tree without leaves
A brownie without chocolate
A forest without trees
A head without a brain
A book without words
An ocean without water
A bird without wings
A zebra without stripes
A tailor without clothes
A barber without scissors
Blood without iron
A bank without money
A fish without gills
A turtle without a shell
All these things are bad, but a
library without a librarian is worse.

Written by members of the Rescue Our Librarians Club (4th- and 5th-graders at La Escuela Fratney, Milwaukee, WI)

I love this poem, which was posted by 5th-grade teacher Bob Peterson on his Rethinking Schools blog. The poem is part of his “A Librarian in Every School, Books in Every Home: A Modest Proposal” posting, a reaction to the news that his school librarian is being laid-off due to budget cuts.

Working with his students, Peterson calculated that it would cost the federal government $7,125,000,000 to pay the annual salary of a full-time librarian for every school in the country—the same as what’s spent in both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars every 25 days.

For more information on Peterson’s campaign to retain school librarians, see Rethinking Schools.

ALA vs. Comic-Con

Last week, my husband Tim and I spent two days in San Diego, attending Comic-Con, the largest pop-culture convention in the world. We spent one day cruising the enormous exhibit hall and another day seeing programs. It was exhausting but exhilarating.

With the American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter meeting coming to San Diego next January, I thought it might be fun to see how ALA conference stacks-up to Comic-Con. Get your scorecards ready!

Preliminary program

ALA: Schedules are released at least six months prior to the summer conference, so you can actually plan your itinerary well before paying for registration.

Comic-Con: You’re lucky if the schedule is made available two weeks in advance. But don’t wait last minute to buy tickets—this year, Comic-Con sold-out six months ahead of opening day.

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 0

Registration

ALA: Registration opens six months before the annual conference and four months before Midwinter. Summer registration can cost well north of $200 and some events, like pre-conference workshops and meal programs, cost extra.

Comic-Con: I paid $100 for a 4-day pass to this year’s Comic-Con. This included everything: preview night, exhibits, programs, art show, etc. My husband, who turned 60 last year, paid only $50 for senior rate. Registration begins a year in advance and remains open until the show sells out.

ALA: 0, Comic-Con: 1

Hotels

ALA: ALA provides hotel registration at the same time conference registration opens. Conference room rates are slightly cheaper than regular room rates, but the selection is much more limited. There’s no guarantee you’ll get the hotel you really want, but if you don’t send in your choices (up to six!) immediately, you may not get any hotel at all.

Comic-Con: Comic-Con provides hotel registration several months in advance. Convention room rates are slightly cheaper than regular room rates, but the selection is much more limited. The entire city of San Diego sells-out during Comic-Con, so I reserve my room a year in advance.

ALA: 0, Comic-Con: 0

Venues

ALA: Conference meetings and programs are usually held in surrounding hotel ballrooms as well as the convention center. For most cities, this means traveling from venue to venue via taxi or shuttle. With an average 20,000-25,000 attendees and some 2400 programs, annual conference can be very difficult to navigate.

Comic-Con: For the past several years, the entire Con has been held in the San Diego convention center. This year, a handful of events were also held in the neighboring Marriott hotel. Traveling from room to room is done by foot, though shuttles do transport attendees from and to their hotels. With attendance usually topping 130,000, the convention center is impossible to navigate. Comic-Con organizers need to equitably restrict attendance through some sort of ticket lottery, etc., or seriously consider moving to a larger venue (Los Angeles anyone?).

ALA: 0, Comic-Con: 0

Speakers

ALA: In recent years, ALA has played host to numerous luminaries, including Amy Sedaris, John Grisham, Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie, and, oh yeah, Senator Barack Obama, who went on to become . . . well, you know.

Comic-Con: This year alone, Comic-Con featured the following celebrities promoting their latest projects: Will Ferrell, Angelina Jolie, Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey, Jr., Seth Rogen, Joss Whedon, J.J. Abrams, and the cast of True Blood, to name just a few.

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 1

Exhibits

ALA: One of the highlights of conference every year is the enormous exhibit hall, where everything from books to high-end library technology is displayed. Wear your comfortable shoes, because it takes hours to walk through the exhibits. Even my husband, who is not a librarian, loves ALA’s exhibits.

Comic-Con: A big part of the Con is the enormous exhibit area, where everyone from Hallmark Cards (new Star Trek Christmas ornaments!) to Dark Horse comics to Lucas Films is hawking new products. It’s noisy and way too crowded (where’s the fire marshal when you need one?), but there’s always the chance you’ll run into Jon Favreau or William Shatner signing autographs or standing atop an exhibit booth, promoting his latest project. Wear your comfortable shoes and bring lots of patience, because it takes hours to walk through the exhibits. My husband, who is not a fan of science fiction/fantasy/comicbooks or crowds, hates the exhibits. [By the way, San Diego Public Library had a booth at the Con this year, so score one for the home team.]

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 1

Programs

ALA: Conference is so huge that many of the programs you want to attend will be scheduled at the same time. Sneaking from one program to another is usually difficult because of the distance between venues. Still, the speakers tend to be topnotch and the information shared is always inspiring and educational.

Comic-Con: The Con is so huge that all good panels are scheduled against each other (e.g., True Blood vs. The Green Hornet). Sneaking between programs is impossible because the lines are just too damn long. Still, if you manage to get into your favorite programs, you are often treated to wonderfully unexpected surprises—for instance, Barenaked Ladies showing up to sing the theme song from The Big Bang Theory or Harrison Ford making his very first Comic-Con appearance. Priceless!

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 1

Waiting on line

ALA: Most lines at ALA are for either book-signings, shuttles or onsite registration. Everyone is polite and patient.

Comic-Con: With over 130,000 people attending Comic-Con, you have to wait on line for everything: food, bathrooms, shuttles, autographs, and especially the panels featuring megawatt celebrities. Angelina Jolie’s fans camped out overnight to see the Salt panel Thursday morning. I got on line at 7:30AM, Friday morning, to see a panel at noon. Most Con-goers never see the inside of the highly coveted Hall H, where blockbuster movies are promoted, or Ballroom 20, where the most popular TV shows are discussed. Although they can be fun—misery does love company—Comic-Con lines have become far too prolific.

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 0

Bags

ALA: Librarians LOVE free book-bags and so ALA learned a long time ago to give one to every paying conference-goer. The bags are just big enough to carry the conference schedule and any other brochures, etc., you might pickup in the exhibits area.

Comic-Con: Fanboys and girls also love free bags and so this year every paying Con-goer was handed a gigantic bag advertising either a movie or TV show. Big enough to hide a small child, the bags are a good place to carry the mountain of vendor brochures distributed in the exhibit hall and on the street outside the convention center.

ALA: 0, Comic-Con: 1

SWAG (Stuff-We-All-Get)

ALA: The exhibit area is a veritable emporium of free books, pencils, book-bags (one can never have enough!), candy, posters, keychains, letter-openers, and all manner of tchotchkes that librarians absolutely adore. Thank heavens ALA provides a post office inside the exhibit hall or else many attendees wouldn't be allowed to fly home for all the “stuff” they’ve collected at conference.

Comic-Con: There are lots of “collectibles” to buy, but very few freebies at Comic-Con. If you’re lucky, you’ll receive a "fulfillment" ticket, which must then be redeemed at the “fulfillment center” in a remote part of the Marriott hotel. Your gift: either a t-shirt emblazoned with a TV show logo or a copy of a paperback novelization.

ALA: 1, Comic-Con: 0

Attendees

ALA: My husband always insists he can spot library conference-goers the minute we get off the plane. Librarians do, after all, tend to wear sensible clothes and look like they know where they’re going (because they do!). As much as we disavow the stereotype, most of us are obviously librarians.

Comic-Con: Fanboys and girls are just as obvious to spot, even if they’re not wearing costumes. A t-shirt that says “NERD” or “Beam Me Up, Scotty,” is as big a giveaway as a Princess Leia harem outfit or homemade Cylon suit. Unlike librarians, Con-goers wholeheartedly embrace their stereotype.

ALA: 0, Comic-Con: 1

FINAL SCORE: ALA 6, Comic-Con 6

Over the years, I’ve attended as many Comic-Cons as I have ALA conferences and I completely love both! Where else can I feel so comfortably surrounded by kindred spirits?

May the library profession live long and prosper!






Ballroom 20

Espresso Book Machine

I had the happy opportunity to visit the Grace Mellman Community Library in Temecula last week. The branch, which I hadn’t seen since it first opened in the 1990s, was recently remodeled. A festive multicolor linoleum-tiled floor now enlivens the children’s room and a previously imposing bank of computers has been replaced by a cozy reading area.

The star of the day, though, was the Espresso Book Machine, a device that prints books on demand. Patrons can either request an item from Flash Books, a database of some 3 million digitized items, or bring in their own manuscripts for publication. The project is funded through a Library Services and Technology Act grant, awarded by the California State Library to the Riverside County Library.

Starting at $8, the cost of printing Flash Books titles is very much in line with today’s mass market paperbacks. Publishing one’s own original book is far more expensive, however. Patrons pay $75 to have library staff prepare their manuscripts for printing. In exchange, they get two copies of the book, plus an electronic pdf file of the manuscript. Additional self-published copies cost between $8 and $15 to print, depending on the number of pages.

The actual printing of the book takes about 5 minutes. (Click here to see the Espresso Book Machine in action.) Pages are produced on one side of the machine, while the other side prints the cover. Once the cover is complete, it slides to the center of the machine, where glue is applied before the pages are dropped onto the inside spine. The cover and pages are then pressed together before the entire book is cut to size—6” x 9” is standard, though other sizes are also apparently available. This being a library, the excess page cuttings are used as bookmarks, p-slips, etc., and, therefore, are not wasted.

It was fun watching a book being created right before my eyes. But even more importantly, there seem to be numerous ways the library’s customers can benefit from this service. Besides the obvious advantage of having access to 3 million Flash Books titles, patrons can also publish an endless array of self-written materials: family histories, journals, teen poetry, learning aids, homeschooling texts, personalized children’s books, etc. In addition, manuscript fonts can be manipulated to create large print versions of books only available in regular-sized type. Staff can also print extra copies of school reading-list titles when all others have been checked out. Patrons can either purchase or borrow print-on-demand books. Those that are not purchased are then considered for possible addition to the collection.

On the down side, the Flash Books component is clunky at best. Accessible only by keyword, the database has no capacity for limiting or refining searches. A search of “Tom Sawyer,” for instance, not only brought up several editions of Mark Twain’s book, it also yielded an endless list of books about Twain, as well as items written by authors named Tom and/or Sawyer! Moreover, the Flash Books database is devoid of any bibliographic or content information other than title and author, making requests for specific editions or topics very difficult. Staff hope to one day use Flash Books in lieu of interlibrary loan, but the database will have to be seriously redesigned (by the vendor) before this can happen.

If the problems with Flash Books can be overcome, I think this project has the potential to add an extremely interesting dimension to public library service. Even without Flash Books, providing the ability to print quality copies of self-published works is an invaluable service for patrons accustomed to creating their own content on the ‘Net and elsewhere. Books, after all, promote literacy, whether they are written by famous authors or the kid down the street, and libraries are all about literacy. I’m excited to see what outcomes ultimately emerge from Grace Mellman’s Espresso Book Machine project.