Associate Dean Laura Ax-Fultz’s Article Accepted for Publication by Law Library Journal

ASSOCIATE DEAN LAURA AX-FULTZ’S ARTICLE ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION BY LAW LIBRARY JOURNAL

April 2024 — Associate Dean Laura J. Ax-Fultz’s article, “Why Academic Law Librarians Quit: Results of The Law Librarian Exit Survey,” was accepted for publication by Law Library Journal.

Associate Dean Ax-Fultz’s article examines the quantitative data collected from academic law librarians through a survey covering the period of January 2020 through June 2023. During this period, the world endured the pandemic and the complexity of handling family, work, illnesses, and other issues that led many to reconsider their employment circumstances. During this period, there was a noted increase in the number of available academic law librarian positions. The survey explored why academic law librarians are leaving, where they are going, and if the trend could be linked to “The Great Resignation.”

This article considers the layers of pressures academic law librarians feel, including general experiences common to many employed individuals, particularly in the period we have come to call “The Great Resignation,” experiences common to librarians, experiences that are more unique to academic law librarians, and finally, the usual experience of being an academic librarian in a law school. This background provides context for the findings relative to the quantitative data. A future article will explore the qualitative survey data.

The current article is scheduled to be published in the spring of 2025 in Law Library Journal.

Laura J. Ax-Fultz is the associate dean for library and information services at the H. Laddie Montague Jr. Law Library at Penn State Dickinson Law. In addition to her library administrator responsibilities, Professor Ax-Fultz teaches legal research in the first-year curriculum, LL.M. Legal Research, and upper-level courses as well as providing guest lectures in other courses.