-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Staffing
Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2004 16:14:27 -0500
From: David Cobb <[log in to unmask]>


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Colleagues -

I suppose that it is a requirement that we must all react to change and
administer change as we move through our careers. Change is almost always
imminent and an "opportunity" that we should plan for and or may be planned
over. It can be quite stressful to be planning for your own demise in hopes
that it won't happen but maybe that is the management advice for the 21st
century - at least during its beginnings.

Map collections find themselves in a tenuous position for if they serve one
department it had best be a strong one on campus. If they serve the
university they can be viewed as dispensable since they serve no one
clientele. It can be a double-edge sword or, in other words, welcome to the
white-water rapids of library administration.

It is obvious that WE know the importance of our collections but we must
improve our communications with other librarians and library management. It
is important that they understand the fragility of the map format: a flat
sheet of paper often inserted amongst many others in a not so simple
cataloging/filing system. Even though not all of our collections contain
significant antiquarian materials, they often contain unusual materials of
local interest, and that local interest should not be defined by what is
missing from the collection.

It is a misinformed librarian who contends that map collections and book
collections are similar and can be filed in open collections that are
unsupervised. It is not so much that our patrons are unaware of map
symbolization and their meanings - although there certainly are some, but
they are totally unaware of what other maps in the collection may be also
used for their reference question. Libraries do not choose to not provide
reference staff for the reference collection and it is for the above reason
- a good reference librarian can bring several resources together to answer
a question. The same is true for a map collection. Few patrons would
realize that maps from a world set might be a better choice than current
maps of a specific country.

It is unfortunate to understand the historical investment that a library
may have made (acquisitions, map cases, related equipment, and personnel)
only to turn and decide that it no longer needs either collection
development support or reference supervision. A sad state of affairs will
only increase if we do not communicate the value of our collections and
explain how they are used.

Stepping down from the soap box now ...................

David Cobb

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David A. Cobb                                   Tel. 617.495.2417
Harvard Map Collection                          FAX  617.496.0440
Harvard College Library                         Email: [log in to unmask]
Cambridge, MA 02138                             HTTP://hcl.harvard.edu/maps
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