Distinctive Collections Engagement Librarian

Position Title: Distinctive Collections Engagement Librarian.
Department: Library – Distinctive Collections and Archives.
Classification: Exempt.
FTE: 1.0.
Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm; occasional evenings or weekends may be required for special events; travel up to 2% of work schedule, which includes local (Twin cities metro area) travel; overnight trips average 1-2 trips per year.
Salary Range: $55,000 - $63,000.

Position Overview:

Rolvaag Memorial Library’s Distinctive Collections and Archives primary mission is to preserve, protect and provide access to the St. Olaf College’s distinctive holdings of rare books, artists books, Norwegian-American Imprints, college records, historic documents, photographs, and archival materials. In support of that mission, the Distinctive Collections Engagement Librarian provides vision and leadership in teaching, research, outreach and engagement, and collection development. This professional works to define new approaches to teaching in Distinctive Collections and Archives, develop creative outreach practices, engage with new pedagogies, and support digital scholarship across interdisciplinary communities. 

This position works collaboratively with Rolvaag Memorial Library’s Research & Instructional Technology team, the St. Olaf College Archives’ Lead Archivist, the staff and archivists at the Norwegian-American Historical Association, and other stakeholders. In this capacity, this position will guide the integration of Distinctive Collections and Archives into the College’s future Innovation Hub.

Essential Job Duties:

• Instruction and Research - 35% of time.
  • Continue to build St. Olaf’s strong Distinctive Collections instruction program, promoting the use of distinctive collections and archives resources as an integral part of a liberal arts education. 
  • Partner with faculty, and other LITS staff as appropriate, to design learning experiences that inculcate wonder in students through guided contact with primary sources. 
  • Provide innovative instruction experiences that facilitate varied teaching, learning, and research, including interdisciplinary projects, new pedagogical models, and original undergraduate student research.
  • Collaborate with archivists to teach students (and faculty) how to use professional archival search tools and conduct research in archives. 
  • Communicate frequently with faculty to discover new curricular directions and materials that will keep St. Olaf at the vanguard of student learning.
  • Regularly engage with the Research and Instructional Technology team to incorporate and assess Distinctive Collections and Archives learning outcomes so they align with the LITS Literacies Framework for student success.
  • Create a collection of physical and digital educational tools to sustain our teaching program.
  • Supervise and mentor student employees who support teaching and learning efforts.
  • Identify materials to add to the collections that support the curriculum, build upon existing collection strengths, and provide opportunities for student and faculty research.
• Outreach and Engagement - 35% of time.
  • Develop a dynamic outreach program that encourages our campus community to access our rare and unique books, archival objects, and other unique collections.
  • Continuously work to bring underexposed portions or areas of the collections into the classroom and the community through the use of displays, special events, digital media, and other emerging formats.
  • Design exhibitions that engage our community and that explore new modes of interacting with our materials. Seek guest curators (students, classes, campus staff) as appropriate.
  • Collaborate with Lead Archivist to identify gaps in our collection and develop community archiving initiatives.
  • Partner with campus stakeholders to develop innovative ways to use the collections.
  • Work in a team environment with staff in Research & Instructional Technology, and academic departments on a range of ongoing projects and new initiatives in Distinctive Collections and College Archives.
• Vision and Leadership - 20% of time.
  • Lead in building a community of practice centered a concept of distinctive collections and archives as a lab for the humanities, within the emerging framework for the Innovation Hub envisioned by President Rundell-Singer and the Regents.
  • Collaborate with NAHA staff to envision flexible and collaborative teaching and exhibition programs.
  • Be at the forefront of trends in the cultural heritage profession, especially pedagogy, through professional service and ongoing professional development.
  • Serve as an enthusiastic and creative liaison between Rolvaag Library’s Distinctive Collections and Archives, and the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar, imagining expanded future partnerships and collaborations that benefit St. Olaf students.
  • In collaboration with the team, formulate direction and plan for a new robust web presence that combines College Archives and Library Distinctive Collections as LITS (library and IT) re-envisions its web presence. 
  • In collaboration with the team, participate in the development of branding and marketing for our units, the new space, events, etc.
• Library staff Work - 10% of time.
  • Participate on Library and Bridge teams/working groups as assigned. 
  • Attend all relevant Library and Bridge meetings and functions scheduled during regular working hours. 
  • Work collaboratively and in tandem with peers at Carleton College to ensure that work is not duplicated and that costs are contained or reduced. 
  • Commit to building a strong and inclusive community among faculty, staff, students, and constituents by respecting and making space for diverse backgrounds, values, and points of view.
  • Promote services and represent the libraries and IT, including creating media, planning & working at events, contributing ideas, and helping the Events and Engagement committee to make the libraries a welcoming place.

Supervision Received and Exercised:

• Reports to the Head of Strategy for Library Collections and Archives.
• This position supervises students.

Required Qualifications:

• Education: Master’s degree in library and information science from a program accredited by the American Library Association, or an advanced degree with relevant experience; maintain a valid driver’s license and meet St. Olaf College driver authorization criteria with a satisfactory driving record.
• Experience: 3+ years of professional experience working in a library setting with a focus on teaching in distinctive collections and/or archives.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in humanities; graduate education in Archives, Distinctive Collections or a teaching track; background in pedagogy, instructional technology, primary source research, and book arts.
• Experience: Professional experience in Archives, with teaching in Distinctive Collections; familiarity with Rare Books, Artist’s Books, and other types of distinctive collections; familiarity with history of the book in both eastern and western culture; formal teaching experience; experience working with historians and archivists in public history initiatives; reading fluency in Norwegian, Danish, or Chinese.

Desired Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Ability to work independently or with minimal supervision.
• Ability to demonstrate positive, service-oriented demeanor.
• Skill in public speaking and delivering presentations to individuals and/or groups.
• Ability to work effectively and patiently with students.
• Ability to establish and maintain a good rapport, work collaboratively, and build strategic relationships with college faculty and staff, students, and the general public.
• Ability to exchange ideas, information and opinions with others to formulate policies and programs and arrive jointly at decisions, conclusions, or solutions.
• Skill in responding flexibly to changing needs and priorities.
• Ability to plan, implement and evaluate programs.
• Ability to take action when answers to a problem are not readily apparent in equivocal circumstances.
• Ability to process and handle confidential information with discretion.
• Ability to take responsibility for own work and maintain personal and professional standards.
• Ability and willingness to support, respect and commit to embracing diverse backgrounds, values and points of view to build a strong and inclusive community including faculty, staff, students and constituents.

Prerequisites:

• Employment in this position is conditioned upon successful completion of a background check which may include: criminal background checks, reference checks, verification of work history, verification of any required academic credentials, licenses, and/or certifications, a motor vehicle check, verification of DOT certification, a credit check, employment eligibility verification, and/or a pre-employment physical. Whether a background check is deemed successfully completed will be at the sole discretion of St. Olaf College.  Please note, St. Olaf College reserves the right to conduct periodic background checks at its sole discretion.

Disclaimer:

• This position may require you to report early, stay late or work different shifts depending on staffing levels. It may also require you to perform all essential job functions whenever needed and during campus emergencies when necessary.
• This job description is for general information purposes.  It is not intended to list all duties and responsibilities of the position.  This job description is subject to change at any time by St. Olaf College, with or without prior notice.
• Review of applications begins immediately and continues until the hire is complete. We accept only online applications.