Pat Webster: Cataloger

LSC'S OWN RENAISSANCE LIBRARIAN
2/20/07
Blurb: Patricia Webster is a long-time librarian at LSC whom takes on a big responsibility to get books in order and available to students.
By Keith Whitcomb Jr.

The library can go from a quiet, serene atmosphere, to a scene more like a hospital room triage in a matter of moments. Instead of wounded patients, books are being cataloged, meanwhile two students need to find information on alternative energy sources, all while the phone rings as someone asks where the copy machine is.

One of the professionals assigned to help those in need through the chaos is Patricia Webster, cataloger at LSC’s Samuel Read Hall Library. Webster has worked eight different jobs in the library during her 33 years there and has an easy handle on making sure people who come through the library get what they need.

Webster’s title as cataloger is slightly deceiving, as it isn’t the only thing she does. “Everyone wears a million hats,” she said. Webster, like the other librarians, is cross-trained to do everyone else’s job if need be.

What Exactly Does Pat Do?

While cataloging, she sits at the help desk where a “Do no disturb” plaque has been modified to encourage disturbances. There, she helps anyone who comes up to the desk use the computer data bases to find what they are looking for, whether it be books on leadership, educational journals, or simply the location of the nearest stapler.

Working the help desk at a library is very much a people oriented job, Webster said. The job she had before coming to LSC was in a hospital in Waterbury Vermont. There, she spent five summers working with severely autistic children. Although the job was rewarding, Webster found herself feeling burnt out and needed a change. Being a librarian at LSC seemed like a perfect fit.

Personal Life Of A Librarian

Webster loves to read. Being a librarian, that doesn’t come as a shock. What it surprising is how little time Webster actually gets to read. Five to eight in the evening on Saturdays and Sundays, is the only time Webster gets to sit down with a good book. She enjoys reading science fiction and acknowledges one advantage to being a librarian: she can get to a book before anyone else does. “I’m bound and determined to be the first with the new Harry Potter book,” Webster said.

Even though she can get to the new Harry Potter book faster than anyone, Webster makes sure the newest books that students need are capable of being found by cataloging it. When the library gets a new book, it comes with an OCLC sheet, which is a detailed description of the book, from its subject, to the number of pages it has. Webster’s job is to create a call number for it, so it can be found amongst the rows of books in the library.

Using a program called Work Flows, Webster can use a list of suggested call numbers and find something called a cutter number, which is based on the author’s name, in order to better classify the book.

Another part of Webster’s job is to keep an eye on certain sections of the libraries collection. Webster keeps her finger on the pulse of the Psychology, Children’s Literature and Fine and Performing Arts sections of the library. She keeps an eye out for new books coming out in those areas and gets a feel for possible holes in the libraries collection.
This part of her job is something that requires some personal interest to be good at.

Webster thinks of life after the library with an eye towards giving hospice care. Webster had experience caring for an elderly neighbor during his final days and felt that the experience was a rewarding one. “If you can help make someone more comfortable under those circumstances, it helps you too,” Webster said.

http://www.charities.govt.nz/images/board-members/pat-webster.jpg


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