Recently, Atla’s Executive Director John Kutsko, Director of Membership and Engagement Gillian Harrison Cain, and Member Engagement and Education Librarian Alexis Weiss were interviewed for an In Trust article on the future of theological libraries in a digital age. The In Trust Center is a nonprofit organization that supports stakeholders in North American graduate theological schools. In Trust Magazine has been a valued resource for over 30 years covering the trends and issues in seminary leadership. The article “Reconfiguration” from the Spring 2024 Issue featured voices from Atla staff and members on the future of theological librarianship. Read some excerpts from the article below.
Excerpts from “Reconfiguration,” – In Trust Magazine
For today’s students and researchers in theological education, no library resource is more ubiquitous than the Atla databases. Atla (the American Theological Library Association) has been the de facto reference tool in theological schools for over 40 years. Access to the databases is licensed through EBSCO, Atla’s long-time technology and search tool partner, where subscribers mine millions of sources in their research.
As a member organization, Atla pairs its comprehensive database collection with the technology and training needed to best utilize these resources. More than 300 institutional members and 500 individual members participate in professional development and assist in research and development to advance theological and religious libraries. An annual convention brings members together for education and mutual support, along with member-staffed committees and working groups that guide the organization’s activities.
John Kutsko started as Atla’s executive director in December 2022 after 12 years as director and Chief Executive Officer of the Society of Biblical Literature. He and his staff are setting a direction for Atla that hinges on three key areas.
‘First is for the database to become truly interdisciplinary and interprofessional,’ he says. ‘Atla already has this curated database and now expanded into areas where we see the curriculum changing, such as interest in social work, law, nursing, or community planning.’
“Second is the ability to become more consumer friendly. By that I mean students are being socialized to do quick searches – we just have to accept that – and so we need a user experience that provides a level of ease so that when faced with the decision to just do a Google search or to use a curated database of resources and references works, they choose Atla.”
The final goal is to create tools for ATS (Association of Theological Schools) institutions, especially those with limited resources, allowing more schools to access Atla’s resources. “It’s part of our historic mission with ATS, and we’ve got to come back to that,” he says. “This relationship isn’t only how we were birthed, but it’s fundamental to our mission.”
Alexis Weiss, Atla’s member engagement and education librarian, has followed these trends both within and outside theological institutions. Even with the shift toward distance learning, she believes theological education hasn’t adapted to online research as readily as other disciplines.
‘Theology, philosophy, religion – they’re a little behind the curve when it comes to technological adaptation,’ she says.
While students tend to want more digital resources, their experience is that faculty remain “print heavy” even as they understand institutions will need to develop distance and online programs as a means of survival. And this, she says, completely changes the role of library services.
“You have to rely so much more heavily on the digital aspects of librarianship,” says Weiss. “Collection development is one thing, but the reality is teaching students online in real time, while embedding oneself as a librarian in a (digital) classroom so that you can get that visibility. Being able to build digital tutorials and asynchronous modalities of teaching is something some librarians have been doing for a while. Larger institutions have a librarian devoted to this, but not small seminaries with one, maybe two, librarians. There’s a big learning curve (and) extra work on their shoulders.”
Positioning libraries as an integral part of curriculum development and shaping the perception of libraries as centers for learning are high on the priority list for Gillian Harrison Cain, Atla’s director of member programs.
“We want to help administrators understand the role of libraries within the institution and their value,” she says. “There’s lots of work being done in the academic space showing those who use the library tend to stay in their programs longer and tend to graduate.”
Cain is encouraging theological school administrators to include librarians in course development decisions and budget discussion to help institutions allocate resources used in study and research.
‘Administrators are making those hard decisions because the world changes,’ she says. ‘The library isn’t an afterthought but is an active and engaged participant in the conversation about what happens next.’
“Librarians have a lot to offer to those conversations – there’s a strong sense of service and assistance. Engaging the library as you’re looking at new curriculum, a certificate program or a summer program, ensures the library is helping get the resources you need to support that program.”
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