The Mary Couts Burnett Library at Texas Christian University seeks an experienced and innovative Director of Special Collections to lead a department of five employees. Reporting directly to the Dean, the Director will be part of the library’s administrative team, assisting with planning, budgeting and personnel management. The Director will contribute to the overall mission of the library by collaborating with colleagues in a team based environment.
The Department’s strengths include 19th century English literature, Judaica, maps, children’s literature and archival collections such as the Speaker Jim Wright Collection, the Amon G. Carter Collection and TCU’s Digital Collections. Manuscripts from colonial Spanish America are an area of recent growth. The Director will encourage growth, access and use of the collection; will coordinate public programs and exhibits that contribute to the cultural and academic atmosphere of the university; and will evaluate potential gift collections. The Director develops TCU’s identity for its specialized research collections, aligning collections, services, programs and outreach.
Working with University Advancement, the Director will further donor cultivation; will assist with Friends of the TCU Library programming; will create faculty partnerships benefitting the public and the campus community; and will work directly with researchers using the collections, leading instructional sessions and developing presentations to showcase Special Collections.
The Director provides leadership for digital initiatives, particularly acquiring born digital material; identifies and implements new methods of departmental operations and services within a changing technological environment; works with the archivist to coordinate transfer of electronic and hard copy records from administrative and academic departments and from student organizations; and implements standards-based maintenance measures.
Requirements: Masters in Library Science (ALA Accredited) or advanced degree in a related field; 5 years progressively responsible library experience with at least 2 years supervising employees and substantial experience in academic libraries. Successful candidates will have proficiency with archival and special collections operations including experience with digitization projects, along with relevant technology and metadata standards (such as ArchivesSpace, DSpace, XML, EAD, and Dublin Core). The successful candidate will have experience with donor relations, successful grant funding, public programing and event planning. The successful candidate will have the ability to train and lead staff; strong communications skills; knowledge of customer service techniques and be skilled in using Microsoft Office and library discovery tools.
Desired skills, knowledge and experience: second graduate degree, working knowledge of a European language other than English, teaching experience with primary materials, formal training and demonstrated experience in archival management demonstrated knowledge of best practices and applications in digital archives management, knowledge of intellectual property issues related to special collections and archives, and knowledge of disaster preparedness and recovery planning.
Texas Christian University (TCU) is a Top 100 National University as classified by U.S. News and World Report. Located in Fort Worth, Texas, one of the largest and most dynamic cities in the country, TCU has an endowment of over $2.4 Billion and is home to an accomplished student body of nearly 12,000 students from around the nation and the globe. As a private liberal arts University, TCU encompasses nine colleges and schools which includes a medical school. The more than 10,200 undergraduate and 1,700 graduate students work closely with a full-time faculty of 699 committed teacher-scholars. The new President joins the University during a period of strong undergraduate growth and at the initiation of an enhanced strategic plan – optimally positioned for creativity, innovation, and aspirational thinking.
The Mary Couts Burnett Library has a staff of 51, and a collection that includes nearly 3 million print and electronic books and over 200,000 subscriptions.
Information about benefits and applications is available on the TCU Human Resources web site at: https://hr.tcu.edu/.
To apply, please visit: https://jobs.tcu.edu/en-us/job/498460/director-of-special-collections
TCU is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer with a strong commitment to hiring for our mission and diversifying our workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ethnic origin, disability, genetic information, covered veteran status, and any other basis protected by law.
Posted February 2023
#specialcollections #director #archives #rarebooks #TCU #forthworth #Administration #management