Competency B: Library Environments

“Here’s your library card!”
“Thank you, Mrs. Hushbaum–”

“Quiet! No talking in the library!”

Lori Beth Denberg and Amanda Bynes in All That, “The Loud Librarian”

Introduction

There are many types of libraries, but all libraries ultimately have the same goal: education, outreach, and community efforts. Whether public, special, or academic (including school libraries) there are many ways to engage patrons of libraries everywhere. While these libraries share similar goals, they also have different aims. For example, academic libraries are built primarily for those in academia, such as university libraries. These libraries have a duty to their students to produce quality research and reference services so students can do their best academic work in higher education. School libraries must emphasize K-12 education and ensure that all students meet government-set benchmarks, such as standardized testing and reading comprehension levels. Public libraries, of course, deal with the public communities around them and make every effort to support those who live nearby, whether they be in higher education, grade school, or something else entirely, like a corporate career.

The Need for Public Spaces
“For the 21st century, there is no question about the necessity of more “public spaces,” especially in academic and public libraries. In the college and university setting, space for study, group work, for instruction, all necessitate more space as even more resources are acquired electronically. In public libraries, as community space generally diminishes, gathering spaces for programs and events, as well as a latte with neighbors, are becoming more important,” states Haycock (2018). Speaking of corporate, special libraries deal in these types of issues as well, although admittedly only for a small subset of people, primarily other employees of the organization. Depending on the size of the library, public libraries can have several librarians and assistant librarians. Academic libraries are expected to have more robust and dedicated reference desks. Special libraries can include arts and humanities spaces, design schools, and museums. 

Holley (2023) writes regarding potential job prospects for librarians: “Moving between public libraries is easiest because job duties, status of librarians, and organizational structure are similar. The wide differences in special libraries create obstacles. Academic libraries present a complex challenge with differences in status, multiple promotion paths, and more varying responsibilities. The final decision is often less rationally based than most believe. The good news is that staying put or moving around are important in the short run, but both strategies can lead to successful library careers.”

Prison Libraries and Their Challenges
There is an often-overlooked, however, type of library service that does not immediately come to everyone’s mind: the prison library. While many public libraries are responsible for services within prisons, the dynamic of these services is very different. Austin (2023) describes a scenario in prison systems where library services are heavily censored. While this has been an ongoing issue in recent years in all libraries, censorship is particularly encouraged in the prison system to keep prisoners from having ideas that allow them to think beyond the prison system or that might make inmates agitated. This is distinct from other library systems because there is presumably no concept of library patrons in other systems posing a risk by obtaining certain information. A concerning trend indeed that Austin (2023) aims to undo.

Conclusion
No matter where people choose to study, or where librarians work, there is always access to information. Librarians strive to always provide the highest level of service for every patron, no matter what setting they practice in. After all, this is a library.

Artifacts and Evidence
Artifact 1
Assignment:

Course: INFO 210 Reference and Information Services
Description:
This essay provides an overview and details my time working with the San Francisco Public Library for their Jail and Re-Entry Services (JARS) program. I was tasked to write one 20-page reference paper each for three inmates, who had previously asked personal questions for a volunteer to answer. Each person was written a tailored response, which was then reviewed by the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL). Their guidance in assisting with and reviewing these reference responses was invaluable to me, and this remains one of my favorite experiences in the MLIS program. While I found the lack of literature and reading material for these facilities heartbreaking, I know that people are working tirelessly to ensure that everyone has access to everything they might want to know. I would implore anyone interested in helping the vulnerable and underserved to consider this type of library as their primary workplace. There are so few people working for this overlooked subset of the population.

Artifact 2
Assignment:

Course: INFO 231 Special Libraries and Information Centers
Description:
In this pivotal interview with a Library of Congress employee, a librarian who works in the main reading room onsite. One of my questions asked was about the unexpected aspects or collections of the Library of Congress. The librarian informed me that there is a robust collection of occult objects and ephemera, including some of the artifacts from Harry Houdini. We also discussed the changing nature of libraries, including the effect that emerging technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), ChatBots, and automatic cataloging being heavily used to assist in mundane and everyday tasks. We only scratched the surface of daily life working at the Library of Congress, but their insights about working with the public and the underserved were eye-opening. A secondary comment from this librarian was that each day was different and unexpected and that they never knew what might happen from day to day. This further illustrates the versatility and beauty of both libraries and librarians and the unexpected treasures to be found within.

Artifact 3
Assignment:

Course: INFO 220 Visual Resources Curation and Arts Librarianship
Description:
This discussion commentary describes the budget issues that special libraries within artistic institutions (such as museums) face. Ultimately, during the COVID-19 pandemic, arts and museum libraries had to find creative ways to maintain patronage and attendance online. Fortunately, this revealed new demographics for many users once previously undiscovered. The other distinction between museums and art libraries versus other types of libraries is overall funding and budgeting. Many museums and art or design libraries only have only one librarian due to budgetary constraints, and this solo librarian does information study work for the entire entity or organization. There is also a huge need to have digital backups of physical art, design, and museum libraries. As there are so infrequently multiple library staff working onsite at any given special library, this is a tall order to make. Once again, budget constraints rear their ugly heads. Perhaps post-pandemic, the realm of museum studies and art galleries will have a renaissance of digitized archives; one can only hope that this is the case.

References
Austin, J. (2023). Denormalizing censorship inside carceral facilities. Journal of Intellectual Freedom & Privacy, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.5860/jifp.v8i2.8179

Haycock, K. (2018). What is a library? What is a librarian? An introduction. In K. Haycock & B. E. Sheldon (Eds.), The portable MLIS: Insights from the experts (2nd ed.). Libraries Unlimited.

Holley, R. P. (2023). Should I stay or should I go? Choosing a path for career development. Journal of Library Administration, 63(3), 394–401. https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2023.2177929