DH Librarian, Urbana, Illinois

UIUC is hiring a tenure-track Digital Humanities Librarian. The position is open to applicants with the MLIS and/or a humanities PhD plus DH experience. I am on the search committee and happy to answer questions or find the right person to answer those I cannot. The ad can be found at https://illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/1/home/requisition/695?c=illinois

Position Available:  This position is available as soon as possible and eligible for a hybrid work schedule. This is a 100%-time, permanent, twelve-month faculty position in the University Library.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Statement and EEO Statement: The University Library of the University of Illinois 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 social justice, 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.

Position Summary: The University Library at the University of Illinois Urbana- Champaign is seeking a creative, innovative, collaborative, and intellectually curious individual to lead digital humanities services. Reporting to the Head of Scholarly Communication and Publishing, the Digital Humanities Librarian leads education, consultation, and outreach services for research and instruction in the humanities and arts that employ digital technologies and data. Working with colleagues in Scholarly Communication and Publishing as well as the Scholarly Commons, Research Data Service, Library Information Technology, special collections, and subject liaisons, the Digital Humanities Librarian is part of a team of functional and subject experts that works with researchers on digital scholarship broadly. The successful candidate will bring an inclusive vision of digital humanities work, have enthusiasm for helping researchers and instructors integrate collections as data in both quantitative and qualitative DH projects, and be prepared to engage with different campus communities and work with others to draw connections between them. The Digital Humanities Librarian should be prepared to think broadly about digital humanities work beyond traditional humanities departments, and they may also help integrate basic digital tools in courses and research in disciplines beyond the humanities when their skillsets apply.

The Digital Humanities Librarian typically serves as the initial point of referral for humanities and affiliated researchers as they begin digital research and teaching projects, referring to and collaborating with these other experts as necessary. Building on a history of increasing library support for digital humanities on campus, the librarian plays a key role in furthering digital humanities library services, collaborating with others to fulfil needs identified in prior and ongoing assessment activities. This role includes working to further the development of the library’s Scholarly Commons in its new space as a hub for digital humanities collaboration and discussion. The librarian also collaborates with other areas of campus that provide complementary services for digital research (including campus IT, the HathiTrust Research Center, the Fab Lab, an emerging design center network, and others) to provide referrals and maximize impact. The librarian is likely to play a role in discussions by some academic programs to increase DH curricula, such as History and the iSchool. As a faculty member, the Digital Humanities Librarian pursues research and service that contribute to the profession as well as the library and campus.

Duties and Responsibilities:

·        Provide both reference/referral services and in-depth research

consultations for faculty and students on digital humanities-related research, in collaboration with colleagues;

·        Selectively participate in DH grant partnerships where the library can

make a meaningful contribution, bringing in others in the library as appropriate and helping researchers to understand what is possible and identify alternate approaches where necessary;

·        Design and deliver instruction to classes, research groups, and other

audiences to further digital literacy outcomes;

·        Manage humanities research data (e.g., text and media corpora from

commercial publishers) and work with relevant subject specialists, Acquisitions, and the Scholarly Commons on requests and opportunities for new data sets based on user interest;

·        Facilitate use of local and external library collections (including

external partners such as HathiTrust, Internet Archive, and the Biodiversity Heritage Library) as data in digital projects, including collections in various formats and languages;

·        Serve as the primary point of consultation for researchers across

disciplines with questions about text and data mining tools and approaches;

·        Work with librarians, library IT, and researchers to evaluate digital

scholarship tools and select and implement the most appropriate tools to meet specific needs;

·        Work with colleagues on digital humanities-related publishing

activities and scholarly communications outreach related to digital humanities research;

·        Collaborate with colleagues in the Scholarly Commons, IDEA Lab, and

other units on outreach activities related to digital scholarship, and on fostering the Scholarly Commons as a collaborative space for digital humanities work;

·        Assess evolving campus needs and represent the Library in campus

initiatives and activities involving digital humanities related research and teaching, including those involving the HathiTrust Research Center, Humanities Research Institute, the Seibel Center for Design, and possibly others as campus engagement evolves;

·        Facilitate professional development opportunities for library faculty

and staff, including subject specialists, in digital humanities areas relevant to their interests and responsibilities;

·        Lead policy and planning discussions related to library digital

exhibits, and teach best practices in their creation;

·        Contribute to the national and international reputation of the

University Library through professional research, service, and collaboration with national colleagues, organizations, and consortia.

Required Qualifications:

·        ALA-accredited MS-LIS or equivalent, or a PhD in the humanities or

humanistic social sciences (completed by start date) combined with relevant experience with digital projects;

·        Understanding the nature of work in the humanities and the breadth of

digital approaches to research and publication and of how they can reshape research and teaching;

·        Experience with common software or programming languages used within at

least one area of digital humanities, such as text and data mining, network analysis, or multimodal publishing;

·        Experience (including as a graduate student) designing and delivering

instruction in workshop or classroom settings;

·        Excellent oral and written communications skills;

·        Demonstrated ability to work both independently and collaboratively

with a diverse community, and manage multiple tasks effectively in a team environment;

·        Evidence of the ability to do research, publication, and service

consonant with University standards for tenure and promotion.

Preferred Qualifications:

·        Experience teaching technology and digital literacy concepts;

·        Experience authoring or collaborating on digital humanities projects in

research or instruction;

·        Coursework or experience using a programming language, especially one

commonly used in digital humanities projects such as Python or R;

·        Demonstrated understanding of metadata standards and data curation

practices relevant to digital humanities work;

·        Familiarity with copyright and licensing issues related to digital

projects.

Appointment Information

Environment:  The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library is a leader in the delivery of user services, and active programs in information, instructional, access, and scholarly services that help the Library to maintain its place at the intellectual heart of the campus. The Library also holds one of the preeminent research collections in the world, encompassing more than 13 million volumes and a total of more than 23 million items. The Library is committed to maintaining the strongest collections and service programs possible, and to engaging in research, development, and scholarly practice - all of which support the University's missions of teaching, research, and public engagement. The Library employs approximately 90 faculty members, and more than

300 academic professionals, staff, and graduate assistants. For more information, see: http://www.library.illinois.edu/ <http://www.library.illinois.edu/> .

Scholarly Communication and Publishing includes digital publishing, repository services (including the library’s institutional repository, IDEALS), copyright, researcher profiles, scholarly communication, and digital humanities.

Salary and Rank: Minimum starting salary for faculty positions in the library is

$60,000 and is commensurate with credentials and experience.

Librarians have faculty rank, and must demonstrate excellence in librarianship, research, and university/professional/community service in order to meet university standards for tenure and promotion. Library faculty have an obligation to remain professionally informed, to pursue the discovery of new knowledge related to their field of expertise, to disseminate the results of their scholarly work, and to seek opportunities for service to the Library, campus, state, nation and profession. Library faculty are governed by University statements on review and promotion found in Article IX of the Statutes, and in Provost’s Communication No. 9 https://provost.illinois.edu/policies/provosts-

communications/communication-9-promotion-and-tenure/ and Provost’s Communication No. 13

https://provost.illinois.edu/policies/provosts-

communications/communication-13-review-of-faculty-in-year-three-of-the-

probationary-period/>.

Terms of Appointment: Twelve-month appointment; 24 annual vacation days; 11 annual paid holidays; 12 annual sick-leave days (cumulative), plus an additional

13 sick-leave days (non-cumulative) available, if needed, each year; health insurance requiring a small co-payment is provided to employee (with the option to purchase coverage for spouse and dependents); required participation in State Universities Retirement System (SURS) (8% of annual salary is withheld and is refundable upon termination), with several options for participation in additional retirement plans; newly-hired employees are covered by the Medicare portion of Social Security and are subject to its deduction.

Campus and Community: The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is a comprehensive and major public land-grant university (Doctoral/Research

University-Extensive) that is ranked among the best in the world. Chartered in 1867, it provides undergraduate and graduate education in more than 150 fields of study, conducts theoretical and applied research, and provides public service to the state and the nation. It employs 2,765 faculty members who serve more than 33,000 undergraduates and 15,000 graduate and professional students. More information about the campus is available at www.illinois.edu<http://www.illinois.edu/>.