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Librarian/Curator for European Studies

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Position description

Department: International Studies
Rank and Salary: Assistant Librarian – Librarian ($66,294 - $112,952)
Position Availability: Immediately
Application deadline for first consideration: September 10, 2019

The UCLA Library seeks a highly collaborative, knowledgeable and user-driven librarian/curator to work with students and faculty to advance research, scholarship, and teaching in European studies, specifically Northern and Western Europe.

Position Duties
Reporting to the Head of International Studies, the Librarian/Curator for European Studies is responsible for collection development and management, reference, and instruction in assigned areas in order to support and advance research-level scholarship by UCLA students and faculty. The Librarian/Curator for European Studies and Classics collaborates on the creation of research tools and develops plans to digitize content and collections in order to increase access to resources; delivers specialized orientations, instruction sessions, and consultations; and serves as a resource on issues related to digital scholarship, scholarly communication, and emerging research methods. The incumbent collaborates with campus and UC colleagues on a range of issues related to collections and digital projects; participates in professional forums such as the European Studies Section of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), Center for Research Libraries’ Collaborative Initiative for French Language Collections (CIFNAL), and German-North-American Resources Partnership (GNARP); actively engages in outreach and community engagement activities in support of the UCLA Library’s strategic priorities; and serves as a member of library teams related to preservation and/or digitization, such as the UCLA Library’s International Digital Ephemera Project. The incumbent has supervisory responsibilities for .5 FTE staff member and student assistants.

UCLA librarians and academic staff are expected to participate in library-wide planning and governance and work effectively in a shared decision-making environment.

Specific duties and responsibilities include:
• Develops and manages the library’s collections regardless of format, language, period, or place of publication in the areas of social sciences and humanities published in or relating to Northern and Western Europe and its diasporas and cultures. Utilizes a creative, agile, and inclusive approach to collection development that is combined with dynamic campus outreach, community outreach, and collaboration with scholars.
• Manages library allocations, including those from endowed funds and other gift funds.
• Serves as liaison to relevant academic departments (Classics, French and Francophone Studies, Germanic Languages, Italian, Scandinavian), centers (Center for 17th and 18th Century Studies, Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Center for European and Russian Studies), and programs (Indo-European Studies).
• Joins library preservation and digitization efforts, including post-custodial and post-colonial projects to preserve and digitize endangered cultural heritage materials globally; promotes their use; and participates in activities with relevant partners and communities.
• Participates in the Association of College and Research Libraries, Center for Research Library’s Collaborative Initiative for French Language Collections (CIFNAL), German-North-American Resources Partnership (GNARP), and other area-specific consortial activities.
• Serves as the subject specialist for Northern and Western European studies, providing in-depth reference and research assistance to faculty and students in relevant units. May take on additional subject areas based on expertise and Library need.
• Collaborates whenever possible with relevant faculty on digital projects, research initiatives, and curricular/teaching activities.
• Actively collaborates with Library Special Collections on acquisition, processing, digitization, and preservation of primary source collections and rare books.
• Collaborates with the Library’s Cataloging and Metadata Center to address technical service issues.
• In collaboration with colleagues in the Digital Library Program, User Engagement, and other units, develops new projects, programming, services, instruction, and other scholarly activities.
• Develops plans for digitization of priority content and collections in the areas of responsibility. Works closely with the UCLA Library Collections Council Digitization Task Force, Imaging Services, Digital Library, and others to increase online access to UCLA Library content and collections.
• Works closely with Library Development to identify and steward donors, collections, and endowed gift funds, and with Library Communications to conduct outreach and publicize collections and services.
• Recruits, trains, mentors, and supervises staff and student assistants, assigning and evaluating work, providing feedback, and developing staff specializations as appropriate.

Required Qualifications
• ALA-accredited master's degree in library or information science OR significant graduate-level coursework toward such a degree OR equivalent education and experience (subject expertise combined with professional library education and/or experience).
• In-depth knowledge of Northern and Western European Studies or relevant disciplines.
• Fluent knowledge of at least two European languages (one must be either French or German; other can be Latin, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Greek, or other European language).
• Experience providing reference and/or instructional services related to humanities, social sciences, and/or area studies in a research environment.
• Experience participating in collection development, including familiarity with core print and e-resources relevant to Northern and Western Europe.
• Knowledge of initiatives and trends related to research in international and area studies fields and to the evolving scholarly communication landscape, including knowledge of the publishing industry in the regions.
• Commitment to inclusion and demonstrated experience in communicating effectively with diverse communities, donors, and users.
• Ability to work with staff, students, and faculty in a dynamic and complex environment within a large organization.
• Commitment to professional development and service.

Desired Qualifications
• Minimum two years experience in a library setting.
• Graduate-level study, or equivalent experience, in the humanities and/or social sciences.
• Experience in selecting and managing research collections in one of the areas of responsibility.
• Experience with the design, provision, and evaluation of curriculum and pedagogy for upper-division and graduate students.
• Knowledge of additional languages relevant to Northern or Western Europe or classics.
• Knowledge of cataloging and access issues for non-English language materials.
• Demonstrated contributions to collaborative projects at the local, regional, national, and/or international level.
• Knowledge of book vendors and book distribution in the region.
• Experience in donor relations and stewardship.
• Demonstrated supervisory experience that includes training and directing the work of staff and student assistants.

General Information
Professional librarians at UCLA are academic appointees. Librarians at UCLA are represented by an exclusive bargaining agent, University Council – American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT). This is a represented position. They are entitled to appropriate professional leave, two days per month of vacation leave, one day per month of sick leave, and all other benefits granted to non-faculty academic personnel. The University has an excellent retirement system and sponsors a variety of group health, dental, vision, and life insurance plans in addition to other benefits. Relocation assistance may be provided.

Appointees to the librarian series at UC shall have professional backgrounds that demonstrate a high degree of creativity, teamwork, and flexibility. Such background will normally include a professional degree from an ALA-accredited library and information science graduate program. In addition to professional competence and quality of service within the library in the primary job, advancement in the librarian series requires professional involvement and contributions outside of the library, and/or university and community service, and/or scholarly activities. Candidates must show evidence or promise of such contributions.

Candidates applying by September 10, 2019 will be given first consideration for this position. UCLA welcomes and encourages diversity and seeks applications and nominations from women and minorities. UCLA seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitment to serve the people of California, to maintain the excellence of the university, and to offer our students richly varied disciplines, perspectives, and ways of knowing and learning.

Description of Institution and Library
As one of the world's great public research universities, UCLA integrates education, research, and public service so that each enriches and extends the others. From its beautiful neighborhood campus in a uniquely diverse and vibrant city on the Pacific Rim, teaching and research extend beyond the classroom, office, and lab through active engagement with communities, organizations, projects, and partnerships throughout the region and around the world.

UCLA’s diverse community of scholars encompasses nearly 35,000 undergraduates pursuing 125 majors, 13,000 graduate students in fifty-nine research programs, and 4,000 faculty members including Nobel Laureates; Rhodes Scholars; MacArthur Fellows; winners of the Fields Medal, National Medal of Science, Pritzker Prize, and Pulitzer Prize; and recipients of Oscars, Emmys, Tonys, and Golden Globes. UCLA ranks tenth in the Times of London Higher Education World Reputation Rankings, twelfth in the Academic Ranking of World Universities by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and fifth in the U.S. by Washington Monthly. The National Research Council ranks forty of its graduate and doctoral research programs among its top ten.

To enable these accomplished students, faculty, and staff to create, disseminate, and apply knowledge for the benefit of global society, the UCLA Library is re-envisioning how it is acquired, synthesized, and shared across academic audiences and with the public. It was among the first academic libraries to develop subject-specialist librarians and to launch a program to enhance students’ research skills. Its Special Collections pioneered the acquisition by public institutions of rare and unique books, children’s literature, pulp and detective fiction, works by or about women and minorities, screenplays, architectural plans, and Los Angeles-related materials and today leads the way in collecting archival resources in digital format such as emails and manuscripts. It has launched innovative data management services and an affordable course materials initiative that have served as models for other libraries.

The Library serves UCLA students, faculty, and staff whenever and wherever they need its resources and expertise. Reconfigured, high-tech spaces and services in its ten campus libraries enable users and librarians to explore and work with print and digital materials collaboratively or individually, pursue new lines of inquiry, and develop new pedagogical approaches as well as novel forms of scholarship. More than 3.5 million people visit annually, while an additional 3.4 million visitors enter online through its virtual front doors.

Description of Unit
As a partner in the creation and dissemination of knowledge, the International Studies Department in the Charles E. Young Research Library supports the UCLA community by selecting the resources and providing the services necessary for world-class research and instruction. The department’s subject specialists in area and international studies serve as liaisons to academic departments and research units in their areas of responsibility, partnering with faculty and students on a wide variety of research projects and teaching initiatives. Departmental librarians and support staff serve the faculty and students in these disciplines by cultivating research-level collections in a variety of formats as well as providing high-level research services in person and via e-mail and digital reference. These subject specialist librarians work closely together and in cooperation with librarians from other UCLA Library units to support interdisciplinary research, teaching, and learning.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age or protected veteran status. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy see: UC Nondiscrimination and Affirmative Action Policy at http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/NondiscrimAffirmAct

Under federal law, the University of California may employ only individuals who are legally authorized to work in the United States as established by providing documents specified in the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Employment is contingent upon completion of satisfactory background investigation.

Visit the Jobs @ UCLA Library website at: http://www.library.ucla.edu/about/jobs-ucla-library

Application Requirements

Document requirements
  • Cover Letter - Describing qualifications and experience.

  • Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V. detailing education and relevant experience.

  • References - Names and contact information for three professional references, including current or previous supervisor; contact information only.

Job location

Los Angeles, California