The retreats The dinners "Words to the Wise [library director] from the WALDEN Women" WALDEN provides research data. WALDEN home page

History and purpose of WALDEN

At the WALDEN dinner in DC in February, 1997, Susan Brynteson recollected that she and Lou Wetherbee, then newly directors at U. of Delaware and George Mason U. respectively, met over lunch on the San Antonio Riverwalk at Midwinter in 1983 and mused that recent women academic library directors had different outlooks and challenges from their few predecessors; and from that came the impetus for them to form the WALDEN group. (Others from the original group who reminisced at the 1997 Midwinter dinner were Nancy Eaton, Kaye Gapen, and Joanne Euster.)

In 1983, women directors of academic libraries, and especially the larger ones, were of course still relatively few in number. Even so, not all of their male colleagues saw the need for the women directors to establish their own group when other groups for academic library directors already existed. The women directors did not agree at the time and, interestingly enough, many still see the need for this additional group.

The group originally was intended for those women who direct libraries at academic institutions having an enrollment of 10,000 or more students; but today, women library directors at four-year academic institutions of all sizes are invited to join. While it is true that the need in 1983 for this collegial group was perhaps more obvious than today, everyone who attends the dinners continues to find them uniquely enjoyable; and enthusiasm for perpetuating the group remains high.

From 1983 through 1987, the WALDEN group annually convened for two day retreats to discuss professional issues and concerns. By the third meeting Joyce Ball discovered that it was difficult to contract for a group with no name and no structure, leading her to formalize the name WALDEN and to create the letterhead (above) as well. The last extended (more than dinner) WALDEN meeting was held in conjunction with EDUCOM in the Atlanta area in 1990. More recently, as the group has grown larger, we have gotten together for dinner at ALA conferences.

The group has no official affiliation whatsoever, it has no officers or other structure, and depends entirely on volunteers to organize the dinners and to maintain the mailing list of "members." Noreen Alldredge maintained this list in the mid-1980's for a couple of years, Maureen Pastine did the honors for several years including electronically, Martha Alexander then continued the task, and since 1994 I have assumed that responsibility. The mailing list is now maintained and used electronically exclusively, and consists of just under 160 addresses.

The principal use of the mailing list is to publicize our dinners, their time and place, menu, host(s), and cost. An additional, if infrequent, use has been for the posting of job vacancies of potential personal interest to the membership, that is, for library directorships and similar-level positions. We have agreed that the list is NOT to be used for commercial purposes, or for purposes which other established vehicles are already serving.

1997 notes by Karin Borei, primarily from various information provided by original members.

History-related e-mails:

Tue, 09 Jan 1996
From: Noreen Alldredge

I maintained the "physical" list for a couple of years in the dark ages before email! I even have some of the stationary that was introduced in 1985 and which we used for several years.

9-JAN-1996
From: Maureen Pastine

10-JAN-1996
From: Susan.Brynteson

I enjoyed reading the history. How quickly the years have gone and also how much has changed. The women directors are everywhere and that's the way it should be. There were so few of us in the "old days".

10-JAN-1996
From: Maureen Pastine

10-JUN-1996
From: Lou Wetherbee

13-FEB-1997
From: Noreen Alldredge

I have my 1983 letter from Susan Brynteson inviting me to the first Retreat for Women University Library Directors (held at the Greenbrier), I have the attendees list (annotated with our specific hotel room numbers) and invitations/attendance sheets for subsequent years since I was at each of the "retreats" right to one of the final ones where there were just 4 or 5 of us!
 

"Words to the Wise [library director] from the WALDEN Women."

Compiled at the WALDEN dinner, Feb. 4, 1994.
Copy provided by Debbie Masters

• Never under-estimate the size of the human ego or the thinness of the human skin.
• You can't tell which way the train is going by looking at the tracks.
• Never try to be humorous about paychecks or performance.
• Every player isn't Michael Jordan.
• God put me on this earth to do a certain amount of work, and at the rate I'm going, I'm never going to die.
• Just get it on the shelves!
• You can't be friends with somebody whose salary you set.
• Never draw to an inside straight.
• Know yourself but don't tell anyone else.
• When in doubt, ask for money.
• The toilets and the copy machines are important.
• I'll trade my dean's council (or your choice) for yours.
• Never take silence for assent.
• If people start saying to you "Oh, you're so much more easy going than you used to be", it's time to move on.
• On Friday afternoon, when a staff member says "Do you have a minute", the answer is "NO!" They just want to get it off their minds and into yours.
• Never under-estimate who is sleeping with whom.
• When you catch them at it, never make them step in it. The fact that you have caught them is enough.
• Don't be dazzled by bullshit.
• Don't assume that women are going to be thrilled to work for a woman.
• If you want to shake up the establishment, have three other women walk into the room with you.
• Consider it a compliment if someone calls you a pushy broad.
• It is better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

---

WALDEN provides research data:

Date: Thu, 13 Mar 1997
From: Janice Kirkland
Subject: One Minute Survey

This one-question survey is going only to women academic library directors in the hope that your responses will provide an encouraging ending to an article in process, "The Missing Women Library Directors". Thank you for participating!

Janice Kirkland, California State University Bakersfield
_________________________________________________________________________
Please mark the three (3) most important factors in your career advancement 1,2, and 3. Hard work is assumed and so is not listed.

____ Academic majors/degrees
____ Family support
____ Mentor(s) women__ men___ both___
____ Mobility/job change
____ Networking, informal
____ Publication
____ Professional organizations, service in
____ Role model(s)
____ Tenacity/perseverance
____ Technology
____ OTHER factors or general comments

Date: Sat, 12 Apr 1997 08:03:16 PST
From: Janice Kirkland

Academic majors/degrees: 1st-3; 2d-4; 3d-9; unranked-5; total-21
Family support: 1st-6; 2d-1; 3d-5; unranked-1; total-13
Mentor(s): 1st-13; 2d-7; 3d-0; unranked-5; total-25
Mobility/job change: 1st-7; 2d-16; 3d-5; unranked-6; total-34
Networking, Informal: 1st-2; 2d-5; 3d-6; unranked-2; total-15
Publication: 1st-0; 2d-1; 3d-1; unranked-2;total-4
Profl orgzn service: 1st-2; 2d-5; 3d-8; unranked-5; total-20
Role model(s): 1st-3; 2d-1; 3d-1; unranked-2; total-7
Tenacity: 1st-6; 2d-5; 3d-5; unranked-3; total-19
Technology: 1st-2; 2d-3; 3d-4; unranked-1;total-10
Other: 1st-4; 2d-1; 3d-1; unranked-1; total-7

Karin, please thank all of the respondents for me one more time. It was so gratifying to receive all of their prompt messages!! --Janice

From The missing women library directors: deprivation versus mentoring
College & Research Libraries, Jul/Aug 1997

"Of the 135 members, 61 (45%) responded. As table 1 shows, the five factors most frequently chosen ... were mobility (34), mentors (25), academic majors/degrees (21), professional organizations (20), and tenacity/perseverance (19). The three least-often selected factors were technology (10), role models (7), and publication (4), which seems surprising in view of the widespread pursuit of technology and the continuing stress on publishing in academe. Eleven of the sixty-one directors suggested career factors not on the survey, such as leadership and management skills, internships, political astuteness (savvy), communication, integrity, and `having the right skills at the right time in the right place.' ... Several directors noted that all or most of the factors were important, and it was difficult to choose only three. Therefore, some survey responses should be regarded as approximate, but the gap between those most chosen and those least chosen was wide and clear. "

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