In the fall of 1999, we realized that we had hired 15 new professional librarians in the previous 12 months. This represented nearly 14% of our professional staff and presented an opportunity to influence organizational culture positively, convey a consistent message to a large group, and foster relationships among people at similar points in their careers.
We organized a series of 2-hour monthly programs over nine months at which top level University administrators addressed the group. Each of these speakers was paired with a Libraries speaker, who addressed the same topic from an internal Libraries perspective. For example, the University Vice President for Finance spoke about the budgeting process and status and the Libraries Fiscal Officer covered the Libraries budget.
Speakers included the Dean of the College of Natural Resources (addressing the mission and role of the University and its various components and programs), the Vice President for Human Resources (talking about policy development and how things get done in the University), and the Vice President/Associate Provost (exploring the future of higher education).
We also offered a session on the Libraries peer review process for reappointment, promotion, and continuous appointment. At another session, we invited several of our senior librarians to speak about the value of active participation in professional association. The final program was a luncheon with the University Librarian at which we gave certificates and paperweights.
Participants rated the program very highly and remain proud of being in the “class of 2000.” We started a new series of programs in the fall of 2001, for librarians hired after June 2000. To get the initiative off to a positive and early start, we had a kick-off luncheon with the University Librarian in May of 2001. The monthly programs with guest speakers began in September 2001.
Our intent was to include the 14 librarians hired into continuous appointment track appointments. Since the focus is developing the skills and knowledge for a successful career at the University of Minnesota and building relationships for the long term, we opted not to include people on temporary appointments. We were surprised when these people either appeared at the first session uninvited or called and told us we must have forgotten to include them. Since these programs are clearly highly valued, we chose to include these librarians, as well.
We follow each speaker with a question/answer period and lively discussion between the participants. We feel we are fostering intellectual curiosity and connections with the academy which we serve. The relations developed in our first “class” have resulted in co-authored papers, collaborative projects, and understanding of what various units in the Libraries do.
Submitted by:
Peggy Johnson
Assistant University Librarian
University of Minnesota Libraries
m-john@tc.umn.edu
December 7, 2001