"Paraprofessional" - A Dirty Word?

Ursala Delworth in an article entitled, "The paraprofessionals are coming!" from 1974 discusses the muddying waters of terminology in the use of professionals and a newly coined term "paraprofessionals". She describes paraprofessionals as:

persons who are selected, trained, and given responsibility for performing functions generally performed by professionals. They do not require the requisite education or credentials to be considered professionals in the field in which they are working, but they do perform tasks central to the function of the agency...*

In March of this year, Francine Fialkoff, editor in-chief for Library Journal discussed the issues around the paraprofessional label of non-MLIS library staff. She illustrates that the English definition of this term, as someone who is subsiduary or ancillary to roles posessessing more training or higher status, does not satisfy the description of what library staff do. Indeed, as Fialkoff points out, non-MLIS staff perform an array of tasks that need to be recognized and respected.+

Fear that giving library techncian and assistants a stronger title like "paralibrarian" further deprofessionalizes the field is, quite simply, misplaced. The incredible changes that libraries are experiencing as information becomes increasingly central to our culture and society, means that library staff are ALL seeing an increasing complexity to their work. Certainly, very few who use the services of libraries and other information centres make a distinction between a circulation assistant and a reference librarian. As a result, ALL library staff must behave in a manner that is in keeping with the professional and ethical philosophy of the profession. In order to build strong organizational cultures, library administrators need to focus on creating work environments that provide seamless service and opportunities for all staff to continually develop and grow.

Although libraries have existed for thousands of years in many forms, the modern field of librarianship does not have a long history. It is natural, then, to see the traditional views and roles of library work shift with the changing expectations that occur in and around the field. Our philosophy remains grounded in providing access to information for the purposes of knowledge building and this should provide us with the reassurance that changing the definitions relating to our roles and positions will, in all likelihood, enhance the profession. Enabling all library staff to see themselves as professionals by changing job titles and enhancing career development, strengthens the profession. Granted, the issue of salary then becomes part of the discussion. It is important to see that the limited resources that challenge our progress should not be the cause to fight internally, like hungry wolves, over limited budget allocations. Our energy needs to be turned outward to educate our communities about the services libraries provide and demonstrate that those services are performed by professionals who adhere to a set of core values and principles.

Allison Sloan, Library Journal's Paraprofessional of the Year, makes a poignant statement when she says:

Of course there is an important place in libraries for people who do not have an advanced degree but who want to pursue a library career...In Massachusetts we know that, and we call them 'paralibrarians.'**

Although used for over 40 years, the term "paraprofessional" no longer serves our field. It is time to embrace the diversity of our working environments by respecting both those with advanced degrees and those without. More importantly, it is important for library education programs to foster professionalism and life-long learning so that all library staff are prepared to carry out the complexities of their work with confidence. We are all professionals.

*Delworth, U. (1974). The paraprofessionals are coming!. Personnel & Guidance Journal, 53(4), 250. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.

+ Fialkoff, F. (2010, March). Not Yet Equal. Library Journal, p. 8. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.

**Berry III, J. (2010). ALLISON SLOAN. Library Journal, 135(4), 26-27. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.

Think local to change the global

Life is really an amazing series of serendipitous moments! Recently, on the way home from work, I listened to Facing the Future, a broadcast of a lecture by Prince Charles on the struggles of managing the mess that we have created with our planet. I was so enamoured with his eloquence that I will jump at the first chance to see one of his speaking engagements.

But that, alone, is not what got me thinking...
It was his profound message.

I was captivated by his statement:

...how could we better empower all sorts of communities to create a much more participative economic model that safeguards their identity, cohesion and diversity – one that makes a clear distinction between the maintenance of Nature’s capital reserves and the income it produces? That is the challenge we face, it seems to me – to see Nature’s capital and her processes as the very basis of a new form of economics and to engage communities at the grass roots to put those processes first. If we can do that, then we have an approach that acts locally by thinking globally, just as Nature does – all parts operating locally to establish the coherence of the whole. (HRH, para 39)

Having just posted an article, here, discussing the problems with association memberships, and suggesting that we must think "locally", I was intrigued to hear him say that we must act locally to, "establish coherence of the whole". We hear this message of "thinking" locally with more frequency. We hear it when we discuss changing our attitudes towards how we acquire our food. We hear it when we discuss the evolution of our health, education, and transportation systems. We feel it when we watch all of those horrifying Discovery Channel documentaries about the fate of the human race. This message, like a system of small waterways, is converging into one major river system that represents our need to realign of our thinking. We need to reconnect with nature. We need to reconnect with our communities.

As I mulled all of this over, I began to reflect upon the role that libraries can have on this process. The Prince of Wales astutely points out that in celebration of post-war Modernism, "there was an eagerness to embark upon a new age of radical experimentation in every area of human experience which caused many traditional ideas to be discarded in a fit of uncontrollable enthusiasm." (para 7) It appears, to me, that the repositories of knowledge that we have struggled to build and maintain, also house the solutions to our current plight as a civilization in crisis. The studies are in and the debate is over. We are in trouble.

Yet, the answers to many of our problems reside in the philosophies of our predecessors and those who continue to champion the value of natural order and balance in nature. I was deeply moved by the Prince's reasoning that we must think differently about our relationship with our planet by becoming more connected to it. It is no longer sufficient for us to be the "keepers" of information - we must be the conduit if we are to inspire social, economic, and philosophical change.

HRH The Prince of Wales. (7 July 2009). Facing the future: 2009 Richard Dimbleby lecture. St James’s Palace State Apartments, London. [Transcript]. Retrieved November 16, 2009 from http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speechesandarticles/the_richard_dimbleby_lecture_titled_facing_the_future_as_del_573388579.html

Membership: it's all about engagement

Recently, I had the opportunity to speak at the BCLA's Library Technician & Assistants Interest Group (LTAIG) regarding membership. Realizing that I was going to be presenting to the "converted", I thought long and hard about what membership really means.

In an era when memberships across the board are down and associations struggle to sell themselves, it is no surprise that they are thrown into the process of self-examination. Professionals are savvy consumers, too. Members no longer need to rely on a mail out newsletter and annual conferences to stay connected. Which brought me to some research on social networks. Social networks are nothing new. Abrams and Hogg in "Collective Identity" state:

"Since our private self is where we contain the knowledge of our attitudes, traits, feelings and behaviour, we must look at our collective self that contains our connections to associations, our affiliations and other groups. Our identity as individuals are bound to our perceptions of groups." (2006, 143)

This got me thinking... Essentially, seeing value in professional memberships means that we must have a personal connection to those associations in order for us to truly identify with that broader community. Yet, many of us struggle with this. In fact, paying an annual membership, getting the odd newsletter and knowing that work is being done on our behalf is just not enough for us to feel personally connected. As social networking "tools" like Facebook demonstrate, people see value in belonging to groups that relate to them on some emotional level. We identify ourselves with like-minded people - those who share our values, opinions and views - our families and friends.

How can this all tie into healthy associations?
Those organizations need to recognize the need for emotional involvement and build on it. This means that representation at a very local and personal level is likely to inspire more action and interest. It is not good enough for the Canadian Library Association to say it represents Canadian library staff. This is particularly true when there is no infrastructure to be inclusive of all regions and communities. In a country that is so geographically large and diverse, the challenge is immense. Although people may band together for specific causes that have impact (e.g. the Facebook group Fair Copyright for Canada), this level of activity is very situational.

Information work is about serving communities. Although, as information professionals, we may serve our clients virtually, the work we engage in is about people. These people exist in very real, very tangible communities that range from cities to farms to specialized organizations like hospitals and law firms. The diversity of who information professionals serve (a reflection of our national diversity) runs so deep, that the needs of one "neighbourhood" may not be that of another. It is at this microscopic level that membership begins. Being engaged with our immediate community is at the centre of information work.

It seems apparent, then, that for associations like BCLA to thrive, they must support and inspire members to become locally active. Diverse interest groups, chapters, and committees can be the framework on which members can cultivate their interests. If library staff feel that they have a real emotional connection with their colleagues, they are more likely to participate. If they are more likely to participate, the onerous task of managing groups becomes more readily shared among the membership. Why? Because they have a deeper sense of commitment and responsibility to those closest to them.

This sense of commitment and subsequent engagement, like that of civic responsibility, is something that must be anticipated as a student or fledgling in the profession. In other words, engagement begins as a student. Students are most likely to become involved if they anticipate participation. (Campbell, 2006, 161) Thus, it is part of the educational experience to cultivate this engagement. However, in order for this commitment to be lasting and effective, the associations that represent professionals must assist. Extensive activities that link educational organizations with associations becomes a critical factor in generating a committed membership.

Is this being done? Although some efforts are made, much more can be done. This is particularly true for library technicians and assistants. The constant struggle to keep LTAIG afloat with a strong membership suggests that there are problems with engagement. It seems, free membership as a student is simply not enough to create a highly active membership. Activities of associations must reach out to capture the interest and excitement of students who, generally, have an intense willingness to become engaged.

All of this comes back to the concept of social networks. Students need to be encouraged to build upon their social networks, within their own geographical contexts, to inspire a sense of belonging to their prospective professional associations. They need a connection like the ones shared with friends and family. They need to feel trust in committing their ideas to action. Having an arms length relationship with an association does not build in the level of kinship and trust needed to go beyond the passive roles of simply being identified as a "member" to a more assertive role of being an "active member".

If we build it, they will come - only if we enhance personal engagement. Thus, if the conferences, the newsletters, the websites, the committees and the interest groups do not connect emotionally with members, they will not, quite simply, stay members. To have a strong, healthy membership, our professional associations need to reach out out and "touch" their prospective members. Tap into the existing social networks.

Go to them.



Hogg, M. and D. Abrams. (2006). Collective identity: group membership and self-conception. in Self and social identity. Worchel and Coutant, eds. Malden: Blackwell, 143-181.

Campell, David. (2006). Why we vote: how schools and communities shape our civic life. Princeton: Princeton University Press.