Back to work

After an entire day spent laboring over mountains of laundry and a bit of relaxation tucked into odd moments I was ready to return to work today.

I don't know if I can adequately describe what it feels like to unlock the door to the Rare Book Room, swing it wide and step inside. It's a Dorothy kind of moment for me. Every day I feel like I'm walking into a land of delights. I've often described this feeling as akin to a settler in an undiscovered country - just so much to explore! I had that same feeling when I entered the RBR, as I call it, today.

Now that I'm home and back at work I've gone through my notes and created some short lists of topics I'd like to explore:

1. Instructional ideas:

• Invite new faculty to tour special collections and share the rare book pedagogy model developed by an English professor designed to assist faculty and introduce students to primary source materials.
• Host an open house in special collections for new students during orientation. Students are given a tour of the library, so why not include a visit to special collections?
• Initiate a student book collector's contest. I plan to enter the collector's contest at USC. Offering the contest at my institution will foster scholarship, create a new class of future donors and expose students to the world of books.

2. Guidelines:

• Examine the rules currently in place for the reading room and suggest adjustments, if needed.
• Compare security guidelines to those discussed in class. Consider options addressed during class for adoption, if needed.

3. Archives:

• Seek information about archives and archivists.
• Search for ways to gain experience in archives.

4. Join!

• RBMS
• SAA
• ALA

One of the best ways to meet people, keep current on issues and learn more about a field is to join a professional organization. I spoke with several folks during my week at RBS who had joined one or more of these groups and worked on committees. Everyone of them urged me to participate. It's the next step on the way to my professional development.

The RBS week begins

As I write this, night descends upon the UVA campus. The sky is still illuminated, backlit by the sun's fading light. The clouds are a deep, evening shade of blue, the sky a paler one. A pick up game of touch football continues at the base of Jefferson's Rotunda. The humidity is low and it will be a good night for sleeping. I'm staying on The Lawn this week. The lack of air conditioning in my shuttered room will not bother me tonight.

I look forward to attending Rare Book School all year. This is my third year and I hope to attend for years to come. When I arrived at Alderman Library for the opening reception this evening I was greeted by familiar faces from past years. I was delighted to renew old aquaintances and meet others for the first time. It's going to be a great week!

Tonight I had dinner with two catalogers from large institutions. My education for the week began with my dinner companions. As I had the opportunity to chat with catalogers I asked them to share their experiences regarding hidden collections as well as any thoughts they might have about the preliminary record format.

Both catalogers stressed that hidden collections at their institutions are problematic. One cataloger said she had just completed cataloging a collection of medical theses from the 16th - 19th centuries that was purchased in the 1960's. Our companion was in support of the preliminary record format. While the drawback may be that the preliminary record is not as full, one of the crucial benefits of this format was the security factor. That is a facet I had not considered. It is certainly a compelling argument for preliminary records.

Last week I had a discussion with an administrator on the subject of hidden collections who refered to the preliminary record format as a kind of "triage." I found this to be a good way of looking at the issue. These conversations have greatly enlightened me. As I mentioned earlier, my institution does not have big issues with hidden collections so my experience in this area is limited.

But that's why I'm here at RBS, to learn, to see, to grow, and most importantly, to connect with people in all fields and learn from their experiences. That's what makes RBS so proiceless. That's why I keep coming back.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Rare Book School. During Terry Belanger's address following dinner he announced his retirement as RBS Director in July, 2009. The search for his replacement is underway. It will be difficult for many to picture RBS under the direction of someone other than Terry Belanger, but thanks to the stewardship under his capable hands, RBS will go forward with confidence.

The RBMS Pre-Conference will be in Charlottesville next year and RBS is in full planning mode in order to make the most of this event. As Terry said tonight, the pre-conference held its first meeting here in Charlottesville in 1958. Sounds like a good time to return to Rare Book School!