Harvard Moves Ahead with Library Reorganization

The 11-member Harvard Library Board has approved a new organizational structure for the university's 73 libraries, which are collectively known as the Harvard Library.

"I am committed to ensuring that the new Harvard Library will be the flagship research library of the 21^st century," Provost Alan Garber wrote in a September 28 letter to the Harvard community announcing the decision.

The new structure was designed to "clarify decision-making responsibilities throughout the system, deliver shared services as effectively as possible, and foster collaboration between libraries and with institutions beyond Harvard's gates," Garber wrote.

The implementation, under the direction of Senior Associate Provost Mary Lee Kennedy, is not scheduled to begin until January 2012, according to a timeline, with the transition fully completed sometime in 2013.

According to a new organization chart, each library will belong to one of five new "affinity groups," which are based on similar collection needs, content or service areas, or specialized activities:

• Group 1: Libraries concerned with application of theory in practice (e.g., the law library);
• Group 2: Libraries focused on physical and life sciences (e.g., the medical school library);
• Group 3: Libraries focused on similar content areas, such as the humanities and social science (e.g., the Widener and Lamont libraries);
• Group 4: A group focused on arts and culture (e.g., Loeb Music Library);
• Group 5: Special collection libraries (e.g., university archive).

Individual libraries will retain their direct relationship with their school but also report to a group head who, in turn, will report to Helen Shenton, the library's executive director.

Shenton told Harvard Magazine that the affinity groups were meant to encourage collaboration.

"They are not intended to be new silos in any way. We want to enable and encourage collaboration across the groups," she said.

The libraries will have the option of shifting to a different affinity group until the second week in November, and the structure will be reviewed in 18 months.

"This affinity group model maintains the individuality of the libraries while providing mechanisms for the cross-campus collaboration that the system needs for its strategic development and overall organizational effectiveness," Garber wrote.

The new organization has its roots in a November 2009 task force report on university libraries and a work group, headed by Professor David Lamberth, that followed up on the report's recommendations.