Centennial Library 2017-2018 Annual Report

What is a library? One of the arguments some digital advocates made against existing library models was that so much information was available on the web that libraries were no longer relevant. This argument defined a “library” as nothing more than an assemblage of information or resources. The thinking was that the archaic physical requirements and barriers that had mediated information access between user and resource had been removed, so now each person would be free to access information all over the world, creating a universal library. Over the last two decades, copyright and proprietary information, uneven distribution of internet access, information services vendor consolidation, personal data harvesting, search engine and social media filtering bias, search result manipulation and paid advertising, fake news, and other public arena debates have shown just how simplistic and naive this understanding of the nature of libraries is. Though resources are part of what makes up a library, that isn’t the whole extent of a library. A library also includes its spaces, its services, and its personnel. In fact, without library personnel to provide library services and facilitate access to library resources, there is no effective library. This reality has been impressed upon us recently at Centennial Library. During a 12-month period bridging the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years, the Centennial Library saw turnover in one-third of its positions. These included the positions of Dean, Director of Public Services, Interlibrary Services Coordinator, Instructional Services Librarian, Staff Cataloger, Digital Commons Specialist, and Collection Services Technical Assistant. These changes provided us with the opportunity to make sure that our roles and responsibilities are effectively structured toward supporting the needs of our campus community. Without excellent employees who can adapt to changing roles, take on additional responsibilities, and learn new skills, the library would be in danger of failing to serve the campus community adequately. The library depends upon student staff to manage the space and provide services for nearly half of its weekly service hours. Without them, we would have to reduce our hours of service. The library depends upon non- student staff (some of whom are listed above) to provide library services, to manage student staff, and to ensure physical and digital library resources are accessible. The library depends upon its faculty librarians to proactively engage students and faculty about research, information, and library resources and to connect the library services to the academic needs of the campus. The Centennial Library has long been known for delivering effective service, but this couldn’t happen without excellent employees. A library is more than just a collection of resources. MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN Josh Michael Effective service requires excellent employees