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Posted: 17-Mar-23
Location: Urbana, Illinois
Type: Full Time (In-Office)
Salary: 90,000
Pay Frequency:
Salary Details:
Required Education:
Position Available: This position is available as soon as possible. This is a 100%, twelve-month, tenure-system appointment. Rank will be appropriate to the qualifications of the candidate selected, at a level of either Associate Professor or Professor.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Statement: The University Library of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign values diversity of thought, perspective, experience, and people, and is actively committed to a culture of inclusion and respect. We are dedicated to the practices of diversity and equality, and we strive to overcome historical and divisive biases in our society and embrace diverse points of view as assets to the fabric of our community. All positions will be called on to contribute to building this environment in the Library and throughout the campus community, and we encourage candidates who share these values to apply. Additional information can be found on the Library’s DEIA webpage: https://www.library.illinois.edu/geninfo/deia/ .
Position Description: The University Archivist supervises and coordinates all activity in the University Archives, including acquiring and developing collections, information services, outreach services, graduate assistant training, and research support services. The University Archives operates within a collaborative model with the Special Collections Division, engaging in planning, cooperating on appraisal and records management, and sharing human resources to support operations across the member units. The University Archivist works closely with Library and University administrators, faculty, and staff.
Responsibilities: Reporting to the Dean of Libraries, working with the Offices of the President and Chancellor, and as a member of the University Library’s Special Collections Division, the University Archivist oversees six library faculty, six academic professionals, and a team of student assistants and hourly employees. The University Archivist has primary responsibility for initiating and leading strong campus partnerships and fostering a culture of innovative and robust service programs (both in-house and remote) and outreach efforts -- and will provide leadership for and supervision of information services to students, faculty, and other scholars. In addition, the University Archivist establishes a unit vision and maintains robust collaborations to maximize the impact of the unit’s resources, footprint, and service profile.
As the University Archivist, the incumbent:
- Directs and sets strategic priorities for the archives programs to document the history of the University of Illinois' mission to support teaching, research, service, and public engagement.
- Develops and stewards documentary programs (official records and personal papers) for both university history and cultural heritage developed from areas reflecting the university's teaching and research while building on existing collection strengths.
- Contributes to the University's land grant mission by promoting and facilitating use of archives and cultural heritage collections for local, national, and international communities of students, scholars, and public researchers.
- Supervises and mentors staff; manages the archival program's budget and contracts; and ensures the use of archival best practices and innovative approaches.
- Collaborates pro-actively with other library units especially the Rare Book and Manuscript Library and the Illinois History and Lincoln Collections, to prioritize services and initiatives and plan for their implementation.
- Establishes an atmosphere that leads to practices that value inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility for archival materials, services, and staffing.
- Participates actively at the university and professional/association levels in advising on and developing best practices for the management of the archival record. Partners with governance, administrative, service, and public program units at the campus and University System level.
- Engages with internal and external stakeholders to advance the construction of the Archives and Special Collections Facility, including planning, facilitating, and leading discussions at all levels.
- Initiates, shapes, and develops the Archives overall service strategy and programs, in close collaboration with Archives personnel and Library units, while keeping abreast of trends that impact higher education.
- Supports the professional development of Archives faculty and other personnel to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing information environment, and actively supports Archives staff and graduate assistants within a culture that values and promotes collaboration and a cohesive service philosophy.
- Collaborates and consults regularly with faculty and staff in the Archives and across the campus stakeholder units, as well as within the University Library, on the continual development of research and instructional support services and collections.
- Oversees management of the unit’s operational activities, in coordination with other Archives personnel, including facilities, service desks, budgets, endowments, technologies, conference and meeting spaces, innovation spaces, and all staffing areas.
- Guides and participates in the promotion of the Archives and the Library on campus, including the development of supporting websites, college and university events, and social media accounts.
- Prepares regular and on-demand reports for the Archives, including, but not limited to strategic plans, annual reports, grant and budget proposals, graduate assistant funding requests, and user services reports.
- Works with Library Advancement on securing endowment and operational support.
- Contributes to the national and international reputation of the University Library through professional research, service, and collaboration with appropriate colleagues and organizations.
Qualifications: Required:
- Accredited master’s or doctoral degree in Archives, History, Museum Studies, Library and/or Information Science or similar disciplinary field.
- Demonstrated experience of five or more years overseeing and contributing to daily operations of a large service-oriented unit or service.
- Evidence of strong supervisory skills developed through increasing responsibilities over five years or more.
- Demonstrated ability to assess technology, services, and spaces for areas of improvement.
- Evidence of excellent written and oral communication, organizational skills, analytical ability, familiarity with online archival access tools, software, and technologies including web accessibility.
- Strong communication skills and leadership qualities including an energetic, flexible, creative, proactive approach to service.
- Demonstrated experience providing instruction and information services in an archival research environment.
- Demonstrated experience overseeing the processing of archival collections and materials in multiple formats.
- An understanding of the research process including, but not limited to, database searching, literature review, topic selection, and the publishing process.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks and demonstrated record of working collaboratively and effectively in a team environment.
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a diverse community of library staff and users.
- Evidence of research, professional service, and publications sufficient to merit appointment at the level of tenured Associate or Full Professor.
Preferred:
- Experience mentoring and supporting junior faculty in research, service and librarianship.
- Experience with strategic planning and implementation.
- Demonstrated commitment to promoting and supporting diversity, accessibility, and inclusion.
- Demonstrated experience assessing the effectiveness and impact of programs, services, learning, and/or spaces.
- Demonstrated evidence of successful contribution to capital campaigns or grants that directly benefit the library user services or collections.
- Involvement in professional service organizations key to shaping digital scholarship, such as an established leadership role in professional service organizations.
- Experience with teaching in an academic environment, including one-on-one consultations and class lectures.
- Experience teaching and/or learning in an online learning environment through systems such as Canvas and Zoom.
- Experience in the delivery of reference services in all formats (online, phone, e-mail, in person) in an academic setting.
- Demonstrated understanding of U.S. copyright law
