ROB BREMERMEGAN LOWE

MIKE MATTHEWS

Starting a Mentorship Program for Academic

Librarians

Who We Are

Rob Bremer: LLA Academic Libraries Section Liaison with ACRL-LA User Services Librarian, Louisiana Tech University Library

Megan Lowe: Chair, Mentoring Committee Reference Librarian, University of Louisiana at Monroe

Mike Matthews: President, ACRL-LA Information Literacy/Online Learning Services Librarian,

Northwestern State University of Louisiana

PART ONE

Lessons Learned from Assessment

Our Work to Date…LLA 2008

Introduction of the “mentorship idea” at LLA March 2008

Review of the Literature Formalized mentorship programs exist in large

academic library settings (Carnegie I or II) Over-represented because of high profile institutions

Summative evaluations Formative evaluations Successful Mentee = Job Security

Smaller academic libraries Variety of approaches, but mostly informal

Our Work to Date…Environmental Scan

ACRL has programs for supporting new library managers/administrators…but not rank and file librarians

The Medical Library chapter-wide mentorship program

Centrally organized but informal New librarians are paired with more knowledgeable

colleagues Database of prospective mentees/mentors Six-hour mentorship seminar for interested members

Our Work to Date…Organizational

Convened two meetings of the ACRL-LA Executive Council (March 26 and June 18) Decisions:

Who do we want to reach with this program? For whose benefit is this program being created? Whose blessings must we secure? (AKA: How do not

ruffle the feathers of any Big Birds?) What are the baseline expectations of this program?

Déjà-vu All Over Again?

Mentorship and the SLIS Students (2003)

Is it time for history to repeat itself?

Our Work to Date…the Survey

Partially modeled on the South Central Chapter of MLA mentorship survey of 2004 For both mentors and mentees

Length of Service Motivations of participants of mentors/mentees Interests of prospective mentors and mentees

Define the viability and goals of the mentorship program Do they already participate as a mentor/mentee at their

home institution? Is it an effective program? What are their common career goals and aspirations? Are they able to perform the tasks of a mentor or mentee?

Concerns

Would the success of the MLA chapter translate into results for Louisiana? How would the success of a mentorship program be

measured? Academic librarians do not require CEUs (Continuing

Education Units) to proceed in their career tracks. Academic librarians must know a more generalized

body of knowledge than medical librarians.

Working Hypotheses

Older librarians will be retiring at an alarming rate; 79% will retire by 2024

Younger librarians need guidance in the cultures and philosophies of the academic librarian profession

Older librarians will want to share their knowledge with their younger colleagues

Younger librarians could (should?) learn how to perform complex tasks on the job; an older librarian’s guidance could be the solution

Librarians, regardless of age, are interested in improving their skills

Majority Do Not Have Mentorship Program

An Experienced Workforce

With a Strong Sense of Professionalism…

Who Want to Help

And Who Need Skilled Colleagues…

But who are too busy or feel they don’t know enough to be of assistance. (Huh?)

What the Survey Data Tells Us…

66% of respondents have 5 or more years of experience Yet, 37% do not believe they are experienced enough

to be mentors And, 37% are simply “too busy” to be a mentor

50% of respondents want to be a mentor Only 15% (6) want to have a mentor Yet, 61% would like to participate in a continuing

education opportunity directed to mentees

Is There a Connection Here?

Kirkland, Janice. The Missing Women Library Directors: Deprivation versus Mentoring C&RL July

1997

Grooming Model

When grooming goes bad…

Peer Networking Model

So What Can We Do?

Investigate further (i.e. continue to annoy respondents with more surveys)

• Greater specificity• Correlative• Cross-sectional

Conduct focus groups either in-person, online or via conference call• Quick, actionable data

Coordinate activities with LALINC Directors and SLIS• Broaden support network• Eliminate redundant efforts

Start Here

Plan for the Future

Future Assessments

Mentorship Commitment Inventory Auditing of interest and effort by mentors

To provide a trusting relationship To teach mentees skills To guide mentees in decision-making and reflection

(i.e. active listening) Auditing of interest and effort by mentees

To learn new skills To participate in mentor/mentee programming To collaborate with Mentors in providing service to the

profession

Future Assessments

Demographics Age, sex, length of service, number of years as a state resident,

years until retirement Career information

First or second career librarians? (Maybe third?) Transitions

Moving to management? Deciding to specialize?

Expertise (you would like to share) Reference Cataloging/Systems Management/Administration Instruction Outreach/Publicity/Marketing

Timeline to Completion

Possible Outcomes

Results may show… We don’t need a “formal” mentorship program We need a mentorship program, but one which is

peer-based and flexible. We don’t need a mentorship program in any form.

If there is not a significant need for a statewide mentorship program, we still have accumulated

data to guide our chapter’s other initiatives!

Assessing our Success

Qualitative Data Anonymous questionnaires

Deployed on secure website with passwords Open-ended questions requiring essay responses

Quality of relationship Quality of feedback Reflection on “lessons learned”

Quantitative Data Rating of mentor/mentee Rating of interest in program Comparison of initial intentions with final outcomes

What could be the long-term benefits of a mentoring program?

What could be the long-term benefits of a mentoring program?

M.A.L.D.E.N.?

PART TWO

Beyond Thunderdome: Meta-Analysis and

Aftermath

What Were We Thinking?

LOUIS (and, by extension, LUC) and LLA were great venues for learning…but academic librarians needed more venues for academic library scholarship and assistance with academic library concerns (beyond SIRSI, etc.)

There seemed to be a lot of new academic librarians in the state who might need help

ACRL-LA seemed the logical answer to fill in the gap between LOUIS and LLA, and the logical solution to the needs of new academic librarians

What Were We Thinking?

The ACRL-LA Executive Council decided that the best way to gather information about the needs of new librarians (and the need for a mentoring program) was a survey

A committee, with several task forces, was formed; one task force developed the survey

Side Effects Include…

Along the way, we revamped our website Online forms for membership led to… Online forms for our pre-conference workshop!

Developed an online forum wherein we discuss issues and concerns (vs. doing it all via email and filling up inboxes)

Learned about the skills and strengths of our membership, which produce great resources

Aftermath: Ch-ch-changes!

The target group, new librarians, has changed to librarians in transition

The structure is changing from mentor-mentee to peer-colleague

The purpose is even changing: in the beginning was pure mentorship, now we’re also looking at continuing education opportunities

Identifying Our Next Steps

More surveys (follow-up)Bulldozing ahead

• Establishing “duties” or guidelines for mentors/peers• Contacting deans & the library managers interest

group

• Identify areas of interest for continuing education opportunities for academic librarians

What Do We Do Now?

Re-evaluate our purpose and our missionGain a better understanding of the needs of

librarians in the stateFocus on providing continuing education

We are able to still help librarians… …and in non-library ways!

Creating and maintaining resources as the mentoring program evolves and develops

Still Up for Debate

Format Casual vs. formal? Directory of Experts? FAQ?

Name of mentors/mentees “Mentees”? “Peer-Mentees”? “Mentors”? “Peer-Mentor”? “Professional friend”? “Grasshoppa”? (just kidding)

Challenges | Problems | Obstacles

Hurricanes (that’s a big one)Resolving the aforementioned debatable

topicsSize of the committee: needs to be largerGetting started (re-beginning the

beginning)Interest? Need? Desire? Variables (people, people-resources,

resources, resources for people, etc.)Information & Interest

Definite Outcomes

Planning more workshops like our Pre-LUC workshop, “Publish & Flourish: Writing for Academic Librarians”

Focusing on technology-oriented workshops, covering such topics as Flash, Camtasia, and Moodle

Pursuing our vision of a mentorship program, but adapting as new information becomes available via follow-up surveys

What Can You Do?

Join ACRL-LA! If you’re a member of ACRL, you’re automatically a

member of ACRL-LA If you aren’t a member of ACRL and you would like to

join ACRL-LA, it’s just $20 – see our website for membership information

Volunteer to serve on the mentorship committee Volunteer to be a mentor/peer friend/whatever Don’t be afraid to be a mentee/grasshoppa/whatever

What Can You Do?

Take our surveys – the information you provide is crucial to our understanding of academic librarians in the state of Louisiana, even beyond mentorship

Don’t be afraid to contact us with concerns, ideas, recommendations, suggestions – we *WANT* to hear from you!

PART THREE

Sharing the Mentoring Vision:the Louisiana Library

Association

Sharing the Mentoring Vision: A Timeline

Until in/about 2000, LLA had a New Members Round-Table, with a nebulous mentoring program for new librarians … at least an at-Conference pairing of new librarians with established ones, which may or may not have sustained a continuing relationship between the two librarians.

Since the disbanding of NMRT, LLA has from time to time “kicked around” the idea of establishing a formal mentoring program … without any movement forward.

A Timeline

On March 6, 2008, as the 2008 LLA Conference came to a close, the President-Elect challenged the LLA Membership to establish a program for bringing librarians-in-training and new librarians into LLA and to encourage them to stay with the Association and participate in its sections, interest groups, conferences, programs, and projects.

A Timeline

On June 23, 2008, the Co-Coordinators of the LLA Library Managers Interest Group pointed the Group toward the 2008-09 year and asked all to consider, in cooperation with the Academic and Public Library Sections: heading up the creation and maintenance of a

mentoring program for new library managers and assisting in the creation and maintenance of a

mentoring program for new librarians.

A Timeline

On July 17, 2008, the LLA Academic Libraries Section Liaison with ACRL-LA received a general listserv reminder from the ACRL-

LA President that “ACRL-LA is currently working on building a state-wide mentorship program for academic librarians … to provide a network of support, encouragement, and continuing education for all librarians, especially those who are new to the profession”

A Timeline

On July 17, 2008, the LLA Academic Libraries Section Liaison with ACRL-LA remembered that the Louisiana Library Network had

issued a call for presenters at the October LOUIS Users Conference, including ones on “Starting a Mentoring Program for New Librarians,” and

suggested to the ACRL President that, through its members who wear both ACRL-LA and LALINC hats, ACRL-LA might want to make a LUC presentation on its nascent mentorship program, with the result that….

A Timeline

ACRL-LA and LLA Academic Libraries joined in the making of such a presentation…today’s presentation!

A Timeline

On August 27-28, 2008, the LLA Academic Libraries Section and Library Managers Interest Group linked up with the 2008-09 LLA Membership Committee, which had begun discussion of how “a mentoring program would help in getting new librarians to join LLA”….

A Timeline

….to begin planning how representatives from LLA Academic Libraries, Membership, Public Libraries, School Libraries, and Library Managers could unite, plan, and propose to the LLA Executive Board…

A Timeline

“a considered, continuing program for the mentoring of Louisiana librarians (both those new to the profession and those who have been promoted and/or moved to new positions), to begin as soon as possible (perhaps as early as January) and be managed by the Membership Committee (whose mission is to encourage Louisiana librarians to join and remain in LLA),” including coordination with ACRL-LA “an effort to avoid duplicate, competing programs as concerns Louisiana's academic libraries”

A Timeline

On September 8, 2008, today’s presenters met, shared information … including ACRL-LA’s initial finding that two-thirds of its “new” librarians have no interest in a “mentor” … tossed around ideas, and concluded that more information and suggestions are needed to determine if the Louisiana library community in fact has a need

for a mentorship program and if there is such a need, what should be the nature and

scope of such a program.

What Can Be Gleaned from the Timeline?

Efforts to provide “mentoring” services to librarians are not at all new.

A librarian’s need for a mentor arises when her/his library career is in transition as much as when the established librarian is learning a new skill, as when the newly minted librarian is entering the profession. 

What Can Be Gleaned from the Timeline?

A librarian may also on occasion need confidential, unbiased advice in dealing with a workplace issue/crisis not at all connected with any career transition.

The terms “mentoring” and “mentor” may be unnecessarily limiting and have a negative connotation for some “mentees,” who may chafe at the suggestion that, though professionals, they still need a “guide” … perhaps, “conferring” and “colleague” are better terms (“Conferring with a Colleague”).

What Can Be Gleaned from the Timeline?

To be successful, any mentoring/advising program must be:  Need-generated - what do our colleagues need, not

what do we think they need Well-planned - but not so over-planned the program

dies from inaction Realistic - the goal should be to have effective

mentoring/advising available when needed – not all mentors/advisors will be engaged all the time (not being busy is a good thing) and not all mentors/advisors will prove helpful (so assign another one)

Sharing the Mentoring Vision

Such are the issues the Louisiana Library

Association is wrestling with as it moves to establish a mentoring/advising program for its members … in league with ACRL-LA.

Question & Answer Time!

Contacting Us

Rob Bremer: rbremer@library.latech.eduMike Matthews: matthewsm@nsula.eduMegan Lowe: lowe@ulm.edu

LLA: http://www.llaonline.orgACRL-LA: http://www.acrlla.org/

PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO CONTACT US WITH QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, SUGGESTIONS!

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

Thanks for coming!