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THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANT IN THE UNIVERSITY LABORATORY CHARLES E. SIMPSON The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
DURING
the recent growth in college enrollments the teaching staffs of chemistry departments have found it increasingly difficult to perform the duties of laboratory maintenance and supply. Consequently, several universities have added to their staff one or more technical assistants. Since this is a relatively new appointment it may interest the reader to know what kind of service such a person can provide for the teaching staff. Several years ago the writer joined the analytical division of the Department of Chemistry of The Ohio State University as a Technical Assistant. When the duties of the position were first outlmed it seemed unlikely that one with only limited technical knowledge and skill could have filled the position satisfactorily. Any success that has been attained is due probably to a liberal interpretation of the title "Technical Assistant," for many of the duties are clerical and administrative as well as technical. It would he ideal if each institution could 6nd available as technical assistant a person who could excel in technical "know how" and still be a superior administrator, a personnel wizard, and a dependable analyst. Such a species is not only rare, but the usual financial allowance for such services would never attract one who had all of these qualifications. The general purpose of the technical assistant is to relieve the teaching staff of as many of the routine tasks as possible which are not directly connected with teaching. In the division of analytical chemistry to which the writer is attached there are five principal areas of activity for the technical assistant: (a) the care and maintenance of the physical equipment of the laboratory, (b) the provision of samples in suitable form for student analysis, (c) the routine grading of reports of student analyses, (d) the maintenance of complete records of laboratory and quiz grades, ( e ) the liaison with the storeroom and other sources of supply. It is interesting to note the nature of some of the operations which are performed in the five areas of activity. The following outline applies to a situation in which the storeroom has no responsibility for the care of the laboratory and its equipment. It also assumes that in large courses part-time student labor will be available for many of the individual chores. If the course is small the technical assistant may, of course, do much of the actual work himself. (1) Plan and supervise the assignment of lockers at the beginning of the term. (2) Provide and maintain stocks of special side shelf reagents.
(3) Provide and maintain the special equipment of the laboratory such as balances, weights, calibration pipets, Kjeldahl digesters and stills, electrolytic and pH equipment, and ovens. (4) Maintain a supply of samples in the laboratory for student analysis. (5) Daily collection, grading, and filing of student reports of analyses of unhowns. The technical assistant can easily do such grading if a definite grading system has been organized. (6) Daily maintenance of records of individual student's work in laboratory and in examinations. (7) Supervise the preparation of stock samples and arrange for their analysis. This work is usually done by some member of the Junior staff with the cooperation of the technical assistant. (8) Supervise the preparation and storage of individual student samples and the proper recording of sample and stock numbers. This work also involves the preliminary cleaning and drying of the individual sample bottles. (9) Prepare with the help of a professor a grading scale for new stocks. Plan and supervise the cleaning and repair of (10) the laboratories and special equipment between terns. (11) Maintenance of staff of part-time student helpers; scheduling of their time and planning their individual assignments of work; monthly working out of time sheets and general supervising of personnel according t o university regulations.
One duty not readily apparent in the above outline is the purchasing of large quantities of supplies from the storeroom. These supplies are charged to the student on a pro-rata basis from a storeroom as described in a recent article' and are made available to him in relatively small quantities on the side shelf. This plan makes it unnecessary for the stude'nt to travel frequently to the storeroom and stand in line and it also provides the materials to him at noticeably less cost. Part-time student help is used in the daily servicing and replenishing of these supplies. Of direct significance to the student is the availability of s~ecialeaui~mentin good working order when the
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MACNEVIN, W. M., J . CHEM.EDUC.,25, 589 (1948).
JUNE, 1949 student wants it. Equipment is not continued in use until it completely breaks down and requires major repairs; replacement units are kept ready for use and defective pieces are removed at the first sign of trouble. By assigning special equipment to students according to a prearranged schedule the technical assistant is able to insure its maximum use, and an inspection of it on its return also assists in maintaining the equipment in good condition. That the services of the technical assistant are valuable to the teaching staff is without question. When a professor goes into the student laboratory he has some hope of being able to spend some time on the students' problems rather than being a plumber, electrician, etc. Economically, the technical assistant is a sound a p pointment. A careful estimate made by the teaching staff indicates that a t least one more professorial mem-
ber a t a higher salary would be needed on the staff if the duties of the technical assistant were left to the teaching staff to perform. In conclusion, the writer believes that the increase in the number of students in chemistry courses has made necessary the recognition of the need for provisions for the employing of technical assistants who could, through higher qualifications in administrative ability and laboratory operation experience, serve as a useful complement to the teaching staff. There are qualified persons available and an attractive rate of pay can be justified by the increase in the morale of the laboratory, the return to the teaching staff of time for research and writing, and the rendering of better service to the student. I should like to acknowledge the help of Professor W. M. MacNevin a t whose suggestion this paper was written.
