For my final project I researched the issue of libraries communicating and supporting faculty through the use of library liaisons and faculty dedicated web pages. In a lot of the reading and research I did throughout the semester I found a references to the lack of engagement between the library and faculty prompting my interest as to how well the issue is being addressed.

I began my research on the basis of a well prepared study by Gardner et al where they gauged faculty information web pages by the 100 largest university libraries. I chose to research women’s colleges because there are currently only around fifty, which was manageable. It turned out that only 31 of those actually provide faculty dedicated web pages and liaison librarians on their library websites.

Some of these sites were very impressive and well organized with a combination of faculty specific links (copyright, reserves, etc) , general library related links and liaison librarians that faculty could work with directly rather than just a random reference librarian. There were also pages that a faculty member could access directly from the school website. Essentially all links a faculty member would need or want efficiently housed in one place.

Notre Dame, College of Saint Elizabeth, Mary Baldwin College, and Ursuline College are just a few that really stand out. Arguably, none were perfect with each college library offering some great links that others did not have. Mount Saint Mary college for instance, has a drawing for faculty that provide syllabi each semester so that the library can tailor information literacy classes to course specific needs. Notre Dame of Maryland posts information about what faculty has had published. In contrast, Smith College provides links to library repositories.   

I think that a liaison function and faculty dedicated web sites are really important issues and I was glad to see that by conducting research that there exist college libraries that are trying to support the work of faculty and in communicating with them to in turn serve student’s needs better as well. My favorite quote from the literature review section is by Brophy: “Unless steps are taken to demonstrate that value can be added to teaching and research by the librarian’s contribution, there is an acute danger of professional marginalization.” (Brophy, p.515)