Liaison Librarian (I-IV)

Reporting to the ROI Department Head in Healey Library under the direction of the AUL for Academic Engagement, and working closely with colleagues in ROI, the AUL for Collections and other library units, the Liaison Librarian provides in-depth library research and instructional support at the University of Massachusetts Boston. This full-time position will collaborate with colleagues in the library and across campus to instruct, engage and support the nearly 17,000 students, and 1,100 faculty in the full range of library resources and services, on and off campus. Each librarian in the unit will teach information literacy sessions and workshops in General Education, but each will also have subject specialty areas on which they will focus for other workshops, and will also contribute to Collections activities, such as communicating faculty suggestions to the Head of Collections, sharing in review and trials of databases, and related activities.

The successful candidate will be a creative, proactive, and innovative individual who engages and collaborates with our unique and diverse campus community in working with the information resources needed for student success, teaching, and research. The capacity for working enthusiastically, flexibly, and creatively in a user-centered environment is essential, along with demonstrable teaching experience, both synchronous and asynchronous, that reflects commitment to student success in an active learning environment.

The Liaison Librarian works collaboratively as part of the ROI team to reimagine and redesign library instruction sessions so that the focus is always on inquiry-guided active learning, student engagement, and student-centered pedagogy. This process may happen in one-on-one meetings, team meetings to workshop upcoming library instruction sessions, or independently. The incumbent actively participates in the creation of a library of reusable lesson plans, learning objects, and assessments, all built around programmatic information literacy goals, so that these transformative pedagogies and practices may be easily reworked and reused for many different teaching and learning situations. In collaboration with the ROI Department Head, the incumbent will also identify individual goals and special projects that advance both the work of the department and the librarian's professional goals and interests under the direction of the AUL for Academic Engagement. The incumbent will also work closely with other Liaison Librarians and the Head of Collections to review database and journal requests, help evaluate resource trials, and related activities. The incumbent will possess demonstrable ability to work independently and collaboratively with people of diverse backgrounds, knowledge of the research process and familiarity with a wide range of educational technologies and productivity software; excellent interpersonal skills; verbal and written communication skills and demonstrable organizational and time management skills.

The individual will explore new ways of engaging library users and will advocate and provide leadership and vision to improve awareness and reach out effectively to the college and campus community. The successful candidate provides excellent customer service; provides reference and research support both in-person and through virtual reference initiatives; thinks critically in analyzing problems and developing resourceful solutions; is able to manage a complex workload; and can prioritize tasks and complete work on time with minimum supervision.

Duties:

Duties include, but are not limited to:

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  Provides in-person and virtual reference services through scheduled consultations, a networked 24/7 chat cooperative, LibAnswers, a shared library reference email, and other platforms or channels as needed

  
  

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  Develops and conducts in-person, online, synchronous, and asynchronous information literacy instruction sessions based on AAC&U VALUE rubrics and ACRL's Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education

  
  

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  Develops integrated assessments for lesson plans and uses assessment data to inform continuous improvements in products and practice

  
  

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  Develops and updates online and print research and instructional materials; lectures, workshops, web-based tutorials and pre-recorded sessions; integrating educational technologies, including course management systems, and incorporating best practices in learning design principles

  
  

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  Collaborates with faculty, staff, and students to integrate information literacy instruction and assessments into UMass Boston curricula

  
  

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  Participates in outreach and programming to engage students, faculty, staff, and outside stakeholders

  
  

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  Advocates for information literacy across campus and its application to teaching, learning, academic libraries, and higher education

  
  

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  Collaborates with technology staff to develop innovative approaches to instructional services and teaching

  
  

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  Communicates with distance education faculty and students to keep them abreast of changes in online library resources; ensuring that library services are optimized to meet the needs of remote users

  
  

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  Serves as library liaison to multiple college departments and programs, as assigned through the Healey Library Liaison Program

  
  

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  Works with other Liaison Librarians, the ROI Department Head, the AUL for Academic Engagement, and the Head of Collections to review and assess collections in light of faculty and curricular needs, conduct database trials, communicate faculty collections requests, and related activities

  
  

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  Participates in professional development and service activities appropriate to professional interests and librarian rank

  
  

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  In consultation with the ROI Department Head, establishes individual goals and special projects that advance the goals of the library and departmental strategic plans under the direction of Associate University Librarian for Academic Engagement while also positioning the librarian to achieve periodic promotions and continuing appointment

  
  

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  Other duties as assigned

  
  

Qualifications:

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  Master's degree in library or information science from an ALA- accredited program or equivalent.

  
  

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  Related academic library experience associated with information literacy instruction, reference, and research support

  
  

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  Experience in creating online learning objects, including tutorials, instructional materials and research guides.

  
  

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  Demonstrated expertise in creating and delivering engaging and effective lesson plans for instruction sessions.

  
  

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  Demonstrated expertise in conducting reference consultations and familiarity with academic research reference sources: databases, integrated library systems, and research tools.

  
  

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  Capacity for working enthusiastically, flexibly, and creatively in a student- centered environment.

  
  

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  Demonstrated ability to work and communicate effectively and inclusively with a diverse population of faculty, staff and students.

  
  

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  Familiarity with current trends in academic library information systems and higher education.

  
  

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  Excellent interpersonal skills; verbal and written communication skills.

  
  

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  Demonstrated organizational and time management skills.

  
  

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  Competency with wide range of educational technologies and productivity software as well as Microsoft Office Suite.

  
  

Preferred:

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  Classroom teaching experience.

  
  

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  Experience with evaluation and review of databases, journals, and other collections.

  
  

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  Subject specialization in one or more academic disciplines.

  
  

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  Experience with educational technologies and their applications in academic libraries.

  
  

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  Experience with course and learning management systems, such as Blackboard, Moodle, or Canvas.

  
  

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  Experience with outreach and marketing services to students and faculty.

  
  

This position may be hired at the Librarian I, II, III or IV range, depending on the qualifications and experience of the successful applicant.