Kansas University may want to bolster its research efforts, but it’s dumbing down the research focus of its oldest and largest library, some faculty say.

“We are looking at a systemic shift away from research as a priority for the library system at the University of Kansas,” said Marjorie Swann, associate professor of English. “The libraries are central to the intellectual health of the university. : This is a crucial moment in deciding exactly how dedicated we are to excellence in research.”

Swann is a member of the English department’s library committee, which recently wrote a position paper on the future of KU libraries. The committee believes the university should change the libraries’ course now as it looks for a new dean of libraries.

The paper was distributed to many on campus, including the heads of all departments in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Provost David Shulenburger.

Several department chairs say many faculty agree with the concerns raised in the paper.

Melissa Horen, 21, a KU undergraduate from Overland Park, works at a computer in Watson Library. Some KU faculty members are concerned that the library is beginning to seem more like a computer lab than a research facility.

“It has elicited more of a positive response than almost any other single memo circulated by a department that I have seen,” said Norman Yetman, a professor and chairman of the American studies program.

Thomas Tuozzo, associate professor and chairman of the philosophy department, said he had heard so much agreement with the concerns being raised that the university would have to listen.

Lab, not library

According to the paper, recent changes to Watson Library, in particular, may make it more accessible as a computer lab and study area for undergraduates, but they also whittle away at the library’s research focus. The faculty focus on Watson Library, though some changes have affected other libraries. The paper presses for KU to reaffirm its commitment to the libraries campuswide.

But Bill Myers, director of library development, said Watson wasn’t losing its research focus. The library has been changed to accommodate more users at every level, he said.

Among the changes, according to the paper, trained professionals have been replaced with nonprofessional staff and students at the reference desk, making it harder or slower to get help in searches for research materials. And as the university moves out scholarly collections and cuts back on scholarly serials, there seems to be lots of money for computers and software.

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Dorice Elliott, associate professor of English and chairwoman of the English department, said Watson was becoming yet another undergraduate library that functioned more like a computer lab and less like a library that catered to serious research.

“I think it discourages research, which is ironic because this is something that the university has been trying to promote,” Elliott said.

Faculty say the changes have taken place without consulting the faculty who use the library for research and teaching.

Hush-hush policy?

Swann, the English professor, said she had heard that library staff had been specifically ordered not to talk with faculty about library policies and changes.

“The library seems to be operating like Dick Cheney’s White House,” she said. “There is this kind of secrecy about planning in the libraries so faculty do not have any input in the planning.”

Myers said faculty were consulted in various circumstances, such as when the libraries reviewed serials subscriptions. He said he was not sure what the expectation would be for additional faculty input.

Myers said Stella Bentley, outgoing dean of libraries, had seen the paper and responded to faculty by indicating that she was available to discuss the issue.

The paper recommends an immediate halt to further changes in the libraries until a new dean is in place. It also calls for seeking a new dean who will value research excellence and collegiality; a search committee that includes members of teaching faculty who represent diverse specialties, including the humanities; and having the new dean of libraries draft a long-range plan for Watson in consultation with faculty.

“I hope that the folks at Strong Hall will listen to what we’re saying, because this is really a report from the trenches,” Swann said. “The libraries right now are in a really dire situation and they require attention.”