S tudent
Exchange
“Mind the Gap”: Future Librarians
Preparing to Take on
Leadership Roles
Jana Sheardown &
Monique Woroniak
Leadership potential. According to
the 8Rs library human resource
study, this is the competency that
managers find the most difficult to
fulfill when hiring new librarians.1
Combine this with the prediction
that 40% of librarians will retire by
2014, and what our profession has is
nothing short of a leadership crisis.2
MLIS programs certainly have a
place in preparing students to take
on leadership roles, but students
themselves must demonstrate a
willingness to learn and to lead.
Developing meaningful projects
to lead while enrolled in an MLIS
program is a great way to build both
leadership and management skills.
It is a time when you have easy
access to the support and advice
of professors and the enthusiasm
of fellow classmates. Whether it is
in the context of a professional
association or through other groups,
the time you spend as a student
offers many opportunities to test
the leadership waters.
Student leadership at
Dalhousie
Leadership and management
receive a large emphasis at Dalhousie’s
School of Information Management,
which is situated within the
64 Canadian Library Association
University’s Faculty of Management.
Both the school and the faculty
promote the development of profes-
sional competencies in the areas of
leadership and management. This
has fostered a very proactive student
body, as evidenced by student-led
initiatives like a Brown Bag Lunch
Lecture series, the Dalhousie Journal
of Information & Management,
Prospectus (an employment website),
and student chapters of the Canadian
Library Association and the Special
Libraries Association. Each of these
student-led initiatives offers many
opportunities to develop leadership
and management skills.
The Canadian Library Association
Student Chapter at Dalhousie had a
particularly busy fall term, organizing
two well-received activities.
Supporting children’s and
young adult librarianship
This past fall, the chapter
envisioned, organized and carried
out a successful fundraiser entitled
“Young at Heart” in support of our
school’s Children’s and Young Adult
Working Collection. The evening
included a research presentation and
talks by authors Vicki Grant and
Budge Wilson. Attendees included
students, public librarians, early
www.cla.ca
childhood educators and authors.
New connections between our
school and the community were
made, and the Working Collection
received dozens of new titles.
Professional partnering
The School of Information
Management at Dalhousie is home
to the largest established LIS
Professional Partnering Program in
the country. In its fourth year, the
program has successfully paired
57 students with 57 professionals
from the community. Library and
information professionals from public
libraries, academic libraries, archives,
special libraries, records management
settings, school libraries, independent
consulting companies and other
non-traditional LIS environments
were matched with MLIS students
with the goal of creating professional
networks and widening the students’
exposure to the many opportunities
available in our profession.
These are just two examples of
student leadership; there are always
areas where you can contribute.
Consult with your student body,
school and community. Think
broadly and involve a diverse group
of stakeholders. Make a plan.
Most important, choose to lead.
Feliciter • Issue #2, 2007
 L i n k i n g C a n a d a ' s
The benefits to your future career
and to our profession will far out-
weigh your efforts.
Jana Sheardown is a second-year
student at Dalhousie’s School of
Information Management and co-chair
of the CLA Student Chapter, co-chair
of the Dalhousie Journal of Information
& Management, treasurer of the
School of Information Management
Student Association, and a member of
the Editorial Review Board for Library
Student Journal. She holds a BA
(Hons) in English Literature from
Brandon University and an MA in
English Literature from the University
of Ottawa.
Feliciter • Issue #2, 2007
I n f o r m a t i o n P r o f e s s i o n a l s
Monique Woroniak is a second-year
student at Dalhousie’s School of
Information Management and co-chair
of the CLA Student Chapter. She holds
a BA (Hons) in Political Studies from
the University of Manitoba. Her MLIS
thesis research addresses the information
Signal Hill, NL ~ Courtesy Marilyn Rennick, Ottawa
management concerns of the reporting
requirements of First Nations’-federal
government programs.
Notes
1. 8Rs Research Team, The Future of
Human Resources in Canadian
Libraries (Edmonton, 2005), p. 59.
2. Ibid., p. 83.
www.cla.ca Canadian Library Association 65