A self-described “people person” who loves interacting with students, faculty, and staff, Micki Behounek has found her role as manager of access services for Grinnell Libraries to be a perfect fit. In addition to supervising a staff of five full-time employees who process reserves and handle day-to-day circulation, stacks maintenance, and interlibrary loan, she helps oversee and coordinate all student employment in the library and participates in two library leadership groups. Outside of Grinnell, Behounek works as an office assistant, accountant, and hired hand with her husband on his business and farm. Somehow, she finds time for her two grandchildren, rescue cats Theo and Lou, daily walks with her rescue dog (and best friend) Piper, as well as swimming, yard work, and keeping up with her love of reading. Even with all this, Behounek kindly took some time out of her busy day to answer a few questions for us.

Q: As an avid reader and fan of suspense/mystery books, can you give us a good recommendation?

A: I just recently finished a non-fiction book titled If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood by Gregg Olsen and for fiction, Lucy Foley’s The Paris Apartment.

Q: What would you say is the oddest book or most unusual item you’ve come across in the library at Grinnell?

A: Although I am not a book collector myself (I do most of my reading digitally), I love the cool old stuff in Special Collections! If you love books, especially old ones, come take a look at the oldest book in our print collection, the works of Thomas Aquinas from 1745 or a second edition of Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen from 1813.

Q: What are some of the challenges that libraries (both academic and public) are facing today?

A: Budget cuts are an issue for many institutions. Many academic libraries (especially small private institutions in Iowa) are facing big budget cuts. Grinnell College Libraries has been lucky in this aspect. We’ve seen relatively small reductions in our budget which means we can continue to provide the same great service. Banned books, budget cuts, and changes to the licensing requirements for teacher librarians are problematic.

Q: You also work on a farm owned by your family. What does that entail?

A: My husband’s family has farmed the same land for more than 120 years. It is small with only 300 acres of corn and beans, small pastureland, and timber along the Iowa River near Chelsea. In the spring and fall, during planting and harvest, I make sure there is fuel when and where it’s needed, give rides to tractors, pick up seed, chemicals, or parts, and make sure there are groceries for lots of meals on the go. I don’t drive any of the big equipment — it’s too complex and expensive for me to be comfortable. I can drive the smaller tractors to haul corn short distances or help if something gets stuck. We have 25 head of Black Angus cattle on the farm as well. I help with the chores of feeding cows, sorting cows, moving cows. According to my husband, I make the cattle a bit too tame and friendly, making them harder to sort. We do work very hard to keep our animals healthy, comfortable, and well fed so we are able to produce high quality beef.

Q: What is the largest library late-return fee you’ve ever accumulated? Or do those fees get “waived” as a professional courtesy from other librarians?

A: This is a funny question. I often use my own college library account to test workflows. I change myself from student, faculty, or staff (depending on what I am testing) and check out many books without ever going to the stacks and picking up a book. Once in a while I will forget to “return” a book. I will get a notification from the system telling me I have something overdue. So, essentially, I have “waived” a fine or two. In reality, I’ve never incurred an overdue fine here. A long time ago, as a young child, I did lose a library book and remember my mom making me pay back the public library using allowance money. It took a long time to save the money and I didn’t get to check out books while saving. I think the fine was around $5.00 but that was big money to a girl in the 1970’s! It was a tough lesson and one I’ve not forgotten!