What Makes a Library Important?

This is an article I have been intending on sharing and reflecting on for a while.

Beyond the Bullet Points: New Years Resolution, by Dave Lankes

Dr. Lankes points out that in order to help retain funding, as well as keep the library’s importance and impact at the forefront of people’s minds, we should make this the “year of the librarian.” Not quite like this, though:































I think, though, Dr. Lankes makes a great point - it is librarians, and not the collections and resources they steward that make the difference. How much good does having all those items do if no one knows how to find them, how to search them, or how to use them? Librarians make the difference between having a bunch of stuff and having a library.

I think for many people library is a bit of a loaded term. They think of the library as a place filled with books and quiet voices. I say library means those things, but also means that it is a place where people find the information they need (in any form or capacity) not just in a book, or the latest issue of Scientific American. That might mean connecting them with resources to start a business, go back to school, or just read the latest Dan Brown thriller (in any format of the patron’s choosing - Kindle, iPad, e-book online, or a book). People can interact in the library, meet in the library, study in the library. Use the videoconferencing software to interview for a position. Have a movie festival with lectures and discussions. Really, the library can be pretty much what its patrons want it to be, but the library has to be attuned to those needs.

On this same point, let me throw another link at you.

New Libraries Revitalize Cities, by Jonathan Lerner

That link points out what libraries can do, they can be what their patrons want them to be. They use Rem Koolhaas’ Seattle Public Library as an example of that - which is a building I love. Then, Mr. Lerner starts talking about libraries with pools and clinics. This I disagree with, One of the threads I have discovered in the course of writing the Library Design posts is that all good libraries are clearly libraries, as evidenced by their design and their visual cues. The library can be an element in a larger community construction project that includes separate pools and clinics, but the library must be an entity unto its own.

What do you all think? Should the library be defined by items, or by the people? What should the library “of the future” look like? Besides the flying cars, of course!

Dallas and Fort Worth

As you all are probably aware, Jen, Cosby and I live in the city of Fort Worth. We really do like it here, and are passionate advocates for the city, especially in the cultural aspects of the city. On Monday of this week, NPR had a short segment about the cultural rivalry between Fort Worth and the city to our east, Dallas. Take a read (or listen) to this story before continuing - as it will put this in perspective.

Dallas, Fort Worth Battle For Cultural Supremacy by
JOHN BURNETT and WADE GOODWYN

First, let me correct one thing in this story - the quote about Fort Worth and Dallas they mention is from Amon Carter, and it actually goes like this...

Fort Worth is where the West begins, and Dallas is where the East peters out.

The rivalry between Fort Worth and Dallas has been around since the founding of the two cities, but it only became a bit more heated when Amon Carter merged the Star and the Telegram to form the Fort Worth Star Telegram. This paper became a source of Fort Worth boosterism, and painted Dallas in a generally less than optimal light.

I would be lying to you, reader, if I told you I had no opinion about this rivalry between Fort Worth and Dallas. Simply put, I think and feel that Fort Worth is far superior to Dallas in many areas, and this segment on NPR revealed many of the reasons I like it here so much better than Dallas. Before you ask, yes, I have lived in Dallas. Why, do I think, that Fort Worth is better than Dallas? Allow me to list a few reasons highlighted in this segment.

My first problem with Dallas is that in that city new always means better, or “quality.” We all know this is simply not true - look at the myriad of historic sites across the United States, and tell me with a straight face we would be better off if those areas were replaced with something new. I daresay you couldn’t do that - because it is those older and significant places (buildings, etc) that help give us a cultural identity. Since the early 1900’s, Dallas has worked hard to systematically erase its past. Some examples of this include the construction of 75 (destroying an important African-American community and part of a freed slaves' cemetery), the lack of any significant historical buildings in downtown Dallas, save the courthouse and the School Book Depository, and the recent destruction of the studio where Robert Johnson recorded many of his songs. Not to mention the effort by a Dallas resident to destroy the home of Stanley Marcus, an important Dallas citizen. This lack of historical context and grounding leads to the lack of a feeling of community, or sense of civic purpose and being. Because there is so little to cling to culturally, Dallas needs to create things (like the new Arts District) that cause a splash, as if to say, “Look at us! We bought culture!”

On the other hand, Fort Worth is filled with historically significant places. The Stockyards is just one very good example of this. Fort Worth embraces our history and roots, as exemplified by the moment in the report where John Burnett says he can smell cow manure because of the Kimbell’s proximity to the Will Rogers center (constructed through the efforts of Amon Carter in honor of his friend, Will Rogers). Men in cowboy hats and spurs are common and accepted here. As a matter of fact, Jen told me the other day of cowboys coming into the Kimbell with their spurs on (they had to take them off, out of concern for the artwork on display). There are many active civic groups working in conjunction with city and county officials to ensure our cultural heritage is preserved. And typically, historical sites are actively protected by the city (Heritage Park, for example) - without prompting by the citizens - a rare thing, indeed.

I will reserve my comments about the quality of the architecture in Dallas, and point only to this - Fort Worth knows how to pick them. The buildings in Fort Worth, specifically in the Cultural District, are praised as masterpieces by masters of Architecture. Tadao Ando, Buckminster Fuller, Legorreta & Legorreta, Robert Venturi, Philip Johnson, and Louis Kahn all have buildings here. This august group will soon be joined, as mentioned in the report, by the architect Renzo Piano, who is designing the new addition for the Kimbell. To the best of my knowledge, Dallas lacks the breadth of architects, as well as buildings of equal importance to Architecture. (So much for that skyscraper envy Wade Goodwyn spoke of!)

The cultural district in Dallas is a manufactured experience. I can almost see Dallasites thinking, “We need a cultural district so we can keep up with Fort Worth!” Not really built out of a love of culture, but a desire to show off. Contrast that with Fort Worth’s Cultural District, which grew out of the Fort Worth Frontier Centennial Exhibition of 1936, as well as the major endowments of wealthy Fort Worthians to found two of our museums (as well as the Bass Performance Hall), respected as some of the best in the world.

I will not even speak of the safer downtown, free parking, and other cultural events (Van Cliburn, anyone?) here in Fort Worth.

At the end of the report, the fellow from NYC chimes in and speaks condescendingly about Dallas and Fort Worth. He needs to be reminded that the Kimbell was able to purchase The Torment of St. Anthony only because the Met couldn’t afford it, and the Kimbell is better connected (in this case) than the Met is.

Towards the conclusion of the report, Mrs. Stevenson says this quote, which I think sums up this discussion rather nicely:

You know, they turn up their nose at us, I think. Dallas has always had an ego that perhaps, Fort Worth doesn't.

PS - To all of you readers who have yet to visit Fort Worth and Dallas, please come and visit so you can decide for yourself - though you might have some biased your guides in Jen and myself. The same goes for all you crazy folks who think Dallas is better.

The State of the Internet

You might remember me talking about the Internet in 2009 in numbers in a previous post. I just wrapped up watching this video, and it makes me wonder some, what are we librarians doing with all this data and information out there? Anyhow, it’s a cool video, and enjoy!

Classroom vs Real World Experience

I’ve been thinking a great deal about all of the new knowledge I am assimilating in the course of my studies for my MSLIS. Mostly, it was because of this article by a newly minted librarian over at The Desk Set that gave me the catalyst for this post. I want to say first that in my experience, one is superior to the other - I firmly believe that the two are linked and are very much symbiotic.

I don’t know if I would call hands-on library education the “school of hard knocks” but it is certainly incredibly helpful to people earning their library degrees. Ideas, themes, lectures and readings can go only so far in education, and those ideas you are learning in class need to be tested in the real world so so you can discover how to best implement them, and if they even work for you in the first place. Interpersonal skills are very important in the library profession, and that certainly is not learned in the classroom. In addition, I would also say that there are some things best learned in a hands-on setting. Cataloging is a good example of this. No matter how much you look over AACR2 or MARC fields, you really need someone “looking over your shoulder” and guiding you along the path to the creation of “good” metadata and bibliographic records. To their credit, Syracuse does a great job of trying to integrate real-world learning with the topics you are learning in the classroom, much more so than what I have found at local library schools (please correct me if I am wrong). I do want to give a HUGE “Thanks!” to the staff of the Amon Carter Museum Library in giving me so much excellent, thoughtful, erudite, and patient instruction in my real-world learning!

However, based on my experience, real-world, hands-on learning should not be the only manner in which you learn skills and gain experiences. Nothing is a substitute for classroom learning. In the classroom, I am exposed not only to the things I know, but to other alternatives to the way I do things - methods which might be better than the ones I already employ. Also, in the profession, there is a certain jargon and preferred vocabulary that you only really learn through lectures, readings, and classroom discussions. Classroom based learning also exposes you to developing trends and ideas, allowing you to be very much up to date on key themes in the profession. Only with the classroom learning I obtained in my reference class could I be really good at answering patron’s questions at the Carter.

If you are in library school, I cannot urge you enough to find a library and volunteer so you can get real world learning along with your classroom instruction. As an added bonus, it makes you much more competitive in the job market!

Social Networking for Professionals

Every Wednesday, the American Library Association sends out an email titled American Libraries Direct. It’s a great summary of trends and topics in the profession, and usually has a few links in it I want to read more about it. The article Your Virtual Brand by Meredith Farkas was just one of those articles.

Ms. Farkas points out that for librarians (and I think more broadly, job seekers in general) having a professional online presence is important. She highlights several options - a blog, and an online portfolio. I would add to that (as she mentions in the article) Facebook, as well as the social networking site for ALA members, ALA Connect (which more librarians need to use - but that’s another post). This blog, for me, is part of my online presence, as well as my Visual CV, my Facebook, and my other accounts (Aardvark, flickr, YouTube, and Vimeo). That being said, social networking is not all fun and games, as Ms. Farkas points out - and this is something that is lost on many users of social networking sites (check out Lamebook (NSFW), for example).

As a user and consumer of social media, you need to be always cognizant of the people who can see the “stuff” you post online. Maybe this means setting up different groups on Facebook so you can better control who sees what information in your profile - a group for coworkers, a group for professional contacts, and a group for friends and family. Then, you can easily control the information you are sharing with certain groups of people. Or, you might not even want to post that questionable content online.

If done properly though, online sites like the ones I mention above are incredibly helpful in showing off your talents to prospective employers, but once again, you need to be cognizant of the content you are sharing. Not every single thing should be shared - only things that highlight particular skills you have. For example, on my Visual CV, I have two “portfolio” items - a video introducing my work in an online reference tool, as well as a presentation I created about bibliographic records. This will expand with the work I am doing for class this semester, as well as in my work at the Amon Carter and my internship. Like I mentioned before though, be selective - choose your best work from a skill set to share, and even then you might need to edit your work some. Have someone else look over it to make sure it looks its best.

Of course, you don’t have to do anything at all online. However, as Ms. Farkas points out, it really helps you to stand out in this competitive job market. I will tell you from personal experience that social networking and having an overall internet presence has allowed me to connect to and make acquaintances with people I am very happy to know but I would not have otherwise ever met.

What about you - any good tips for social networking online?

Hello Everyone (From Cosby)

I don’t have much to say today, except I am glad mom and dad are home. I like when John and Amber come check on me, but it’s nice to have mom and dad home. Here are a couple of photos made recently of me, I hope you like them!

Cosby

Aardvark

Hello readers,

Just a quick word to tell you I am on Aardvark, which is like a social reference question answering website. It’s pretty cool if you need a good answer pretty quickly. Here’s a link to my Aardvark profile, and feel free to join up and add me, check it out, etc!

http://vark.com/s/KWAT

Have a great weekend!