Running head: INTERVIEW WITH RACHEL CRANE 1

Interview with Rachel Crane of Wichita State University

Douglas Davidson

Newton, Kansas
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Interview with Rachel Crane of Wichita State University

On September 12, 2017, I met with Rachel Crane, the music librarian at Wichita State

University. We discussed her position, her employment history, and her thoughts on the field of

academic librarianship. In the following, I print my questions with a discussion of her answers.

I began by asking about her educational background and employment history. Crane is

currently the subject librarian in charge of music, fine arts, and languages. She attended a music-

concentration high school and graduated with a degree in music history from the University of

North Texas. Her mother had been a librarian, and since it is difficult to find work specifically in

music history, Crane thought it might be a good idea to look into librarianship. She attended

Columbia University, which offered a musical librarian emphasis. After receiving her degree, she

worked a few months in a public library before she spent five years at the Lincoln Performing

Arts Center, a work she described as exhausting, as she received frequent demands from both the

public and from researchers. She related a particular difficulty with Russian immigrants, who

often expected that there were closed stacks (which the center did not actually have) and wanted

to know where the hidden records were kept. Following her period at the Lincoln Center,

Crane went to work for the newly established Woodie Guthrie archives, where she cataloged

Guthries songbooks, which consisted largely of lyrics written on random scraps of paper.

Following this, she received an internship in Casper, Wyoming, where she worked in another

archives. After this, she attempted to move into academic librarianship. She did part-time work

in various places and finally received a part-time music librarianship at Arkansas Tech before she

received her current position in 2000.

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After describing her history, she added that it is difficult to move from public to academic

librarianship, a fact she found disappointing. She stated that there is in the academic sphere an

assumption that librarians with a largely public background are underqualified. She believes it is

currently difficult for librarians to remain in one position, but she also believes that holding

multiple positions can give someone a range of experience.

How long have you worked in this position?

After she described her work history, I asked how long she had been in her current job.

She has worked at Wichita State since 2000. She considers this job more stable than her past

employment, but finds it is still necessary sometimes to justify the existence of her position to

her employers. As she put it, you need to get creative about how you present yourself.

She added that, in her view, current trends in librarianship tend too much to emphasize

format over content. She believes that information should be considered more important than the

format it comes in, such as digital or print. If the information itself it not good, then it doesnt

matter if the library possesses the most current formats.

What does a typical day look like for you?

Crane said she usually checks her email while eating breakfast to determine what is most

important in the coming day. Instruction takes priority, so if she has a class coming in, she must

deal with that first before attending to anything else. She mentioned that she had two classes the

next day (Wednesday) after our interview. One of those classes would have an interactive

activity, a library treasure hunt, to become familiar with the librarys resources. Crane said that

designing the treasure hunt had taken her all summer. Often, the librarians have an afternoon

meeting in the reference area. She was planning to work eight hours on the day of our interview,
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but would have a twelve-hour shift the day following. Her shifts usually include a two-hour

period at the reference desk from ten in the morning until noon. She is also on several

committees and is in charge of weeding LPs in the music library.

In between her other duties, she works to maintain the library guides. In particular, she is

building a guide documenting the murals of Wichita. She mentioned that she is funding this

project herself. As part of this project, she will create an index for the murals.

Academic librarians at Wichita State typically work one evening a week and one Sunday

a semester.

How do you see the field of academic librarianship changing?

Crane said she believes that academic libraries are beginning to discover that digital

technology is more expensive than previously thought. Before, there was a push to get rid of

paper and go digital, but she now finds that academic libraries are dropping digital subscriptions

because of the cost. Specifically, she discussed ebooks; she described them as faddish, but also

very expensive. She said she believes they often limit access because seeing a digital copy

typically requires a library membership, whereas accessing a physical copy does not. However,

she also believes that digital preservation of materials will continue to play an important role,

especially in special collections.

Although she did not go into detail, she also mentioned that there is an emphasis on

turning out work-ready graduates from the university, but she is unsure the university is

equipped for that task. She also mentioned that universities in general and university libraries in

particular are to some degree beholden to the whims of national politics.

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How do you think technology is changing the field?

Crane reiterated that technology can be expensive. She mentioned that she uses library

guides as second-level catalogs for courses. She stated that the library formerly had a large

reference collection, but that most of it had been moved into the circulating collection because of

the increased dependence on digital resources for reference. Sometimes, if she receives a

question that is highly specialized, she finds that she needs to access books in the reference

collection, which can be difficult now that the collection is divided up.

In addition, the music collection is also divided. Books are separated from scores and

sound recordings. She has tried to bring them together, but so far has not been successful.

Nonetheless, she has managed to build a large collection of reference citations in a musical

library guide. This is particularly useful for music students studying for their qualifications.

Do you see the field growing? Are there many job openings?

Crane indicated that she believes it fluctuates. She mentioned that the special collections

division had just hired a new curator while one of the other archivists had moved to a new

position. Employment possibilities are largely dependent on the state budget. She does, however,

see a lot of competition between open positions, which may indicate a healthy job market.

However, she also indicated that she sees a lot of turnover. Currently employed librarians

are aging. There is an increased demand for librarians with a knowledge of technology. The

candidates for recent open positions at Wichita State all had technology backgrounds.

Somewhat skeptical of this technology emphasis, Crane believes cataloging is a very

important skill, as it is still the fundamental way to organize a collection.

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Do you find the work satisfying?

The part of the work directly associated with the library is satisfying. The political side is

not. Crane said she works with excellent colleagues and students, and she especially appreciates

this after her previous work in public libraries in New York. In particular, she mentioned that

tourists who visited New York libraries were often confrontational, perhaps because they

believed that was necessary in the city.

What is the most important advice you could give a new academic librarian?

Crane replied that it is important to build relationships and connections with the rest of

the faculty, because it is impossible to establish a rapport with students unless the librarian has

the respect of the professor. She also added that it is important for a librarian to follow through

on projects, and to be psychologically prepared for dealing with politics.

How much job security does this position have?

Cranes position is tenured. However, she speculated that probably fewer librarians are

receiving tenure today, and she mentioned that a previous provost had wanted to eliminate tenure

for the librarians, though this had met opposition not only from the library staff but the rest of the

faculty. She finds that Wichita State is more generous with tenure than some institutions, which

have quotas.

How may hours a day or week do you typically work?

Crane typically works twelve-hour days. However, she typically keeps her weekly

workload to forty hours. She does that largely for family reasons. The library does allow flex

time, so some employees work variable schedules. Flexibility is greater in the summer, when she

can get more projects finished.

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What talents or personality traits lead to success in the academic library field?

Crane emphasized the importance of flexibility and being open to new ideas. She also

indicated the importance of curiosity and a sense of humor. She added that good memory and

attention to detail are also valuable.

If you could do anything different in your preparation for this position, what would it be?

Crane stated that she considers herself fortunate in her background, and that she took

some risks in the previous moves she made. Because her experience in public libraries was

specialized, she considers it a useful part of her background that helped prepare her for her

current position.

Where do you see yourself going from here?

Crane indicated that she had for a time considered leaving the field, but is currently

happy with her position. She is not interested in moving into administration. She expects to

remain in her current position for a while longer and then retire.