When accepting universitywide leadership roles, academic librarians bring skills in partnering, administration and sharing information that can build trust, lead to informed decisions, promote good will and strengthen the organization. Service in this capacity requires an understanding of and an appreciation for the community that resides within the institution

Broome, Susan G.

English

DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University

Georgia Library QuarterlyVolume 47 | Issue 2 Article 4April 2010The Importance of Being Earnest: A Librarian'sApproach to Academic LeadershipSusan G. BroomeMercer University, broome_sg@mercer.eduFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/glqPart of the Library and Information Science CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in GeorgiaLibrary Quarterly by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University. For more information, please contactdigitalcommons@kennesaw.edu.Recommended CitationBroome, Susan G. (2010) "The Importance of Being Earnest: A Librarian's Approach to Academic Leadership," Georgia LibraryQuarterly: Vol. 47 : Iss. 2 , Article 4.Available at: https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/glq/vol47/iss2/4Georgia Library Quarterly   Spring 2010   7AbstractWhen accepting universitywide leadership roles, academiclibrarians bring skills in partnering, administration andsharing information that can build trust, lead to informeddecisions, promote good will and strengthen theorganization. Service in this capacity requires anunderstanding of and an appreciation for the communitythat resides within the institution.IntroductionIn taking leadership positions, it is important to me to actwith integrity, strengthen the organization and leave anuncluttered path for those who follow me. A recentreading of Hugh Heclo’s On Thinking Institutionally andMalcolm Gladwell’s Outliers: The Story of Success has ledme to consider some of the influences that guided mytwo years of service as chair of the House of Delegates, arepresentative body of faculty members from 11 schoolsand colleges and the University Libraries at MercerUniversity.Both books emphasize community, Gladwell’s pointing tothe importance of opportunity and legacy with a strongemphasis on the amount of time and passion that mustbe invested for one to finally experience success. Whoyou are, where you have come from and the companyyou keep are as important as the sometimes-extraordinaryoccasions that open up for leadership. There must beboth autonomy and complexity, engagement of the mindand the imagination, and a connection between effortand rewards to develop a meaningful purpose in life. Awillingness to make sacrifices and live with expectationgives evidence of the value we place in individuals, causesand institutions. Our commitment to clear communicationrequires a multiplicity of forms — encouraging, calming,giving commands, cajoling, negotiating, and sharinginformation — all of which indicate the respect withwhich we relate to those individuals who make up ourcommunities.Having grown up on the campus of a small privatecollege and then spending much of my professionalcareer at a larger private university, I have benefited fromintellectual stimulation, a sense of community and anunderstanding of investing in both individuals and aninstitution. I developed a personal work ethic that valuesbeing consistent, responsible, thoughtful, trustworthy andfair. In the same environment, I learned to thinkindependently, contribute toward larger purposes andrespect diversity.The writings of Hugh Heclo embrace the communitybound up in institutions. This community exists because itwas developed and valued in the past and then entrustedto the next generation. It is inherited and bequeathed,not with a sense of obligation by those within it, but withaccountability, personal initiative and sacrifice. Individualswill fail the institution if they think and act without regardfor the purposes it represents. They may have a healthydistrust of policies to follow or goals set before them, yeta strong institution will offer space for open-mindedness,doubt, judgment and inquiry. Institutions will fail us;however, living without expectations would be even moregrievous. Duty and loyalty should not be lightly entrusted,but there can be satisfaction in being attentive tomeaning in the world as part of an institutionalcommunity.By nature, there is tension in the academic communitybetween individualism and the institution. We revel in thethought processes, we value academic freedom, and wesearch for research materials to expand the minds ofThe importance of being earnest:A librarian’s approach to academic leadershipby Susan G. Broome1Broome: The Importance of Being EarnestPublished by DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University, 2010students whom we actively engage in learning. Yet wemust be accountable, and there are administrativenecessities to allow for each of these activities. It is withinthe communities of institutions and professionalorganizations that I have found my voice. My focus hasbeen on the description of and access to primarymaterials held in the archives and on the acquisition andcataloging of print and online resources within a complexuniversity environment. My faculty status resides in theDivision of Library Services.With responsibility for providing technical services tolibraries on two main campuses and four regional centers,I train others to balance the needs of all programs, allstudents and faculty, all campuses, all of the time. When Iwas elected chair of the House of Delegates, an advisorygroup to the president established by the university’sboard of trustees, I was conscious of the reputationlibrarians have as being impartial and cooperative. I wasalso well aware of my own affinity for administrative,technical and organizational work, and I believed myexperience would serve the university well. My past hadalready brought me to several conclusions regardingleadership in an academic environment. Inclusiveness and partnering build trust, respectand a diverse community. Sharing information allows for betterunderstanding of issues and more informeddecisions. Acting as a representative with a strong sense ofresponsibility promotes good will. Strengthening an organization and its membersleads to greater accountability.The methods by which the House affirmed theseprinciples under a librarian’s leadership will follow.Inclusiveness and PartneringEven within the University Libraries, serving a myriad ofprograms across several campuses, there are perceivedinequities of resources and personnel. Despite beinghypersensitive about providing equal service wheneverpossible, it is easy to slip and appear insensitive.Collaboration is ingrained in me, and being objective andfair is part of my nature; yet it takes a conscious effort toinvolve all parties.It is with this admission that I asked the executivecommittee to make a basic change in the House’smeetings. For several years, they had been planned attwo locations on the main campuses with a telephonehookup. Having been on the “other” end of telephoneconferences, I knew what was missed in such anarrangement. We scheduled two face-to-face meetingseach year at a central location, an equal sacrifice to allwho could attend, and attempted to hear from everyonewho wanted input in the more frequent conference calls.Inclusiveness meant choosing members to fill committeerosters with the various academic programs and alllocations in mind. It meant requesting inclusive languagein the Faculty Handbook on behalf of the library faculty,substituting the phrase “schools and colleges” with“academic units.” Likewise a statement was added sayingthat every effort would be made “to rotate the chair-electposition among different academic units.”Partnership was a major factor in planning meetings inadvance with guests whose knowledge andresponsibilities were of importance to a majority of thegroup and would prompt active discussion. In preparationfor newly established, full-House, semiannual meetingswith the university president, the executive committeesought questions on a broad spectrum of subjects tosubmit to the president prior to his attendance.Sharing InformationEffective dissemination of information is related topartnering, and who better than a librarian could beginconducting e-mail discussions for all delegates, alternatesand ex-officio administrators? Deans were appreciative ofthe information they were privy to as the Housedeliberated issues such as the place of research in theuniversity, academic attire for students, tuition waivers,Web publishing, international student admissions,religious observances, part-time faculty appointments,environmental responsibility, communication curriculum,e-mail usage and athletics. The subject lines of all e-mailsrelated to House business began with “HoD” to make iteasier for the receivers to locate them, and several newsitems were included in each e-mail to keep the totalamount of correspondence in check.A benefit of being the chair of the House is participatingin numbers of campuswide meetings, and I consciously“participated” instead of only “attending.” Those facultyand administrators who were present at meetings of theAcademic Council, University Planning Council and theEducational Policy Committee of the board of trustees, toname a few, were eager to hear reports from the Houseof Delegates and engage in conversation about issues ofimportance to the faculty at large.8   Spring 2010   Georgia Library Quarterly2Georgia Library Quarterly, Vol. 47, Iss. 2 [2010], Art. 4https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/glq/vol47/iss2/4On the arrival of a new president, the University PlanningCouncil began a comprehensive 10-year strategic plan.As the representative of the House, I was appointed tothe metrics committee, charged with determining howthe university would gauge its progress in meeting newstandards.  Budgets would be tied to these measures, andpart of my role was to ensure that all faculties wereconsidered during our deliberations and consulted whentheir input was needed.Acting as a RepresentativeThe chair of the House has a unique opportunity torepresent the faculty throughout the university as anactive participant in meetings and, occasionally, to thelarger community through events and public media. Onbehalf of the House, I was involved in early conversationswith the university’s new president and vice president foradministration and finance. In the first month of thepresident’s tenure, I met with him personally and sharedHouse documents that outlined what the faculties werethinking and how it compared with priorities recently setby the board of trustees. Later in the year, again as arepresentative of the House, I was involved in a nation-wide search for the next provost. This was not a time tohold back!  Full engagement is only possible throughcareful study of related issues and a willingness to be thepublic face of an organization.Similarly, I became the face of the library faculty to thosewith whom I met and worked. It was a role that gave methe opportunity to make others aware of library facultyresponsibilities, areas of service, requirements forpromotion, and expectations for involvement in scholarlyactivities. It made me more intentional in reminding mycolleagues of the same role they play in every day-to-dayencounter with faculty, students and administrators. I waskeenly aware that I represented my dean, in particular, aswell as my staff colleagues, many of whom were “pickingup the pieces” while I was out of my office with Housebusiness. The visibility of the House through myinvolvement in these activities — as a librarian —promoted good will for both the House and the UniversityLibraries.Strengthening the OrganizationAttendance at House meetings and involvement ofdelegates in deliberations often depend on the issues athand or the guests invited to discussions. StrengtheningGeorgia Library Quarterly   Spring 2010   93Broome: The Importance of Being EarnestPublished by DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University, 201010   Spring 2010   Georgia Library Quarterlymeant working with the executive committee on anambitious agenda for all scheduled meetings from thefirst time it met, and delegates gained energy with thisstrong sense of direction. Open debate on academicissues allowed participation by the newest to the longest-tenured faculty delegates.Strengthening also meant studying how, when and forwhat term delegates and alternates were selected eachyear and determining if the roster were full.  Forcontinuity, it seemed best to lengthen terms from two tothree years. With some difficulties in filling positions ofofficers, it also made sense to ask the executivecommittee to serve as the nominating committee.In response to increased attention to student and facultyresearch, the provost’s office called for assistance fromthe House’s standing research committee and fromHouse-nominated members on new committees.Provisions for those committees were outlined in theFaculty Handbook with guidelines for appointingmembers from across the campuses. These members willbe accountable to their own faculty as they weigh issuesrelated to funding of research initiatives, and there is highincentive to be an active participant in these discussions.Strengthening Rights and Responsibilities of FacultyBylaws are never very interesting reading unless one isa first-year faculty member (and perhaps not eventhen)!  However, they are of supreme importance inensuring that faculty rights are upheld and that formalgrievances proceed in a fair and timely manner. It is inattempting   to adhere to bylaws during a grievancehearing that weaknesses in those bylaws can becomemost apparent.The House considered it imperative to review this sectionof the Faculty Handbook following each such proceeding,and it benefited from naming the same members to thesecond review committee that it had on the first.  Theprocess was complicated and involved a great deal ofcollaboration among committee members representingseveral academic units. Advocating for faculty rightsmeant preserving the confidentiality of the grievances4Georgia Library Quarterly, Vol. 47, Iss. 2 [2010], Art. 4https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/glq/vol47/iss2/4Georgia Library Quarterly   Spring 2010   11while communicating with key participants and workingwith the university counsel’s office to makerecommendations to the House, and ultimately to thepresident, for revisions. These included replacing the word “promptly” withspecific numbers of working days and specifying thathearings take place on the campus of the grieving facultymember.  In addition, the revisions clarified the fact that apersonal lawyer may advise the grievant but not activelyparticipate in the hearing (this is an academic proceeding,not a legal one) and required a list of witnesses withvarying viewpoints prior to the hearing. The bylaws nowcall for the grievance committee to produce writtenfindings of fact for each allegation to submit to theprovost. They also provide support for the committeechair during the grievance process by involving theHouse’s executive committee as an advisory body inmaking decisions.In calling for this review, the House gave full attention tofaculty rights, learned from past experiences andenhanced a document that should be respected for itsobjectivity and integrity. Distinctions between tenuredand nontenured faculty were sharpened, and facultybenefited by studying the contents of the Handbook thatis the most accurate statement of their rights andcorresponding responsibilities.ConclusionSince the House is largely made up of teaching faculty,and since I was relatively new to the House when I waselected, it would have been easy to second-guess myability to tackle the issues that would arise over the nexttwo years. Certainly there were times when I felt a bitinadequate for the task, yet by staying in close contactwith the executive committee, I realized I was not alone inthinking that there were no easy answers! The confidenceI had in being able to fulfill my responsibilities was bornof a strong belief that there is a place at the table of anyorganization for everyone. Each of us has uniquestrengths, and with some persistence of our own and thecooperation of others, we can determine our roles.One of the most important things I learned during mytenure as chair was the value of a fully engaged delegate.Though I appreciated the trust that members put in me, itwas of little benefit when decisions were difficult anddetermined by a majority vote. Those who took the timeand made the effort to understand the issues set beforeus became accountable by making their own judgmentsinstead of depending on others. They made use ofindependent thinking and affirmed the future of theorganization at the same time. As representatives of theirown faculties, they were being faithful to their purposeand nurturing a process that has already been passed tonew leaders.Malcolm Gladwell reminds us of potential, whether fromlegacy or opportunity, that can lead to some measure ofsuccess, either individually or as represented by a group.Hugh Heclo speaks of gratitude in being involved inmeaningful work, of respecting the game in which weplay and of giving our best efforts with little thought ofreceiving. Life is too complex to be lived as an individual,and I believe there is value in investing in selectorganizations that work toward the benefit of others.There will be many more members than chairs oforganizations, but members can be leaders in their ownright. Integrity, responsibility, depth, initiative — I hopedto bring each of these qualities to the office I accepted.Yet in the process, I came to a clearer understanding thatleadership through membership, active membership, canbe a high calling. Susan G. Broome is associate professor and associate director fortechnical services at Mercer University’s Tarver Library in Macon.5Broome: The Importance of Being EarnestPublished by DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University, 2010

The Importance of Being Earnest: A Librarian\u27s Approach to Academic Leadership

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The Importance of Being Earnest: A Librarian\u27s Approach to Academic Leadership

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