I work in a one-person library.
Have you seen Better Call Saul? Remember that episode where Saul Goodman works in an office in the back of a nail salon, and answers the phone in a fancy accent pretending to be his own secretary? That is what my job is like, and I love it.
Being in a one-person library is a uniquely great experience, but it wasn’t the original plan. There used to be two people in the library, me and the head librarian! And then just after I started working there, the head librarian faced health issues that left him on medical leave for a year. Then, it was just me. No one else at the school had any library experience, and it was tough finding an interim supervisor.
In the meantime, it was just me and the library. I learned more about overseeing a library as I took on new challenges and responsibilities. It was intimidating, but there were so many cool opportunities: I had full creative license in my role, and I could apply as much as I could from what I learned in my MLIS courses. And so the library became my sandbox where I could build and create new things: an Instagram page, video tutorials, interactive classroom lectures, webpage edits, MARC records from scratch, and thematic bulletin boards.
All the students and faculty at my campus are used to having a small library. And so it was exciting when I began expanding it with tutoring services and events and a consolidated collection of books (rather than small collections of books in different classrooms).
With professors and staff, this is how our conversations would normally go:
- Professor: “Huh. I didn’t know the library could do that.”
- Me: “Yep, it sure can!”
I’ve found that a “yep, sure can!” goes a long way. When trying to expand the library, I’ve learned that trying something new in itself is enough, because there is always room for improvement. In the process of trying and acting on my ideas, I’ve become a better librarian. This has led to some great experience! And the library has changed so much since I started at this position!
Sadie Davenport is ALASC’s co-chair/webmaster. You can find her on instagram @sadiearabia or follow her library’s instagram @cnulibrary.
