Research Libs. Face the Future

In a new report, No Brief Candle: Reconceiving Research Libraries for the 21st Century, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) suggests that a “transformation” is underway in research libraries, notably a “redefinition” of the library workforce.

“Hiring only staff with the MLIS is unlikely to bring in the breadth of skill and experience that is needed,” it concludes. Rather than turning that observation into a referendum on the MLIS, the report urges action to “translate new ideas” into current workflows, including accommodating “distributed” staff to connect better with faculty.

The report draws on librarians, university administrators, and publishers, plus the proceedings of a symposium.

The report suggests that the 21st-century library may be more of a distributed project than physical space or collection, and work will be organized according to the interests of a broader number of stakeholders, including “federating collections or staff, or coordinating collection management decisions.” Also, the library will exploit the potential of “embeddability,” enabling users to interact with information at “progressive levels of value-added functionality.”

The library will serve as a laboratory for faculty and students and also help ensure the authentication and persistence of digital information, including web-based content. The key to the future, the report suggests, lies in collaboration—however uneasy it may be at times.

A new report on faculty perceptions cites a “growing ambivalence about the campus library” in the digital age, according to Ithaka, an independent not-for-profit research organization.

The survey, Ithaka's 2006 Studies of Key Stakeholders in the Digital Transformation in Higher Education, reveals an emerging disconnect between librarians' perceptions of their roles and the expectations and habits of the faculty they serve. Conflicting perceptions of the library may be a sign of success, given that libraries are serving faculty well. However, as libraries embed themselves more upstream in the research process, their critical roles—not the least of which are managing and paying for resources—may be going unnoticed.

Commenting on the Association of College & Research Libraries blog, Temple University's Steven Bell noted a key limitation, suggesting that future editions should “add a new dimension for faculty to consider: the academic library's role as learning center and instruction partner.”