ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

In the news

When I was a child, one of the games I enjoyed playing was “library.” My friends and I would put cards in our books and take turns checking them out. We thought this was great fun. We also thought that was what librarians did—check out books. Despite the many efforts to update our image, the stereotypical “buncapped, book-checking-outer, shusher” is still what many folks think of when they think of librarians.

We know how exciting and rewarding our profession can be—our challenge has been to convey that to the broader community. Particularly, when we think of the “graying of the profession,” we must think of how we are going to make librarianship look enticing to the young people who have an ever-expanding smorgasbord of career choices.

ACRL has an opportunity for you to correct this outdated image with young people by participating in Job Shadow Day 2000. Juniorand senior-high school students are being matched with workplace mentors to get an up-close look at a variety of careers. ACRL, in partnership with ALA’s divisions, is joining associations throughout the United States in support of Job Shadow Day. So “check out” the details on page 826, and send in the form to volunteer your time and share your enthusiasm for librarianship with some young students who just may, one day, become your colleagues.

And please don’t limit the sharing with those outside of the profession. Plan on sharing your skills, insights, and expertise with your colleagues at ACRL’s 10th National Conference, March 15-18, 2001, in Denver, Colorado. The “Call for Participation” appears as an insert in this issue and is on the Web at http://www.ala.org/acrl/denver.html. The National Conference Committee is eager to receive your program proposals. And Denver will be fun, too. See Ellen Metter’s overview of Denver on page 829 and save March 15-18, 2001, to attend the conference.

—Mary Ellen K. Davis Editor-in-Chief, medavis@ala.org