To the Editor:
I am writing in response to the December 10 article, “A Luxury That We Can’t Afford” and in direct support of my Western Illinois University librarian colleagues who deserve the respect and status of esteemed faculty that they have already earned.
As a tenured Librarian, I have worked in universities and colleges that misunderstand and undervalue the role librarians play in campus culture, research, and institutional memory. I can assure not only The Chronicle but its readers that librarians are strong advocates of not only our own work and research, but the impact that work has on our students and community. Like other disciplinary faculty, we are aware that the use and misuse of information can bring down whole governments. Our value is communicated and restated in every committee meeting, student group, program, exhibit, and research appointment we facilitate and attend. Unlike other learning spaces on campus, we also provide a brave, third place for community members who cannot speak their truth in a classroom setting. That is the work that is invisible that we make visible.
To be clear, budgets and enrollment are issues that will always remain. I believe that it is the job of WIU and its administration to find ways to maintain a robust, collegial campus. That includes a commitment to supporting librarians, and faculty, as we support the intellectual and material well-being of our students and the community around these institutions.
I will also note, with much ire, that the elimination of specific majors at WIU (African American Studies, Women’s Studies, etc.) also point to an idea that the most marginalized and underrepresented in academe can be thrown away if money is at stake. This is a larger issue than I cannot fully treat in this letter. WIU, I hope you know that your actions speak much louder than you think. Your prospective students, boosters, and so many others see where your priorities lie and wonder what sort of institution values the books, billboards, and banners over its faculty and librarians. In my thoughts, it is indeed a questionable one.
Aisha Conner-Gaten
Instruction Librarian, Distance Education
Glendale Community College
Glendale, CA
