ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


26

Statement on Faculty Status 
Of College and University Librarians

Drafted by a committee of the Association
of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), the
Association of American Colleges (AAC), and
the American Association of University Pro­
fessors (AAUP).

As the primary means through which stu­
dents and faculty gain access to the store­
house of organized knowledge, the college and
university library performs a unique and indis­
pensable function in the educational process.
This function will grow in importance as stu­
dents assume greater responsibility for their
own intellectual and social development. In­
deed all members of the academic community
are likely to become increasingly dependent
on skilled professional guidance in the acquisi­
tion and use of library resources as the forms
and numbers of these resources multiply, schol­
arly materials appear in more languages, bib­
liographical systems become more complicated,
and library technology grows increasingly so­
phisticated. The librarian who provides such
guidance plays a major role in the learning
process.

The character and quality of an institution
of higher learning are shaped in large measure
by the nature of its library holdings and the
ease and imagination with which those resources
are made accessible to members of the aca­
demic community. Consequently, all members
of the faculty should take an active interest
in the operation and development of the li­
brary. Because the scope and character of li­
brary resources should be taken into account
in such important academic decisions as curric­
ular planning and faculty appointments, li­
brarians should have a voice in the develop­
ment of the institution’s educational policy.

Librarians perform a teaching and research
role inasmuch as they instruct students for­
mally and informally and advise and assist
faculty in their scholarly pursuits. Librarians
are also themselves involved in the research
function; many conduct research in their own
professional interests and in the discharge of
their duties.

Where the role of college and university li­
brarians, as described in the preceding para­
graph, requires them to function essentially as
part of the faculty, this functional identity
should be recognized by granting of faculty
status. Neither administrative responsibilities nor
professional degrees, titles, or skills, per se, 
qualify members of the academic community
for faculty status. The function of the librarian 
as participant in the processes of teaching and 
research is the essential criterion of faculty 
status.

College and university librarians share the

 
 
 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

 

professional concerns of faculty members. Aca­
demic freedom, for example, is indispensable 
to librarians, because they are trustees of knowl­
edge with the responsibility of insuring the 
availability of information and ideas, no mat­
ter how controversial, so that teachers may 
freely teach and students may freely learn. 
Moreover, as members of the academic com­
munity, librarians should have latitude in the 
exercise of their professional judgment within 
the library, a share in shaping policy within 
the institution, and adequate opportunities for 
professional development and appropriate re­
ward.

Faculty status entails for librarians the same 
rights and responsibilities as for other members 
of the faculty. They should have correspond­
ing entitlement to rank, promotion, tenure, 
compensation, leaves, and research funds. They 
must go through the same process of evalua­
tion and meet the same standards as other 
faculty members.1

On some campuses, adequate procedures for 
extending faculty status to librarians have al­
ready been worked out. These procedures vary 
from campus to campus because of institutional 
differences. In the development of such pro­
cedures, it is essential that the general faculty 
or its delegated agent determine the specific 
steps by which any professional position is to 
be accorded faculty rank and status. In any 
case, academic positions which are to be ac­
corded faculty rank and status should be ap­
proved by the senate or the faculty at large 
before submission to the president and to the 
governing board for approval.

With respect to library governance, it is to 
be presumed that the governing board, the ad­
ministrative officers, the library faculty, and 
representatives of the general faculty, will 
share in the determination of library policies 
that affect the general interests of the institu­
tion and its educational program. In matters 
of internal governance, the library will operate 
like other academic units with respect to de­
cisions relating to appointments, promotions, 
tenure, and conditions of service.2

1Cf. 1940 Statement of Principles on Aca­
demic Freedom and Tenure; 1958 Statement 
on Procedural Standards in Faculty Dismissal 
Proceedings; 1972 Statement on Leaves of Ab­
sence.

2Cf. 1966 Statement on Government of Col­
leges and Universities, formulated by the Amer­
ican Council on Education, American Associa­
tion of University Professors, and Association 
of Governing Boards of Universities and Col­
leges.