College and Research Libraries


By R O B E R T W . M c E W E N 

The Status of College Librarians 
Mr. McEwen, librarian, Carleton Col-

lege, presented this paper at the annual 

meeting of the College Section, Minnesota 

Library Association, October 4, 1941. 

TH E R E has been considerable discussion during the past few years of the status 
of the librarian and of members of library 

staffs in colleges and universities. It has 

been discussed in courses in library schools, 

in books on college library administration, 

in journal articles. D r . Branscomb1 notes 

that we do not have the objective data 

necessary to a critical analysis of the prob-

lem. W e need dependable statistical stud-

ies of the problem, studies involving 

classification of types of institutions. W e 

need to know in how many and in what 

kinds of institutions the librarian is tech-

nically a member of the faculty, an ad-

ministrative officer, or both. W e need to 

know his rank as a member of the faculty 

and whether that rank follows automatical-

ly with the position of librarian or is the 

result of special circumstances. W e need 

to know whether department heads, the 

assistant librarian, and the professional 

library staff members who are not depart-

ment heads are classified as members of 

the faculty, administrative officers, or as 

part of the clerical staff of the institution. 

T h e data, to be significant, must indicate 

the exact meaning of the technical rank 

assigned to college librarians. If they are 

1 Branscomb, H a r v i e . Teaching with Books, p. 
95-96. 

classified as members of the faculty, does 

that mean full voice and vote in faculty 

meetings, participation in academic func-

tions, freedom to use facilities reserved for 

members of the faculty, inclusion in special 

privileges granted to members of the fac-

ulty? 

But the interest of this paper does not 

require statistical studies as its basis. It 

may suggest, rather, an interpretation of 

that data when it is available. It deals, as 

well, with certain problems on which it 

would not be practicable to secure statis-

tical data. W e are concerned here with 

two main questions: ( 1 ) W h a t status do 

college librarians w a n t ? ( 2 ) W h a t can 

college librarians do to achieve it? A s is 

evident from every discussion of the prob-

lem, this is an area of joint responsibility 

on the part of the college president, the 

head librarian, and other members of the 

library staff. A s a paper at a meeting of 

college librarians, we address ourselves 

solely to our own responsibilities in the 

matter. T h e problem is considerably dif-

ferent for the large university and for the 

college librarian for reasons that will be 

apparent. W e are here concerned primar-

ily with the problem of the college librar-

ian. T h e term college librarian is used 

to refer to all professional members of the 

staff. 

Status is commonly defined as relative 

rank or position. Satisfactory status 

would then mean for the college librarian 

a relative position in the situation and com-

256 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



munity in which he lives and works which 

would express satisfactorily his sense of his 

relation to that situation and community. 

W e are assuming from the current con-

cern for status an existing situation which 

is felt to be less than satisfactory and turn 

our attention first to an attempt to under-

stand this dissatisfaction. 

What Status Do College Librarians 
Want? 

Certain outstanding characteristics of 

satisfactory status will be clearly recog-

nized, involving the natural wish for se-

curity and for recognition from the most 

important groups with whom the indi-

vidual is concerned. A n y individual wants 

his position to be a fair expression of his 

significance and value in the situation con-

cerned. Here the college librarian is 

handicapped. 

T h e mysteries of his craft, the intricacies 

of cataloging, even according to the old 

rules, the adventure of bibliographical 

search, these are dear to his heart and 

important to his function. But they are 

largely lost on the great majority of those 

among whom and with whom he w o r k s — 

members of the faculty, administrative 

officers in other aspects of the college's 

program. For these others do not com-

monly have opportunity to see his mysteries 

in operation, let alone understand them. 

T h e i r contact with the college librarian is 

primarily expressed in one form—getting 

a book they want. N o r can we expect 

the professor, as he waits at the circulation 

desk, to meditate often or long on the 

wonderful organization, the meticulous 

scholarship, the professional skill that must 

be expressed in the process of making that 

book available to him. In the normal 

experience of getting a book he thinks no 

more about cataloging than he would 

about the generating plant and the lines-

men while he was snapping on a light. He 

expects smooth functioning in both in-

stances. And the librarian can humbly 

say to himself " T h e y also serve who only 

stand and wait." But it will not make 

him feel that his significance and value in 

the academic scene are properly recog-

nized. 

Desire for Acceptance 

Secondly, any individual wants a feeling 

of group-belongingness, an assurance of 

acceptance as one with his fellows. T h i s 

feeling of group-belongingness may appear 

to be the outgrowth of a common profes-

sional interest but its expression goes 

beyond the professional activities to the 

whole social life of the group. Invitations 

to dinner parties, bridge clubs, teas, are 

as important as service on committees as 

marks of this acceptance. Here again the 

college librarian is handicapped. T h e uni-

versity library staff may be large enough 

to provide within itself for this aspect of 

status. A member of a large staff has 

status as a librarian in a group of li-

brarians. But the college librarian belongs 

to a small minority group on campus and 

may even be the only representative of his 

craft. 

Status in the whole college scene is set 

by the majority group—the faculty. By 

this we mean that the sense of group-

belongingness most characteristic of the 

college campus is organized around the life 

of the faculty group, which group profes-

sionally share common interest in t^achirr^ 

and research. T h e college librarian 

naturally seeks social acceptance from this 

majority group. But the librarian is com-

monly excluded by the nature of Jijs task 

from any complete acceptance in this fel-

lowship. 

JUNE, 1942 257 



Status as we have discussed it thus far 

may seem to be primarily identified with 

the individual's desire for recognition, with 

social status. It is obvious that this is an 

important part of the status college li-

brarians want. 

T h e r e is another approach to the prob-

lem, however. In order for any individual 

to feel secure and therefore to achieve 

satisfactory status, there must exist for him 

some clear understanding of the nature of 

the areas in which he functions. Knowl-

edge of the character of his problems, 

definition of the limits of those problems, 

and the goals which their solution con-

cerns, brings confidence in attacking them 

and a sense of security follows in the 

process. T h e more sharply defined the 

area and meaning of his task, the greater 

will be his sense of security and status in it. 

A rea of A ctivities 

T h e public librarian defines the area 

of his activities for himself. He studies 

his community, defines the objectives of 

library service to his community, builds his 

professional activities, his routines, his 

functions as a skilled craftsman in the 

direction of those objectives. 

But the college librarian's problem at 

this point is much more complicated. 

M a n y of his professional activities, many 

of his routines are like those of the public 

librarian. A n d he has been taught to 

regard himself as a professional librarian. 

But the college library functions as a 

service agency to the educational process. 

T h e dominant area of activity in the 

library as in the college is academic. T h e 

validity of any routine must be determined 

not with reference to its place in librarian-

ship but rather on the basis of its meaning 

and effectiveness in and for the academic 

community and primarily in its relation-

ship to the teaching and learning process 

as defined by the college. 

T h e definition of his problem and the 

sense of security achieved through such 

definition is therefore much more difficult 

for the college librarian. His area of 

activity as librarian overlaps the area of 

teaching but only in part. Some of his 

functions are obviously in both areas but 

not all of them. And frequently neither 

he nor his profession nor the college has 

any clear definition of these relationships. 

Emphasis on Professional Training 

Recent emphasis on professional train-

ing for librarianship has largely assumed 

that the area of the librarian's activities 

could be defined, and that a professional 

course of study would give the librarian 

the knowledge and understanding of the 

field requisite for effectiveness in almost 

any job in any library. But that assump-

tion clearly breaks down when, as in the 

college library, the area of librarianship 

overlaps the academic area and the aca-

demic area is obviously the major de-

terminant. In such a situation is the 

college librarian to regard himself as pri-

marily a professional librarian, and hence 

as primarily an administrative officer in the 

college? O r is he to feel, seeing that the 

teaching process is the heart of the college 

and that the library exists on campus to 

collect, preserve, and make readily avail-

able the facilities of print for use in teach-

ing—is he to feel that his function as a 

librarian is essentially a branch of the 

teaching process and hence think of him-

self as primarily a member of the faculty? 

T h e sensible college librarian will do both 

and therefore be uncertain at many points 

in his definition of his function, resulting 

in a sense of insecurity and lack of status. 

T h i s particular uncertainty is aptly 

258 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



illustrated in Randall and Goodrich's dis-

cussion of the status of the college li-

brarian. In the first edition of their book 

there appears this statement: 

As a matter of fact, the proper status of the 
librarian seems to be rather administrative, 
in the class of the deans, the secretary, etc., 
than pedagogical, in the class of the actual 
teaching faculty.2 

In the revised edition, which has just 

appeared, the sentence quoted is preserved 

but is qualified, to say the least, by con-

cluding sentences added to the paragraph: 

Even though the librarian conducts no 
classes, his teaching function is important. 
If a distinction in rank is to be made, his 
professional responsibilities should place him 
with the faculty group rather than the ad-
ministrative.3 

W h a t status do college librarians want? 

Primarily they want status, any satis-

factory status. T h e y are concerned about 

it because their situation makes difficult 

any wide recognition of their specialized 

function, marks them off as a minority 

group separated from the satisfactions of 

group-belongingness, places them in over-

lapping areas of function which are not 

clearly defined. In this situation it is pos-

sible, of course, for the college librarians 

to partially satisfy their desire for status 

by turning their backs on their problems. 

T h e y can say, 

W e are librarians. It is only natural 
that these faculty folk, benighted individ-
uals who have not had the advantage of 
special studies in bibliography, should be un-
aware of our real function in their midst. 
W e don't care. W e will go to the librarians' 
conferences and associate with other li-
brarians. There we will be recognized. W e 

2 Randall, W i l l i a m M . , and Goodrich, F r a n c i s L . 
D. Principles of College Library Administration. 
C h i c a g o , A m e r i c a n L i b r a r y A s s o c i a t i o n and U n i v e r -
sity of Chicago P r e s s , 1936, p. 3 1 . 

3 Ibid., revised edition, Chicago, 1941, p. 31. 

JUNE, 1942 

will solve the problem created by the over-
lapping of library and teaching processes by 
turning our attention directly and solely to 
the proper professional problems of all good 
librarians, and let the faculty take care of 
the teaching process, and forget the over-
lapping. 

T h e speaker would suggest that this atti-

tude, increasingly rare but not yet extinct, 

affords only partial and temporary solace 

and no solution. 

W h y has there been a concerted effort 

in recent years on the part of college 

librarians to acquire faculty status? Be-

cause faculty members have status. Be-

cause faculty status, once achieved, brings 

the desired sense of inclusion and accept-

ance, which involves a recognition of the 

significance of their specialized tasks and 

which assists somewhat in clarifying the 

extent to which library processes and the 

teaching process do overlap. 

What Can College Librarians 

Do to Achieve it? 

T h e interest of the speaker in this sub-

ject arose from the observation that 

librarians are, for the most part, concen-

trating on one technique in achieving this 

desirable end. T h a t technique is the at-

tempt to secure formal recognition and 

appropriate rank as members of their 

faculties through action on the part of 

college administrators. T h e extent of 

progress in this attempt is the subject 

of the statistical studies suggested at the 

outset. W e ought to know what the situa-

tion really is. And the speaker heartily 

approves that attempt. Formal status and 

appropriate rank are really important— 

often absurdly important—to members of 

faculties, and formal granting of that 

status to college librarians will in itself 

assist in solving the problems we are dis-

259 



cussing. But one is reminded of the story, 

which every librarian will recognize as 

Abraham Lincoln's. Y o u will remember 

that Lincoln asked how many legs a dog 

has if we count the tail a leg. T h e 

response was " F i v e . " But Lincoln re-

plied, " N o , four, for calling a tail a leg 

doesn't make it one." 

Formal Classification 

Formal classification of college li-

brarians in the college catalog as members 

of the faculty will solve the problem only 

if with it there comes actual status in the 

minds of those who alone can give i t — 

the teaching faculty themselves. W e have 

said that the sense of group-belonging-

ness most characteristic of the college 

campus is the shared interest of the faculty 

in teaching and in creative and productive 

research. A n y complete acceptance of col-

lege librarians as full colleagues must 

therefore await proof that the librarians 

are genuine participants in these shared 

interests. Librarians may therefore teach 

a course, or courses, in subject fields in 

which they are equally qualified with other 

members of the faculty. And librarians 

may undertake independent research in 

fields of special interest. Some activity in 

these directions seems to the speaker highly 

desirable for most college librarians. It 

will not be practicable or desirable to staff 

college libraries exclusively with people 

equipped to offer courses in the curriculum. 

But there would seem to be every reason 

to expect individuals w h o wish to make a 

career of college librarianship to be deeply 

interested in some subject field, perhaps 

but not necessarily in bibliographical prob-

lems within that subject field, and to ex-

pect that interest to issue eventually in 

research of a level that will gain the 

approbation of their colleagues outside the 

library. But again, such activity, whether 

in teaching or research, must be the result 

of genuine interest and ability and not a 

device to secure status. 

Individual college librarians can there-

fore, it is believed, be recognized as col-

leagues through the results of their own 

participation in the basic interests of the 

faculty in teaching and research. But it 

will be as individuals, as individuals who 

are doing research or teaching courses, 

that that acceptance will be won. And it 

is obvious that acceptance need not carry 

over to the recognition of the professional 

and educational character of the work of 

those individuals as librarians. 

Directly Attack Confusion 

A third aspect of the solution seems 

equally clearly indicated, if more difficult 

of achievement than those we have dis-

cussed. College librarians can directly 

attack the existing confusion in the re-

lationship of their work to the teaching 

process. T h e primary responsibility here 

may fall on the head librarian but it need 

not be his alone. If almost all contacts 

between members of the faculty and the 

librarians are at the circulation desk and 

are limited to getting a book, we can 

hardly expect our teaching colleagues to 

see the importance of our tasks in their 

work. But the situation can be changed. 

W e know that our tasks are important in 

their work. But we have not clarified 

that function in our own minds. A n d 

we have not educated them in what we 

have clarified. Is it not time that we 

listed and defined some of the functions 

performed by college librarians which are 

definitely adjunct activities in the teaching 

process? A faculty member sends a stu-

dent to the library to find information on 

a specific subject. T h e librarians, as 

260 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



teachers, commonly require the student to 

think through the problem of finding the 

specific material, suggest the necessity of 

reading material on all sides of a contro-

versial question, call attention to the effect 

of the lapse of time on the treatment of the 

problem. T h e good librarian will seldom 

be satisfied with finding the book, turning 

to the page, and saying to the student, 

" H e r e it is." T h e librarian may feel with 

some justification that he gets no credit for 

his pains. But that credit waits on the 

clarification of his function and an under-

standing concerning it with the faculty. 

Students come to the library to work on 

term papers. W h a t is the librarian's 

teaching task here ? T o what extent is he 

responsible for the education of the student 

in the methods of study involved in such 

an undertaking? He commonly advises 

the student to define his problem first, turn 

to the dictionary for definitions of terms 

involved, to the proper encyclopedia for a 

preliminary but organized statement of 

the nature of the problem. He then may 

assist the student in forming a reading 

list. H e does not do that for the student. 

A l l this is teaching, is it not? And these 

are only samples. 

Objective Measurement of Functions 

Is it not time that we devised some 

relatively objective measurement of those 

functions and substituted such measure-

ment for the type of statistics commonly 

kept in college libraries? W h a t does it 

mean to say that the reference librarian 

answered so many "search questions" and 

so many "general questions" last year? 

Granted that we have no substitute for 

them at present, what do our circulation 

records actually mean, even if they are 

broken down in terms of the Dewey 

Decimal Classification? 

Is it not time that we thought through 

the areas of responsibility of college li-

brarians with reference to faculty re-

search ? T o what extent can a small staff 

provide expert bibliographical knowledge 

at a level that can be useful to our teach-

ing colleagues? Should we be informed of 

special research interests of every member 

of the faculty? If so, what can we do 

when we have that information? It may 

be the special responsibility of the head 

librarian, with the cooperation of the col-

lege administrator, to undertake the task 

of re-education of the faculty in this area. 

But the actual definition and the new 

activities that would grow out of it, re-

quire concerted and cooperative effort. 

T h e final result of such a program 

might be that we would still be unsure 

occasionally whether we were tail or leg. 

But with formal recognition of some 

faculty status, with some individual par-

ticipation in teaching and/or research, and 

with a clearer understanding of the extent 

and meaning of the overlapping between 

our work and that of our teaching col-

leagues, the speaker believes it would not 

matter very much. 

JUNE, 1942 261