Librarianship is constantly confronted with unexpected and quickly evolving sociotechnical challenges, yet the documents that define the core professional competencies for librarians are infrequently updated. Based upon survey responses collected from 383 working librarians located in the United States, we describe a set of gaps between current…

In 2018, after a failed search for the Executive Director of the American Library Association (ALA), ALA members put forth a ballot initiative to determine whether the educational requirements for the position should be modified, in part, to expand the potential applicant pool. With this research, the authors examined if current ARL administrators…

Since the late 1970s, the access services librarian or equivalent position has become commonplace in academic libraries, and degreed professionals have been sought for these positions since the beginning. In 2009, David McCaslin, California Institute of Technology, examined the place of access services in American Library Association-accredited…

Academic libraries in Japan are well resourced by international standards, and support Japan's internationally recognized research capability well, but there are also ways in which they reflect Japan's strong bureaucratic culture. Recent changes to the status of national university libraries have seen a new interest in customer service, and…

Eighteen scholarly papers and twelve abstracts comprise the content of the fourteenth annual Brick and Click Libraries Symposium, held annually at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of librarianship.…

Issues 266 through 282 of "Fast Facts" from the Library Research Service present data collected from libraries in Colorado and throughout the nation. Topics addressed in these "Fast Facts" from 2009 include interlibrary loan in academic libraries, public librarian salaries, book, newspaper, and periodical prices from 2004 to…

Academic libraries now hire an increasing number of individuals to fill professional librarian positions who do not have the master's degree in library science. Academic libraries are also creating a wide range of new professional assignments that demand diverse educational backgrounds. Additionally, responsibilities formerly carried out by…

In this article, the author discusses his immediate concerns about working at Butler Library at Columbia University. He discusses the structure of the library system and voices his concerns about the structure. The structure is best described as a stratified pyramid. The librarians hired into the "upper base" are either specialists without an MLS…

Many movers and shakers inspire admiration and even awe, but those who inspire love are the mentors who have changed lives. That is why many grateful librarians nominated Linda Golian-Lui and George Oberle. Both of them were accidental librarians, work-study students whose supervisors encouraged them to become paraprofessionals, and then…

Recognizing the paraprofessional as a valued asset for the accomplishment of routine library services and techniques while freeing the professional librarian for those duties truly requiring a professional education, this paper presents academic library administrators with an inservice training handbook to prepare and improve the skills of library…

Presents data on the educational requirements for middle managerial positions in academic libraries, and discusses the comments of middle managers and administrators concerning the management and administration courses offered by the schools of library and information science. (Author/JPF)

Discussion of the acculturation of academic librarians to faculty positions focuses on the processes of acculturation, including selection, sequestration, instruction and apprenticeship, sanctioning, certification and sponsorship, and mentoring. Difficulties with this process specific to librarians are considered, and suggestions for improving…

Discussion of the role of systems librarians (i.e., librarians responsible for library computer systems) reports the results of a survey of academic libraries that examined the duties and responsibilities performed by systems librarians and the knowledge level and skill level required by new systems librarians. (four references) (LRW)

Discusses principles of law library management and presents three problem solving exercises for law librarianship training. American Bar Association standards for law school libraries are presented, with interpretations, and appendices provide a job description for an assistant law librarian and bylaws of the American Law Schools concerning…

Addresses problem of vertical stratification (belief that career path must be pursued in one type of library) in academic research librarianship. Highlights include job opportunities; misconceptions concerning inappropriate specialization and nature of academic research library management; consequences of institutional, individual, and…