College and Research Libraries ROBERT B. DOWNS and ROBERT F. DELZELL Professional Duties in University Libraries The recommended ratio of professional to nonprofessional staff mem- bers in university libraries varies from 50-50 to 33-67. Clear demarca- tion of .the respective duties of each group is needed not only if faculty status is to be attained by the former but also in the interest of human economy. The universities of California, Illinois, and A-fichigan have done more than most to develop detailed job specifications Summaries of descriptive data are given from each of .these three, and additional comments are drawn from other sources, including: position classification standards of the United . States Civil Service Commission; a study made in 1948 by ALA; and other institutional practices. Edu- cational preparation of librarians is discussed. Common to all profes- sional assignments should be administrative authority) policy initiation, bibliographic expertise, specialized subject or linguistic background, or ability to plan new programs by library technology. lr IS GENERALLY AGREED that library staffs should be composed of two cate- gories of workers: ( 1) professional li- brarians performing duties of an educa- tional and research nature, requiring professional training for competent per-. formance; and ( 2) clerical and other nonprofessional or subprofessional per- sonnel who will be responsible for more elementary, routine, and mechanical tasks. Considerable support exists among administrators for a further breakdown, i.e., for three rather than two divisions: professional, subprofessional, and cler- Dr. Downs is Dean of Library Adminis- tration and Mr. Delzell is Library Adminis- trative Assistant in the University of Illinois. This paper is a preliminary· report of the Committee on Academic Status of ACRL's University Libraries Section, and comments concerning it are invited by the Committee. They should be addressed to Dr. Downs. 30/ ical. The rationale is that in large librar- ies many subprofessionals, who would not require library school preparation, could be employed and trained to achieve satisfactory skill in the performance of a few narrow phases of library work. The percentage of the staff that ought to be classified as professional or aca- demic and the proportion clerical or nonacademic usually varies with the or- ganization and size of the library. As a general rule, experts in administration believe, not more than one _ half of a university library staff should belong in the professional category, and a ratio frequently recommended is one-third professional and two-thirds·. clerical. Otherwise, it is probable that profes- sional personnel will be performing cler- ical and subprofessional duties. A recent investigation by Eugene D. Hart and William J. Griffith of the Uni- versity of Southern California, based on Professional Duties in University Libraries I 31 a list of one hundred duties equally di- vided between professional and nonpro- fessional, concluded that "professional librarians are involved to a significant degree in the performance of nonprofes- sional duties." Several reasons were sug- gested for such situations. 1. Library administrators and supervi- sors are often oblivious to the prob- lem and to the true nature of profes- sional library duties. 2. A general disregard commonly exists with respect to the assignment of nonprofessional duties to professional staff members. 3. Due to the general shortage of per- sonnel in libraries a pyramiding effect of duties results, and work assign- ments are sometimes- made to profes- sional and nonprofessional staff mem- bers without regard to the nature of these assignments. For university librarians the matter of definition of duties is of fundamental importance in the achievement and main- tenance of academic or faculty status. An essential first step in gaining proper recognition of librarians as members of the academic staff is making a clear dis- tinction and separation between profes- sional and clerical duties in libraries. The most valid objection to the accept- ance of librarians into academic circles is that in some libraries there are al- leged to be too many routine, nonpro- fessional jobs carried on by "profession- al" staff members. The administrator can hardly defend as professional such as- signments as checking in current peri- odicals, charging out books across a loan desk, filing catalog cards, typing orders, reading book shelves, keeping financial records, binding pamphlets, and all the other necessary but obviously subprofessional activities that go on in libraries. As a corollary, since there are only so many working hours in a day, librarians who are required to spend a substantial portion of their time in performing cler- ical routines must neglect opportunities to make important and useful contribu- tions of a professional character. The separation in actual practice of the two types of duties becomes more feasible as the library increases in size. In small colleges it is not unusual to find only one full-time librarian-with no assistance other than part-time stu- dent workers-who is therefore com- pelled to do something of everything, even janitorial services. Any institution which can justify the title of university, however, will operate its library on a higher level. Any absolute division between aca- demic and nonacademic or between pro- fessional and clerical duties may in some instances be impracticable. Unquestion- ably there are certain tasks borderline in nature which can be as well done by the skilled nonprofessional as by the be- ginning professional. Nevertheless the characteristics of the two are sufficiently dissimilar to permit reasonably clear dis- tinctions to be made. Much basic work has already been done in determining which library duties are professional and which are nonprofessional. The most de- tailed analysis was issued sixteen years ago by a subcommittee of the ALA Board on Personnel Administration, un- der the title Descriptive List of Pro- fessional and Non professional Duties in Libraries ( 1948). Therein library activ- ities are grouped under thirteen head- ings and professional and nonprofes- sional duties separated in each category. A few years later the California Library Association's Committee on Library De- velopment, under the chairmanship of Edward A. Wight, made a significant contribution to the field with its report entitled Separation of Professional and Non professional Work in Public Librar- ies ( 1952)' much of which has relevance for other types of libraries. The most recent comprehensive sur- . 32 I College & Research Libraries • January, 1965 vey and attempt to define kinds of re- sponsibilities comes from England in a small book issued by the Library Associ- ation in 1962: Professional and Nonpro- fessional Duties in Libraries; a Descrip- tive List Com piled by a Subcommittee of the Membership Committee of the Library Association. The English study acknowledges extensive dependence up- on the ALA list, but it takes into ac- count later developments in library sci- ence as well as practices peculiar to Britain. A number of other references bearing more or less directly upon the question of professionalism vs. nonprofessional- ism in libraries are appended. In connection with the present study university libraries in various regions of the country were asked to furnish job analyses or descriptions which might shed further light on the matter of defi- nitions. For the most part, the results were meager; either no job analyses had been done or the descriptions were too brief and general to be of value. Among the institutions which have developed reasonably detailed specifications for the several levels of professional librarians are the University of California, the Uni- versity of Michigan, and the University of Illinois. The organizational patterns are similar, each stating minimum quali- fications as to education, experience, knowledge, and ability for all categories, from beginners with professional train- ing but no experience, to advanced standards set for chief administrators. In general, no staff member is classified as professional without a college degree and a year of graduate study in an ac- credited library school, or equivalents. For purposes of illustration and com- parison, summaries of descriptive data for these three major university library systems follow: 1. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. Since the University of California libraries achieved academic status in 1962, sec- tions of the University Administrative Manual relating to libraries and librari- ans have been in process of revision and amendment. Currently under review are these criteria: Librarian I: Entry professional level. Performs a variety of professional li- brary work under direction. Service in this class would usually be for two or three years during which time careful supervision would be given in order that incumbents be prepared for more inde- pendent responsibility. Librarian II: Full professional level. Per- forms difficult professional work with considerable independence, applying knowledge of library methods and often of a specialized subject field. May super- vise nonprofessionals and/ or serve in a team leader role over other profes- sional librarians. Management and su- pervision, although they may be exer- cised, do not require the major portion of time. Librarian III: Performs complex profes- sional work and assumes responsibility for: (a) the administration of a moder- ately large department, branch, or unit; or (b) application of difficult analytical techniques to certain aspects of library operations; or (c) development and/or management of specialized collections involving selection of material, guidance in technical processing, interpretation of the collection, and provision of advanced reference service for users. Librarian IV: Positions in this class are characterized by substantial independent responsibility and action. Incumbents have over-all responsibility, frequently assignable in only general terms for: (a) the administration of a large branch, large department, or a group of depart- ments; or (b) application of difficult ana- lytical techniques to a number of aspects of library operations, frequently work- ing in great detail on a major element of activity; application of various tech- nologies, machines, and systems to sev- Professional Duties in University Libraries I 33 eral aspects of library operations or one broad aspect in great detail; or (c) de- velopment and/ or management of a sub- ject collection, selectively developed, to at least the general research level; a group of subjects selectively developed jointly for an academic program; and exhaustive area, language, or subject collection with responsibility for com- plex problems in developing the collec- tion. Librarian V: Positions in this class are characterized by a very high degree of independent responsibility and action. Incumbents have over-all responsibility, usually assignable in very general terms for: (a) the administration of a very large and complex department, branch, unit, or group of departments; or (b) ap- plication of complex analytical tech- niques to major aspects of library oper- ations and the development of new rou- tines and services, using advanced tech- niques from business and industry as well as from librarianship; or (c) devel- opment and/or management of: an ex- tensive collection in a major discipline, group of languages, or large geograph- ical area; an extensive specialized col- lection involving several subject fields and containing material of primary in- terest to researchers; an exhaustive col- lection covering a broad subject or im- portant segment of a subject. Assistant University Librarian: Positions in this class provide administrative as- sistance to the university librarian. In- cumbents are delegated responsibility for the work of groups of departments and for carrying out or directing work of general management, with authority to act within the limits of established policy. With the university librarian, they formulate new plans and policy and seek solutions to problems involving the whole library or major areas of the library. 2. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN. At the University of Michigan professional li- brarians have "equivalent" status rather than academic ranks or titles. As in Cal- ifornia, there are five classifications or groupings below the top level of library administration. The distinguishing char- acteristics and typical tasks assigned to personnel of each class are set forth as follows: Librarian I: This level constitutes the beginning professional level of librarian- ship and performance of professional duties. Includes elementary reference, cataloging or classification work, or per- formance of circulation or order routines requiring application of professional knowledge. Professional work performed is reviewed by supervisor for format, adequacy, compliance with instructions. Circulation and some service functions are performed independently but within a limited scope. Typical of such positions are: Performance of elementary refer- ance work with work reviewed upon completion, and covering a well-defined subject matter field; descriptive catalog- ing of material involving few problems in establishment of entries; adapting printed Library of Congress catalog cards; revising filing performed by cler- ical workers; subject cataloging, with revision, of material in a limited subject matter field with no deviations from approved guidelines; performance of cir- culation and order routines involving supervision of clerical workers, with pri- mary responsibility for professional func- tions. Administrative responsibility is not normally found at this level; per- formance of professional work in depart- mental libraries in which there is no final responsibility for library adminis- tration. Minimum qualifications: an AB or BS degree or the equivalent, and a graduate degree (fifth-year degree) in library science; in exceptional instances, specialized training and/ or experience may be substituted for part or all of the educational requirements. 34 I College & Research Libraries • January, 1965 Librarian II: This level includes all posi- tions the duties of which involve appli- cation of professional knowledge or ex- perience in supervision and/ or perform- ance of difficult, responsible tasks. Bulk of duties are performed independently; professional duties are subject to review, however, and supervisor is available for consultation when necessary. Typical of such positions are: Supervision of pro- fessional duties of average difficulty per- formed by lower grade professional em- ployees; performance of professional duties of a more difficult, technical na- ture; beginning level of responsibility for operation of a divisional library and providing of reference services therein and initial responsibility for book selec- tion and acquisition functions; initial responsibility for book selection or proc- essing in a centralized acquisitions or- ganization, where professional decisions are required; performance of circulation or order routines of a supervisory or ad- ministrative nature with responsibility for a small group of professional or sub- professional employees. Minimum qual- ifications: graduate degree (fifth-year degree) in library science. In excep- tional instances, specialized training and/or experience may be substituted for part or all of the educational require- ments; two years of professional library experience, for part of which graduate study beyond-or other than-the fifth- year library degree may be substituted. Librarian III: This level includes all po- sitions the incumbents of which perform independently, professional duties of a very difficult nature; or supervise per- formance of technical duties of a moder- ately difficult nature; or perform admin- istrative duties comparable in difficulty to professional duties above in a public service department of the library or divi- sional library; or serve as acting head of ·a large department, in the absence of the department head, in addition to car- rying out regularly assigned duties at the level of Librarian II. Typical of such positions are: unrevised descriptive cat- aloger of difficult material including sci- entific, serial, and foreign publications; subject cataloger of difficult material; principal administrative assistant to the head of a major department, with a def- inite assignment of specific administra- tive duties; supervisor of a divisional library of medium scope and complexity (size and scope of collection and nature of service demands are determinative). Qualifications: graduate degree (fifth- year degree) in library science. In ex- ceptional instances, specialized training and/or experience may be substituted for part or all of the educational require- ments; four years of professional library experience for part of which graduate study beyond-or other than-the fifth- year library degree may be substituted; administrative and supervisory experi- ence, where appropriate. Librarian IV: This level includes all po- sitions, the duties of which are to super- vise and/ or perform the most difficult, professional work; or to serve as assist- ant head of a large department; or to perform administrative duties as acting head of a large department in addition to regularly assigned difficult technical duties; or to be assigned responsibility for a major divisional library. Incumbent performs work without immediate su- pervision, with responsibility for pro- gram planning, library administration, or acts in an advisory and staff capacity to supervisory and administrative offi- cers. Typical of such positions are: su- pervisor and coordinator of difficult cat- aloging or classification; deputy head of a large department who may addition- ally perform difficult technical or refer- ence duties; supervisor of a divisional library of large scope and complexity (size and scope of collection and nature of service demands are determinative); head of a small department who super- vises work of a moderately difficult na- Professional Duties in University Libraries I 35 ture performed by professional and cler- ical personnel, with responsibility for administrative functions inherent in such a position; independent performance of extremely difficult professional duties re- quiring specialized knowledge and/or experience. Qualifications: AB or BS de- gree or the equivalent; graduate degree (fifth-year degree) in library science. In exceptional instances, specialized training and/ or experience may be sub- stituted for part or all of the educational requirements; five years of professional library experience for part of which graduate study beyond-or other than- the fifth-year library degree may be sub- stituted; demonstrated administrative and supervisory ability where appropri- ate; subject specialization where appro- priate. Librarian V: This level includes all po- sitions the duties of which are to super- vise the activities of a department, usu- ally through subordinate supervisors; in- cludes responsibility for staffing and as- signing duties; recommending establish- ment or major changes in policy and es- tablishing procedures within well de- fined library regulations. Included are positions of a policy-making purpose, which may not involve direct supervi- sion of a department, but whose author- ity and recommendations are of as re- sponsible and influential a nature as those at the department head level. Also included are the supervisors of major divisional libraries who bear primary responsibility for adapting and develop- ing the collections and services to · the advanced research and instructional pro- grams of the units served. Qualifications: AB orBS degree or the equivalent; grad- uate degree (fifth-year degree) in li- brary science. In exceptional instances, specialized training and/ or experience may be substituted for part or all of the educational requirements; five years of professional library experience for part of which graduate study beyond-or oth- er than-the fifth-year library degree may be substituted; demonstrated ad- ministrative and supervisory ability where appropriate; subject specializa- tion where appropriate, evidenced by a graduate degree in the subject field or the equivalent in training and/ or experi- ence. In the UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS library, where the professional staff has had aca- demic status since 1944, the grouping is similar, but by rank. The requirements as to education, experience, and personal qualifications are also closely analogous to those of the California and Michigan systems. The duties by level are de- scribed as follows: Library Assistants. Perform routine pro- fessional duties in the technical or pub- lic service departments of the library under immeJia · t . ~upervision. In the technical departments 111ay be assigned relatively difficult bibliographical .!?rob- lems requiring subject, bibliographic, or language specialization involved in the acquisition and cataloging of library ma- terials. In the public service depart- ments may give reference service to stu- dents and faculty, compile bibliogra- phies, give special instruction and as- sistance in the use of the card catalog and special indexes and assist in book selection. In some areas may supervise clerks or student assistants. Librarians with Rank of Instructor. Given more difficult assignments in the acquisition and cataloging of new li- brary materials; may assist in the train- ing and supervision of new professional, clerical, or student assistants; offer for- mal or informal instruction in the use of the library; assist with interlibrary loans and give reference service involv- ing difficult bibliographical problems which require subject, bibliographic, or language specialization and the use of unusual library sources and a knowledge 36 I College & Research Libraries· january, 1965 of the general library resources. May be in charge of smaller departmental li- braries or special reading rooms, assum- ing responsibility for reference work in special subject fields, selection and ac- quisition of books, periodicals, and other materials, assisting faculty and students in their class work and individual re- search problems, and training and su- pervision of their professional, clerical or student assistants. Librarians with Rank of Assistant Pro- fessor. Under general administrative di- rection have considerable latitude for the exercise of individual judgment in their positions; may have substantial re- sponsibility in the technical departments or may be in charge of departmental libraries or assistant heads of depart ments or departmental libraries; may act as consultants or cooperate with nation- wide library agencies Oi.1 policies of bib- liographicJil so·.1rces and· form; give lec- tures.0r conduct courses in bibliography and reference as part of the curriculum of a university department or the library school; if in charge of college or depart- mental libraries, they may serve on the college or departmental library commit- tee and attend faculty meetings, and must be familiar with the educational policies and objectives of their college or department and alert to curriculum changes in order to provide necessary library materials; have responsibility for reference or research work in their areas and assist faculty and graduate students with their research problems; through their knowledge of acquisition problems, book markets, publishers, resources of learned societies and scientific institu- tions and organizations, assist in devel- oping library resources; usually active in national and state library organizations and other educational associations. Librarians with Rank of Associate Pro- fessor or Professor. In this group are the dean of library administration, the asso- ciate directors for the public and tech- nical services, the assistant director of the public service departments, the per- sonnel librarian, the librarians of the medical center library and undergradu- ate library in Chicago, the library ad- ministrative assistant, the department heads (acquisition, cataloging, circula- tion, reference, and serials), and librar- ians of the large college and depart- mental libraries. The department heads and departmental librarians have re- sponsibilities comparable to those in the preceding rank. The personnel librarian is responsible, with the advice and ap- proval of the dean and two associate di- rectors, for securing all library personnel -professional, clerical, and student-and formulating and administering person- nel policies. The dean is responsible to the president of the university for the operation of the library and coordinat- ing its services with the educational pro- gram of the university. The associate di- rectors, through their department heads, are responsible for the work of their divisions; they advise with the dean on problems of general library policies, and the preparation of budgets. For comparative purposes, it may be useful to outline the characteristic duties and responsibilities of three grades of library clerks in the University of Illi- nois library, listed as follows: Library Clerk II. Assist in routine circu- lation and reading room services; give out information as authorized; prepare basic library records; do routine check- ing of records, catalogs, and trade bibli- ographies; receive, record, and route new acquisitions; make simple changes or additions in catalog and other rec- ords; do library filing; keep statistical records; handle mail and routine corre- spondence; repair books; prepare mate- rials for binding; assist in book inven- tory; supervise student assistants. Library Clerk III. Be responsible for the Professional Duties in University Libraries I 37 efficient performance of clerical duties in a division of the library as assigned; assist in circulation and reading room services ; give out information as autho- rized ; do searching in library records and bibliographic tools; supervise · the recording and routing of the routine types of new acquisitions; do library fil- ing, revise certain types of filing, and make additions or changes in library records ; prepare statistical and time rec- ords ; assist in book inventory; care for and issue supplies; train and direct cler- ical and student personnel; handle mail and routine correspondence; repair books ; prepare materials for binding. Chief Library Clerk. Under general su- pervision, is responsible for the efficient clerical operation of a principal adminis- trative library unit, including the per- formance of clerical library personnel, interpretation of library records to staff and faculty, routine bibliographical checking, keeping statistical records, and performing related duties as assigned. A number of additional university li- bntries have drawn up job descriptions of the nature of those presented from California, Michigan, and Illinois; e.g. , Ohio State, Oregon State System of Higher Education, University of Texas, Florida State University, and Washing- ton State University. The three series cited, however, are representative. A claim frequently made in support of academic or faculty status for pro- fessional librarians is that librarians are teachers, formally or informally. A re- port prepared by the City University of New York Libraries Staff Association analyzed this claim in a document en- titled "Librarians are Teachers." The report concluded, in summary: The instruction performed by librarians of the City Colleges is both classroom teach- ing and extra-classroom teaching. For con- venience this activity may be grouped into the following categories: ( 1) lectures on the use of the library and library research tools, given to students of all levels in visits to classrooms; ( 2) lecture-demonstra- tions to particular groups in the library, at the request of colleagues on the faculty; ( 3) the preparation of teaching aids, sup- plementary to textbooks-such as annotated reading lists and guides to particular kinds of materials in the library; ( 4) the prepa- ration of visual aids, supplementary to classroom lecture-such as films , tape re- cordings and ·displays; (5) individual con- ferenc es with advanced students on their problems with term papers, honors papers, and theses; ( 6) education of prospective librarians; ( 7) participation in teaching programs, such as general studies, adult education, in addition to regular profes- sional work. Professional librarians in other college and university libraries are of course performing similar teaching functions. The ALA Board on Personnel Admin- istration's Descriptive List of Profes- sional and Nonprofessional Duties in Li- braries, previously referred to, describes professional and nonprofessional duties under the following main headings: Administration Personnel Management Self-Development of Staff Public Relations Selection of Material Acquisition of Material Cataloging and Classification Mechanical Preparation of Material Registration and Circulation Reference Work Assistance to Readers Physical Upkeep of Material Care of Shelves and Files Each category is shown to have both professional and nonprofessional aspects, with the professional perhaps predom- inating in some and the clerical in oth- ers. The list is presumably applicable to all types of libraries, and there is no attempt to separate duties peculiar to 38 I College & Research Libraries • january, 1965 a university library, for example, from the activities in public, school, or col- lege libraries. There would be some value, perhaps, in trying to pull out of the general list those to be found only, or mainly, in university libraries and to add items which inay have developed more recently or were overlooked by the ALA committee sixteen years ago. The differences may not be substantial enough to justify the time and effort in- volved in developing a more specialized list, however, in view of the fact that professional work in all major types of libraries everywhere exhibits the same general characteristics. For example, and again for purposes of comparison, the detailed position clas- sification standards developed by the United States Civil Service Commission characterize the recognized grades or classes of professional librarians in fed- eral government service as follows: Librarian GS-5: These classes include positions of ( 1 ) librarians receiving training for positions at higher grade levels; and ( 2) librarians performing assignments of limited difficulty and re- sponsibility. Librarian GS-7: These classes include positions the duties of which are to per- form work of moderate difficulty or lim- ited scope in general library w0rk, li- brary administration, or a special func- tional or subject-matter area. Librarian GS-9: These classes include positions of ( 1 ) librarians in charge of libraries having a limited special subject collection; ( 2) librarians in charge of li- braries having a range of functions which may include extension service; ( 3) li- brarians in charge of administrative units for special types of services or functions, including the performance of library work that is complex and diffi- cult; and ( 4) librarians performing com- plex and difficult work involving acqui- sitions, cataloging, reference, or other library functions. Librarian GS-11: These classes include positions of ( 1) librarians in charge of libraries that are separate administrative units and have a range of services and functions, which may include extension service; ( 2) librarians in charge of ad- ministrative subdivisions of a library where the functions and services are such as to require a substantial amount of work of the GS-9 level of difficulty and complexity; ( 3) librarians perform- ing broad assignments for staff develop- ment and administration within an area of a library system; or ( 4) librarians performing expert work involving acqui- sitions, cataloging, reference, or other library function. Librarian GS-12: These classes include positions of librarians having ( 1) over- all supervision for an extensive library or group of libraries; ( 2) responsibility for directing a library program within an area such as an Army or regional area, with responsibility for integrating the program with that of the parent or- ganization; or ( 3) nonsupervisory as- signments of exceptional difficulty and complexity. Librarian GS-13: These classes include positions having ( 1) over-all supervision for an extensive library or group of li- braries containing general material as well as specialized technical or scien- tific collections; and ( 2) responsibility for coordinating an extensive library system containing general material and technical or scientiflc material. EDUCATIONAL PREPARATION In addition to the nature of duties assigned a major element in the classi- fication of library workers as professional or nonprofessional is educational prepa- ration. This is a cloudy area, seriously in need of established standards. A speci- Professional Duties in University Libraries I 39 fication frequently stated for a profes- sional appointment at any level is a graduate degree from an ALA accredit- ed library school, yet there are hundreds of nonaccredited programs of library education in American colleges and uni- versities, graduate and undergraduate. What is the status of their alumni? An increasing number of British and other librarians trained abroad are being ap- pointed to positions in the United States. Where do they fit in the professional hierarchy? If an advanced academic de- gree is a requirement for a position, how is a PhD in library science equated, say, with a doctor's degree in Germanic lan- guages? Rather than _trying to resolve such is- sues or questions, specifications often fall back on the ambiguous phrase "or equiv- alent." Clearly, definitions of what is meant by equivalents are needed, if the term professional as applied to librari- ans is to have any significance. Undoubt- edly modern librarianship has become complex, making demands for specialists in a variety of fields for which no one type of educational preparation provides a satisfactory answer. Thus sets of stan- dards should be developed to serve dif- ferent purposes and recognizing differ- ent requirements. Insofar as the present study is con- cerned, it must be conceded that there has been little effort to identify ex- plicitly criteria that might be applied to determine whether a given duty is pro- fessional or nonprofessional. The deter- mination has been largely in terms of illustrative descriptions of typical posi- tions at the several levels actually in use in three university library systems-Cal- ifornia, Illinois, and Michigan-and in the United States Civil Service. This pragmatic approach has advan- tages, but a more objective statement would perhaps be of greater usefulness for general application. If we analyze for this purpose the criteria developed by California, Illinois, Michigan, the United States Civil Service Commission, and other organizations concerned with library standards, certain common ele- ments begin to emerge. We find, for ex- ample, that a professional position could be defined as one in which mature judg- ment is required, or in which the incum- bent is assigned certain types of adminis- trative authority and responsibility, or is expected to initiate and develop pol- icy, or is expected to possess a thorough acquaintance with the bibliographic ap- paratus of research libraries, or may need a highly specialized subject or lin- guistic background, or may be called upon to plan new programs in library technology. These illustrative criteria could be considerably extended to help determine the earmarks of the profes- sional librarian as distinguished from the nonprofessional or subprofessional work- er in libraries. • • REFERENCES American Library Association, Board on Personnel Administration. Descriptive List of Professional and Non professional Duties in Libraries. Chicago: ALA, 1948. 75p. Mimeo. Arranged under thirteen headings, subdivided by professional and nonprofessional duties. Appleby, J. W. "Professionalism and Count- er Duty," Assistant Librarian, LUI (June 1960), 123-24. Recommends that con- tacts with public be through professional personnel, even "despised counter duty." Barcus, T. R. "Incidental Duties of the Col- lege Librarian," CRL, VII (January 1946), 14-23. Deals in particular with the librarian's participation in general college and university affairs and duties to his community and profession. Downs, R. B. "Academic Status for Librar- ians-A New Approach," CRL, VII (January 1946), 6-9, 26. Includes list of typical professional positions in Univer- sity of Illinois Library, arranged by aca- demic rank. Hart, E. D. and Griffith, W. J. "Professional (Continued on pa~re 69) As for the first of these, this reviewer is frankly skeptical. Mter seven hours of low- level communication in one of the 123 discussion groups, he voted vehemently against all recommendations requiring fur- ther communication among librarians or be- tween them and others. Perhaps his was an atypical group, or perhaps he is a mis- anthrope; other participants reported more fruitful experiences. As for the publicity objective, it is possible that the ewe con- tributed something to the national library legislative victories which followed within six months. Its success, however, will rest ultimately upon substantive results directly related to the student use problem. The ten major recommendations coming out of the conference have been referred into the ALA structure, and President Wagman re- ported recently that "many are well on the way to implementation." So far the most tangible result is anoth~r conference, sched- uled for March 1965, with representatives of other national organizations.-Clifton Brock, University of North Carolina. • • PROFESSIONAL DUTIES (Continued from page 39) or Clerical?" Library I ournal, LXXXVI (September 1, 1961), 2758-59. Used one hundred professional and clerical duties selected from ALA List to check actual practices in twenty-one public libraries. Houlridge, D. L. "Division of Staff: A Ca- nadian Example," Assistant Librarian, LVII (October 1958), 201-203. List of duties drawn from Toronto public library practices. Library Association. Professional and Non- professional Duties in Libraries. London: The Association, 1962. 77p. Descriptive list, arranged under twelve major head- ings, each divided by professional and nonprofessional classification. Lochhead, D. G. "I Am a University Librar- ian," Canadian Library Association Bul- letin, XIII (December 1956) , 100-105. Description of a "typical" day in the life of a university librarian, showing how his time is spent. London. Northwestern Polytechnic School of Librarianship. Professional Work for Professional Librarians. London: The Book Reviews I 69 School, August 1958. lOp. (Occasional Paper, No. 12). Discussion by two Brit- ish librarians, one of duties in govern- ment, the other in public libraries. McAnally, Arthur. "Privileges and Obliga- tions of Academic Status," CRL, XXIV (March 1963), 102-108. Discusses com- position of staff. MeN eal, Archie L. "Ratio of Professional to Clerical Staff," CRL, XVII (May 1956)' 219-23. Skilling, B. C. "Restrictive Practices," As- sistant Librarian, L (December 1957), 222-23. Author urges that professional librarians restrict themselves to profes- sional tasks. Smith, Eleanor T. "What's in a Name?- the Reference Librarian." NCLA, Odds and Book Ends, No. 36 (Falll960) , 101. Analysis of work of reference librarian in a public library. U.S . Civil Service Commission, Personnel Classification Division Librarian Series GS-1410. Washington, D.C.: Govt. Print. Off. , 1957. 35p. Wight, E. A. "Separation of professional and nonprofessional work in public li- braries," California Librarian, XIV ( Sep- tember-December 1952), 29-32, 54, 107- 16. Discusses methods of differentiating between professi~nal and nonprofessional duties. Wilkinson, John. "A Division of Labor," Ontario Library Review, XLI (May 1957) , 87-88. General discussion of de- sirability of separating · clerical from pro- fessional functions on staff. Williams, Edwin E. "Who Does What: Un- professional Personnel Problems," CRL, VI (September 1945), 301-10. AFRICAN UNIVERSITY (Continued from page 51) ucational development should have been one of the subjects for discussion at this conference. 4. The development of educational pro- grams in Africa requires the establish- ment of a network of supporting re- gional, national, and international li- braries to provide the necessary in- formation services dealing with the problems of African education. • •