ARLIS/NA 48th Annual Conference

Art librarians new to their position, whether in the beginning of their career or established as mid-to-late career librarians, are tasked with developing a rapport with their constituents. This often involves negotiating the fall-out of the various strategies utilized prior to their arrival at an institution; updating programming, instructional, or collections policies; and simply absorbing and synthesizing a seemingly staggering amount of information. In cases of positions with long vacancies, it can be imperative to fill in the gaps and nurture existing relationships before embarking on new projects or reaching out to additional stakeholders. While time is the most important and ineffable part of building a presence with and deep understanding of the faculty, students, and researchers you serve, this panel explores strategies that help this process along--keeping the best parts of existing practices while maximizing your own expertise, addressing new and emerging needs in your department(s), and deepening your engagement and embeddedness with your constituents.

Papers on this panel include:

“Not Yet Embedded: Building Effective Liaison Relationships”
Courtney Hunt, The Ohio State University
Building liaison relationships in an academic library takes time. In a climate where subject specialists are no longer primarily responsible for collection building, but also relationship building, what are some strategies that can cultivate effective partnerships? This paper addresses how a new art librarian is tackling some of these issues in a position was that was vacant for about four years. Some tactics include setting up office hours in departmental offices, collection open houses, and a new program for library instruction that engages with students through active learning strategies and assessment. This paper will examine the presenter's intentional and targeted programming, events, and collaborations to analyze what has worked and what hasn’t, after a year on the job.

“Order Up: A Teaching Menu to Engage Art and Design Faculty”
Michele Jennings, Ohio University
Teaching menus are commonly utilized by instruction librarians in academic libraries in order to give teaching faculty a sense of “what is possible”--namely, what pedagogical strategies or specialized materials are at the librarian’s disposal beyond one-shots or database demos. This paper details the process of developing a teaching menu aimed directly at studio art, design, and art history classes--from lesson planning and designing adaptable slides and worksheets, to integration of critical pedagogy practices and determining appropriate assessment techniques. While the creation of the presenter’s teaching menu is student-centered, there will also be discussion of the strategic use of the planning process and deployment of the teaching menu in reaching new faculty (or faculty new to the presenter) as well as enriching existing relationships.

"Strategies for Developing Trusting Relationships with Museum Professionals"
Beth Owens, Ingalls Library, Cleveland Museum of Art

Establishing trust with art museum professionals can be a daunting task for a newly appointed librarian, especially one in a position recently vacated by someone with a thirty-year tenure. In order to be effective, it is critical to build rapport as quickly as possible. Research into a potential acquisition of artwork cannot happen if the curator doesn’t have trust in your abilities. A conservator might not reach out for help locating a resource if a connection has not been formed. A faculty member may not request library instruction if they haven’t become acquainted with you. This paper will address some of the strategies utilized by the presenter to develop relationships and build trust with curators, faculty and students, as well as several other departments within the museum, during the first eighteen months in the position.

"Deeply Embedded: A Joint Faculty Position"
Lindsey Reynolds, University of Georgia, Lamar Dodd School of Art
Ever been to a job interview where the hiring committee wanted you to describe your vision for the position? Ever been to a job interview where that was not merely a conceptual exercise? In 2016 the University of Georgia hired an art librarian to turn an under-used visual resources center into a full-service art library branch within the Lamar Dodd School of Art. This paper addresses setting expectations, maintaining existing relationships, and creating new ones with a particular focus on research in the studio arts.