ASSOCIATES (vol. 2, no. 2, November 1995) - associates.ucr.edu
AN INTERVIEW WITH GENE KINNALY, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Conducted by
Kent Slade
Weber County Library System
Ogden, Utah
kslade@cc.weber.edu
Question: Tell us a little about yourself. You work at Library
of Congress, right? What do you do there, what made
you choose to work there, and what is it like?
Answer: I started my library career on April 1, 1974. I
wondered at the time if starting a job on April Fool's
Day was an omen of things to come. Fortunately,
things have worked out pretty good.
My first job was as a mail clerk in the mail room of
the Copyright Office. The best thing about it was
that we got to see the Copyright deposits. In
particular, I remember getting into a "muppet war" with
a coworker, playing with muppet hand puppets (I was
Cookie Monster). I still have the letter from the
Library of Congress (LC), notifying me that I had been
hired. At the time, I was a GS-3, earning a princely
$6,408 per year! Good thing I was living with my folks
at the time! I earn considerably more these days, but
I can't honestly say that I *have* more money -- I
think I had more back then.
I also worked as a desk attendant in the Law Library
for about a year and a half -- my only venture (thus
far) into public services. I was responsible for
retrieving books from the Hispanic Law Library for the
staff in the division, as well as readers in our
reading room. Other duties included reshelving books,
shelf-reading, loose-leaf service, labeling and
book-plating books, and searching card catalogs. I had
about 200,000 volumes to care for (and this was the
*smallest* division in the law library).
Then, in 1977, I started work in the Shelflisting
Section, and I've been involved in shelflisting and
cataloging ever since. Now, I'm a Senior Technical
Advisor. I am still involved in shelflisting but my
job has expanded a *lot* in the last three to four
years. I do a lot of training, both one-on-one and
formal classroom training. I developed and still teach
two shelflisting classes, and I'm the only
paraprofessional teaching a computer skills class. I
have been involved in writing several technical manuals
for internal use, and my name appears with several of
my coworkers in the preface to _Subject Cataloging
Manual: Shelflisting_, second edition. I have been
trained in CIP Verification and, at this point, I
process all CIP Verification received on my team (with
help, as needed, from a senior cataloger). Soon, I
hope to get involved in LC's copy cataloging project.
I totally enjoy my job. I work for a great boss and
with a great group of people. And LC has been, for me,
a really neat place to work. It's a little like
working at the United Nations since so many nations and
cultures are represented by the LC workforce. Our
numbers have dwindled the last few years, but, as a
whole, the staff here is really wonderful.
Question: I have never heard of the term "shelflisting" before.
What is it?
Answer: Shelflisting is, in part, the process by which the LC
classification number assigned to a book is extended to
the point where a unique call number is formulated. In
most libraries, one person is responsible for the
entire cataloging process for a book, including the
assignment of the call number. At LC, because of the
size of the collection and the number of items received
and retained for the collection each day, the
cataloging process was split into three parts: the
descriptive cataloging, the subject cataloging, and the
shelflisting.
It was the shelflister who was responsible for
determining the correct filing position in our 3 x 5
card shelflist, determining the appropriate call number
which supported that filing position, filing the card,
updating the record with the call number, writing the
call number in the book, and forwarding the book either
to the Decimal Classification Division or to Binding.
Other duties included adding copies of books to the
collection (writing call numbers in the books and
updating the holdings information in the shelflist),
filing printed catalog cards into the shelflist,
resolving discrepancy reports (incorrect call numbers
in the shelflist, in the books, or in the catalog
record), and processing books being discarded from the
collections. Today many of these duties, and a few
more new duties, are performed by LC cataloging
technicians.
Question: Have you worked at other libraries? What other types
of jobs have you had?
I have never worked in another library. However, my
"grand plan" is to retire in about thirteen years (God
and Congress willing) and seek a position in an
academic library. I think by that time I will have
quite a bit to offer a college or university library.
Also, I would hopefully be able to take some classes.
In terms of other jobs, most of my experience has been
with summer jobs during high school and college. I
have been a playground leader, a short-order cook, a
restaurant maitre d', and I spent one particularly
memorable summer working for the Sewer Department in
Brockton, Massachusetts.
I was also in the Army Reserves for six years, trained
as an Army cook (my wife doesn't let me cook much at
home -- maybe there's a connection?).
Question: Tell me more about working for the Sewer Department.
That sounds, ummm, intriguing!
Answer: Are you sure you want to know? Two things about that
summer: I learned how to drive stick shift, and out in
the back of the plant were some of the most delicious
tomatoes I ever had -- all I had to do was forget where
they came from!
I guess I really lucked out in getting a job at LC, and
being able to advance over the years to reach my
current position. Now, I can't imagine *not* working
in a library. That's why I intend to continue my
involvement with libraries after I retire from LC.
Question: Are you a member of any state, regional, or national
associations, or involved in any group or association?
Answer: By January, I will be a member of the Virginia Library
Association (VLA), the Southeastern Library
Association, and the Council on Library/Media
Technicians, Inc. (COLT). I say January because these
organization run on a January-to-December cycle. I am
already very involved with the Paraprofessional Forum
of VLA -- I am serving on the Board -- and I'm
preparing a presentation for VLAPF's May 1996
Conference.
Question: What do you think the future of libraries holds in
store? What do you think about the future of support
staff versus librarians?
Answer: With the information explosion that has been happening
and that will continue to happen, libraries are faced
with many opportunities and many dangers. Library
staff -- professional and paraprofessional -- must keep
up with changing technologies. We have traditionally
been the people who know best how to find information.
To survive and flourish in today's world and
tomorrow's, we must be able to find information using
new tools, and we must be leaders in the search for
ways in which better access to information is provided
for all. In this high-tech, cyberspace world of ours,
we still want people to "Ask a librarian" when seeking
information, whether that "librarian" is truly a
librarian or not, or whether that "librarian" is in
person or online.
We are the organizers and providers of information,
from print to microforms to audio/visual to computer
disks and CD-ROMS. We are the logical ones to organize
and provide information in an online environment. Our
challenge is to be the best-prepared profession to take
on this task.
Question: Any comments you want to add?
Answer: I think it's very, *very* important for library support
staff to GET INVOLVED! I spent twenty years of my
library career involved only in my job, my day-to-day
responsibilities. Then, I attended the annual COLT
Conference in Miami and heard Tinker Massey speak. She
said a lot of things during the Conference but the real
value of her presence there was, for me, her ability to
make me think.
It took awhile, but I'm off the sidelines now, and
*definitely* in the game. I'm participating as fully
as I can in LIBSUP and AUTOCAT, two great listservs. I
have written an article for _Library Mosaics_, two for
_Associates_, and I'm preparing one now for the
_Southeastern Librarian_. I have attended COLT
Conferences and I will attend again -- a great
organization with many very nice and talented folks. I
have attended the VLA Paraprofessional Forum, and I
will again -- if you *ever* have the chance, this is a
great Conference to attend. I'm involved with one
library organization (VLA) and will probably be
involved in at least one other. I am giving a
presentation at a Conference, and something tells me it
won't be my last. I *am* involved, and I can tell you,
it feels great!
AN INTERVIEW WITH GENE KINNALY, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Conducted by
Kent Slade
Weber County Library System
Ogden, Utah
kslade@cc.weber.edu
Question: Tell us a little about yourself. You work at Library
of Congress, right? What do you do there, what made
you choose to work there, and what is it like?
Answer: I started my library career on April 1, 1974. I
wondered at the time if starting a job on April Fool's
Day was an omen of things to come. Fortunately,
things have worked out pretty good.
My first job was as a mail clerk in the mail room of
the Copyright Office. The best thing about it was
that we got to see the Copyright deposits. In
particular, I remember getting into a "muppet war" with
a coworker, playing with muppet hand puppets (I was
Cookie Monster). I still have the letter from the
Library of Congress (LC), notifying me that I had been
hired. At the time, I was a GS-3, earning a princely
$6,408 per year! Good thing I was living with my folks
at the time! I earn considerably more these days, but
I can't honestly say that I *have* more money -- I
think I had more back then.
I also worked as a desk attendant in the Law Library
for about a year and a half -- my only venture (thus
far) into public services. I was responsible for
retrieving books from the Hispanic Law Library for the
staff in the division, as well as readers in our
reading room. Other duties included reshelving books,
shelf-reading, loose-leaf service, labeling and
book-plating books, and searching card catalogs. I had
about 200,000 volumes to care for (and this was the
*smallest* division in the law library).
Then, in 1977, I started work in the Shelflisting
Section, and I've been involved in shelflisting and
cataloging ever since. Now, I'm a Senior Technical
Advisor. I am still involved in shelflisting but my
job has expanded a *lot* in the last three to four
years. I do a lot of training, both one-on-one and
formal classroom training. I developed and still teach
two shelflisting classes, and I'm the only
paraprofessional teaching a computer skills class. I
have been involved in writing several technical manuals
for internal use, and my name appears with several of
my coworkers in the preface to _Subject Cataloging
Manual: Shelflisting_, second edition. I have been
trained in CIP Verification and, at this point, I
process all CIP Verification received on my team (with
help, as needed, from a senior cataloger). Soon, I
hope to get involved in LC's copy cataloging project.
I totally enjoy my job. I work for a great boss and
with a great group of people. And LC has been, for me,
a really neat place to work. It's a little like
working at the United Nations since so many nations and
cultures are represented by the LC workforce. Our
numbers have dwindled the last few years, but, as a
whole, the staff here is really wonderful.
Question: I have never heard of the term "shelflisting" before.
What is it?
Answer: Shelflisting is, in part, the process by which the LC
classification number assigned to a book is extended to
the point where a unique call number is formulated. In
most libraries, one person is responsible for the
entire cataloging process for a book, including the
assignment of the call number. At LC, because of the
size of the collection and the number of items received
and retained for the collection each day, the
cataloging process was split into three parts: the
descriptive cataloging, the subject cataloging, and the
shelflisting.
It was the shelflister who was responsible for
determining the correct filing position in our 3 x 5
card shelflist, determining the appropriate call number
which supported that filing position, filing the card,
updating the record with the call number, writing the
call number in the book, and forwarding the book either
to the Decimal Classification Division or to Binding.
Other duties included adding copies of books to the
collection (writing call numbers in the books and
updating the holdings information in the shelflist),
filing printed catalog cards into the shelflist,
resolving discrepancy reports (incorrect call numbers
in the shelflist, in the books, or in the catalog
record), and processing books being discarded from the
collections. Today many of these duties, and a few
more new duties, are performed by LC cataloging
technicians.
Question: Have you worked at other libraries? What other types
of jobs have you had?
I have never worked in another library. However, my
"grand plan" is to retire in about thirteen years (God
and Congress willing) and seek a position in an
academic library. I think by that time I will have
quite a bit to offer a college or university library.
Also, I would hopefully be able to take some classes.
In terms of other jobs, most of my experience has been
with summer jobs during high school and college. I
have been a playground leader, a short-order cook, a
restaurant maitre d', and I spent one particularly
memorable summer working for the Sewer Department in
Brockton, Massachusetts.
I was also in the Army Reserves for six years, trained
as an Army cook (my wife doesn't let me cook much at
home -- maybe there's a connection?).
Question: Tell me more about working for the Sewer Department.
That sounds, ummm, intriguing!
Answer: Are you sure you want to know? Two things about that
summer: I learned how to drive stick shift, and out in
the back of the plant were some of the most delicious
tomatoes I ever had -- all I had to do was forget where
they came from!
I guess I really lucked out in getting a job at LC, and
being able to advance over the years to reach my
current position. Now, I can't imagine *not* working
in a library. That's why I intend to continue my
involvement with libraries after I retire from LC.
Question: Are you a member of any state, regional, or national
associations, or involved in any group or association?
Answer: By January, I will be a member of the Virginia Library
Association (VLA), the Southeastern Library
Association, and the Council on Library/Media
Technicians, Inc. (COLT). I say January because these
organization run on a January-to-December cycle. I am
already very involved with the Paraprofessional Forum
of VLA -- I am serving on the Board -- and I'm
preparing a presentation for VLAPF's May 1996
Conference.
Question: What do you think the future of libraries holds in
store? What do you think about the future of support
staff versus librarians?
Answer: With the information explosion that has been happening
and that will continue to happen, libraries are faced
with many opportunities and many dangers. Library
staff -- professional and paraprofessional -- must keep
up with changing technologies. We have traditionally
been the people who know best how to find information.
To survive and flourish in today's world and
tomorrow's, we must be able to find information using
new tools, and we must be leaders in the search for
ways in which better access to information is provided
for all. In this high-tech, cyberspace world of ours,
we still want people to "Ask a librarian" when seeking
information, whether that "librarian" is truly a
librarian or not, or whether that "librarian" is in
person or online.
We are the organizers and providers of information,
from print to microforms to audio/visual to computer
disks and CD-ROMS. We are the logical ones to organize
and provide information in an online environment. Our
challenge is to be the best-prepared profession to take
on this task.
Question: Any comments you want to add?
Answer: I think it's very, *very* important for library support
staff to GET INVOLVED! I spent twenty years of my
library career involved only in my job, my day-to-day
responsibilities. Then, I attended the annual COLT
Conference in Miami and heard Tinker Massey speak. She
said a lot of things during the Conference but the real
value of her presence there was, for me, her ability to
make me think.
It took awhile, but I'm off the sidelines now, and
*definitely* in the game. I'm participating as fully
as I can in LIBSUP and AUTOCAT, two great listservs. I
have written an article for _Library Mosaics_, two for
_Associates_, and I'm preparing one now for the
_Southeastern Librarian_. I have attended COLT
Conferences and I will attend again -- a great
organization with many very nice and talented folks. I
have attended the VLA Paraprofessional Forum, and I
will again -- if you *ever* have the chance, this is a
great Conference to attend. I'm involved with one
library organization (VLA) and will probably be
involved in at least one other. I am giving a
presentation at a Conference, and something tells me it
won't be my last. I *am* involved, and I can tell you,
it feels great!