Notable Veterinary Medical Librarians
Ann Elizabeth KERKER (1912-1997)
- 18 years in veterinary librarianship
- First Veterinary Medical Librarian and Professor of Library Science at Purdue University, 1959-1977
- One of the six veterinary librarians who met at MLA, San Diego, CA, 1972
- Charter Member, Veterinary Medical Libraries Group/MLA, 1973
- Co-author with Henry T. Murphy, Comparative and Veterinary Medicine: A Guide to the Resource Literature, 1973
- MLA President, 1976-1977
Major Contributions to Veterinary Librarianship:
It is impossible to put a value on Ann Kerker’s significance to veterinary medical libraries in the United States. In her oral interview with Nancy Zinn, she was proud to be known for “her grandmother role with the veterinary medicine section.” Many agree that Ann “deserves much of the credit for bringing into being the Veterinary Medical Libraries Group of the Medical Library Association.”
While Ann contributed greatly to veterinary librarianship, her “first” career began as a medical technologist after receiving a bachelor of science degree in microbiology from Purdue University in 1933. She worked for 22 years in that field with the last ten years spent in foreign service for Standard Oil Company (Exxon) in South America, Saudi Arabia, and Aruba.
Returning to West Lafayette in 1955, she accepted a position as an assistant in the Life Sciences Library. As the school of veterinary medicine was being established at Purdue University in the late 1950s, she was encouraged by Dean L. M. Hutchings to attend library school at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Graduating with her M.S.L.S. in 1959, Ann became the first librarian for the new School of Veterinary Science and Medicine at Purdue.
During the first year, it was necessary for her to provide library services and develop a collection while being based at the Life Sciences Library until a Veterinary Medicine Library was constructed a year later. Due to her efforts, space for the collection was outgrown within eight years. She served as project consultant on three NLM grants to enhance the library’s collection which reached 30,000 volumes with 800 journal subscriptions by her retirement in 1977.
In 1971, Ann was elected to honorary membership in Phi Zeta, the honor society of veterinary medicine, by the Purdue Chapter for contributions made to the School of Veterinary Medicine at Purdue.
With Henry T. Murphy, she compiled the classic work, Comparative and Veterinary Medicine: A Guide to the Resource Literature, in 1973. It won the Association of College and Research Libraries’ Eunice Rockwell Oberly Memorial Award for the best English-language bibliography in the field of agriculture or a related science that same year. This work “contributed to a better understanding of the subject area.”
Throughout her career, “she also served as a consultant to other veterinary medical libraries in the U.S. and abroad.” Her input was sought on new facilities at Auburn University, Iowa State University and Louisiana State University, as well as, the Empresa Brasileira de Pasquisa Agropecuaria in Brazil.
Ann was probably the prime mover in convening veterinary librarians within the Medical Library Association eventually resulting in organizing the Veterinary Medical Libraries Group in 1973, later to become the Veterinary Medical Libraries Section in 1980. With approval from then MLA President Sarah Brown, Ann “drafted a letter to medical librarians working in subject areas related to medical research and veterinary medicine requesting their support for a veterinary group.” “By December 1, 1973, more than sixty-five medical librarians had indicated their support by signing the group’s petition….”.
At the 1974 VMLG business meeting, Ann Kerker served as program chair and set the stage for future VMLS annual programs. In addition to his presentation, the guest speaker “provided a bus tour to enable attendees to visit the animal research facilities at Brooks Air Force Base. Thus the precedent was set for the veterinary librarians to make a tour a portion of their annual meeting.”
Serving as President of the Medical Library Association in 1976/1977, Ann was the first veterinary medical librarian to hold this prestigious office. She was also a member of the MLA Board of Directors, the Association’s Interim Executive Director [1981/1982], and was active in many other professional organizations including Chairman of the Midwest Regional Group/MLA [1964/1965], President of the Indiana Chapter of the Special Libraries Association [1969/1970], and Chairman of the Agricultural and Biological Sciences Section of ACRL/ALA [1974/1975].
“One of her endeavors shortly before retirement was to establish the Information Service for Veterinarians in Indiana with funding from the National Library of Medicine.” Unfortunately, continuing the service on a fee-basis or with profession sponsorship failed after the grant funding expired despite it being heavily utilized by veterinarians in the state.
Ann retired in 1977 as a Professor Emerita of Library Sciences after eighteen years in her highly successful “second” veterinary library career. She was followed by Gretchen Stephens as the next head of the Veterinary Library at Purdue.
Selected Publications (chronological order):
Schlundt EM, Kerker AE. The reference library in microbiology: a selected list of titles for Biology 497. Lafayette, IN: 1958.
Kerker AE, Schlundt EM. Literature sources in the biological sciences. Lafayette, IN: 1961.
Kerker AE. Library materials useful for laboratory methodology: a selected bibliography of materials available in the Veterinary Science and Medicine Library. Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Libraries; 1964.
Kerker AE. Bibliographic materials useful for veterinary research. Lafayette, IN; 1965.
Gluckstein F, Kerker A, principal investigators. Library statistics of veterinary school in the United States and Canada. The Committee on Surveys and Statistics of the Medical Library Association. Bull Med Libr Assoc. 1967 Apr;55(2):201-6.
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC199051/pdf/mlab00171-0092.pdf>.
Kerker AE, Murphy HT. Biological and biomedical resource literature. Lafayette, IN: Purdue University; 1968. “Supported in part by Grant LM 00212-01, U.S. Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare Public Health Service, National Library of Medicine.”
Kerker AE, Murphy HT, comp. Comparative and veterinary medicine: a guide to the resource literature. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press; 1973.
Kerker AE, Weisiger NM. A selected list of source material on behavior with emphasis on animal behavior. Rev ed. Lafayette, IN: Veterinary Medical Library, Purdue University; 1973.
Kerker AE. Information resources for veterinary medical education. J Vet Med Educ. 1974;1(2):7-9. Addendum I.: J Vet Med Educ. 1975;2(1):12-4. Addendum II: J Vet Med Educ. 1975;2(2):18-9.
Kerker AE. A selected list of source material on behavior with emphasis on animal behavior. In: Albright JL, Van Hof J. Animal behavior [: a course syllabus and readings for VM 403—Animal Behavior]. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University, School of Veterinary Science and Medicine; 1976.
Kerker AE. The library—the workshop. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education. 1978 5:16-18.
Kerker A, Malamud J. Literature of Veterinary Medicine. MLA Continuing Education Course; 1980.
Honors and Awards:
MLA Fellow, 2008.
John H. Moriarty Award for distinguished special librarianship from the Indiana Chapter of the Special Libraries Association, 1977.
ALA/ACRL Oberly Award for the best bibliography in agriculture and natural sciences, 1973.
Elected as an honorary member of Phi Zeta, the honor society of veterinary medicine, by the Purdue University Chapter, 1971.
Publications about Ann Kerker:
Andrews T, Dowden K, Funkhouser R, Markee K, Stephens G. Memorial Resolution for Ann E. Kerker, Professor Emerita of Library Science, 1912-1997. West Lafayette, IN: [Purdue University Libraries Faculty]; [1998].
Dunlap A. President’s Page: Ann Elizabeth Kerker, President, Medical Library Association, 1976-1977. Bull Med Libr Assoc. 1976 Jul;64(3):333-4.
Grix LA. Proceedings, 82nd Annual Meeting, Medical Library Association, Anaheim,CA, June 11-17, 1982. Bull Med Libr Assoc. 1983 Jan;67(1):52-146 [p.72,74,76].
Kerker, Ann Elizabeth. In: A Biographical Dictionary of Librarians in the United States and Canada, 5th ed. Chicago: American Library Association; 1970. p. 584.
MLA Fellow Brief Vitae:
Ann Elizabeth Kerker (2008) <http://www.mlanet.org/awards/honors/fellows/kerker_ann_bio.html>.
MLA Oral History Project Interview:
Interview with Ann E. Kerker; interviewed by Nancy Whitten Zinn. Chicago: Medical Library Association. Oral History Committee; 1983. <http://www.mlanet.org/about/history/kerker_a.html>.