[Publib] Chicago Public Library

[James Casey]

I know that you must live in the City of Chicago to work at CPL.  However, jobs in suburban public libraries (of which there are probably 150 within driving distance in the greater Chicagoland area) generally don't have such a residency requirement.   CPL is under an austerity situation, but most of the public libraries in the area are also facing budget troubles of one kind or another.

When I was a new library school graduate back in 1973, I obtained a job at the downtown Cleveland Public Library (Cleveland, Ohio).  At the time, that CPL employed some 1,000 staff, had 35 branches, and was a huge system where one librarian was subsumed under a larger bureaucracy.  I found that moving out and into smaller operations - and ultimately directing my own public libraries (since 1984) was more enjoyable and rewarding.  In a smaller public library setting, you might get a more comprehensive exposure to all aspects of library operations whereas in a very large CPL system, your involvement might be confined to a smallish segment of the whole and you could be buffeted about by decisions made by supervisors you have never even met.

Anyway --- Good Luck!

James B. Casey
Director, Oak Lawn Public Library (suburban Chicago)
ALA Council Member

From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org [mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Lou Reynolds
Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 7:29 PM
To: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: [Publib] Chicago Public Library

Hi, I am a new library school graduate in the Chicago area and I'm interested in working for CPL at some point.  I'm wondering what people's experiences with them have been?  I have heard rather mixed things.  I have also heard that they currently have a hiring freeze.  Is this true?  Does anybody know when such a freeze might end?  And how hard is it to get a job there during "normal" times?  Any info would be appreciated, on or off list.

Thanks,
LR

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