Lead for Emerging Literacies
Department: Teaching and Learning Services
Rank and Salary: Associate Librarian – Librarian ($53,116 – $79,332)
Position Availability: Immediately
Application deadline for first consideration: February 26, 2016
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 30,000 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, Pritzer 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.
Whether on campus or online, the Library forms the intellectual heart of UCLA, a hub for cutting-edge discovery, scholarship, and instruction.
Powell Library provides support for the learning, teaching, and research needs of UCLA undergraduate students, graduate student teaching assistants, faculty, and other library patrons. Powell is the hub of the Library’s Inquiry Program, which fosters student academic success and participation in the university’s research community, especially through support of high-impact and foundational areas of the undergraduate curriculum, including the Freshman Cluster Program, Capstone Initiative, and Writing I and II requirements. Services include teaching and instructional consultation, as well as research consultation assistance and training, offered in multi-use teaching and learning spaces, such as the Inquiry Labs. The Inquiry Program also coordinates library collaboration on campus initiatives designed to foster the growth and well-being of students, such as First Year Experience and Healthy Campus Initiative. Powell also hosts exhibits and programs, including readings and concerts, created in collaboration with other library and campus entities. In addition, Powell engages with thousands of users each year through its social media sites. Powell staff includes 8 FTE librarians, 7 FTE library/administrative assistants, and 35-40 student assistants. Located in the original library building on campus, Powell Library is the most frequently-visited library with a turnstile count over 1.3 million users/year, circulation of 113,000 transactions/year, 32,394 information and reference questions answered per year, and hundreds of instruction sessions and tours. The physical collection consists of approximately 225,000 volumes, 650 serials and newspapers, and an undergraduate Course Reserve Service. In 2013/2014, a general collections budget of $280,000 was spent on resources to support the learning and research needs of undergraduates, and 1,171 reserve lists were processed. A growing area of emphasis is Community Collections – browsing collections collaboratively curated by librarians and students; these collections include zines, cookbooks, graphic literature, and science fiction.
Teaching and Learning Services (TLS) provides community-based leadership and funding to support training, tools, and infrastructure for enterprise-wide reference and instructional services. These services include 24/7 digital reference (a UC-consortial project), online research guides linked to the course management system, and online tutorials. TLS sponsors professional development training, such as workshops, brown-bags, webinars, and other programs open to the whole UCLA community. TLS also manages data collection and evaluation of reference and instructional activities at the UCLA Library by providing oversight of the Summary of Instructional Activities (SIA) and Reference Statistics (Stats) online tools. In addition, TLS facilitates and manages annual events designed for student audiences, such as the Library Prize for Undergraduate Research, Campbell Book Collecting Competition, Edible Book Festival, and International Games Day.
Position Duties
Reporting to the TLS Coordinator, the incumbent is responsible for the following duties:
Emerging Literacies and New Modes of Learning and Creating
· Create, deliver, evaluate, and continually improve library services and pedagogical innovations focused on emerging literacies and new modes of learning and creating in the library and through library services. These include, among other things, coding, new media, collaborative learning, geospatial thinking, data analysis and visualization, 3D modeling (both analog and digital), design thinking, transdisciplinary and/or transmedia learning.
· Identify opportunities to implement and support emerging literacies instruction in alignment with campus curricular priorities, which include Undergraduate Education Initiatives (UEI), the General Education curriculum, the Freshman Clusters program, Writing Programs, the Center for Community Learning, the Grand Challenges, the Healthy Campus Initiative, and UCLA Sustainability.
· Actively collaborate across library units and with campus partners, including the Institute for Digital Research and Education, the Office of Instructional Development, and the College of Letters & Science UEI, and the Center for Digital Humanities, among others.
· Serve as the primary TLS Liaison to the Affordable Course Materials Initiative (ACMI). Actively connect ACMI and TLS, promoting alignment and collaboration between ACMI, TLS and UCLA instructional staff and faculty.
· Serve as the primary TLS Liaison to Library Special Collections (LSC) and the Digital Library Program (DLP). Connect and align TLS, LSC, and the DLP through projects that thoughtfully integrate rare and unique materials (both digital and non-digital) into diverse areas of the campus curriculum.
Teaching, Consulting, and Instructional Design
· Assist with the design, development, implementation, and assessment of library instructional services, including face-to-face, hybrid, and online learning opportunities, instruction sessions and workshops, and other innovative approaches to developing student research skills.
· Consult with faculty, instructional staff, teaching assistants, and librarians in developing, teaching, and integrating research skills instruction with the undergraduate curricula.
· Work closely with one or more Freshman Clusters instructional teams, including faculty and teaching assistants, to incorporate research skills instruction and library collections into the curriculum for first-year students.
Research Consultation Assistance and Training
· Assist with the design, development, implementation, promotion, and assessment of Powell Library’s research consultation services.
· Provide scheduled and drop-in research consultation services, in person, by phone, and online.
Special Projects and Professional Development
· Participate in special projects and serve on unit, library, and campus committees and teams.
· Continually seek opportunities to learn new skills, techniques, and approaches to emerging literacies, new modes of learning, instructional design, and innovative library services, with a focus on higher education, libraries, and digital scholarship and research.
· Perform other duties according to the needs of the unit and library.
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).
· Minimum of two (2) years of professional experience in an academic research and/or higher education learning environment.
· Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and effective interpersonal skills.
· Ability to work with staff, students, and faculty from diverse cultural backgrounds and in a dynamic and complex environment within a large organization.
· Experience supporting emerging literacies and new modes of learning, preferably in higher education.
· Significant teaching experience, preferably including assignment, course, and/or curriculum design for classes incorporating research-based writing and creating with emerging literacies.
· Experience applying, adapting, and assessing the effectiveness of learning theories and varied pedagogical approaches in higher education settings.
· Excellent project management skills.
· Experience with assessment in an academic setting.
· Strong customer service orientation.
· Capacity to thrive in the exciting, ambiguous, future-oriented environment of a world-class research institution and to respond effectively and flexibly to changing needs and priorities.
· Demonstrated proficiency and capabilities with personal computers and software, the Web, and library-relevant information technology applications.
· Ability to initiate and maintain cooperative working relationships with co-workers, supervisors, and managers.
· Demonstrated commitment to professional issues, evidenced through interest in local or national committee work, research, publication, etc.
· Ability to follow directions from supervisors (and to provide clear directions to staff and student employees)
· Ability to get to work reliably and on time and to be present in the workplace during normal working hours.
Desired Qualifications
· Demonstrated experience devising and/or leading assessment projects in a library setting.
· Demonstrated experience consulting with faculty and instructional staff on curricular redesign and/or development of new courses and assignments.
· Demonstrated ability to rapidly learn new skills, and prototype and pilot new ideas and approaches.
· Formal pedagogical training.
· Experience teaching with technology in college-level instruction.
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.
Application Procedures
Anyone wishing to be considered for this position should apply here: https://recruit.apo.ucla.edu/apply/JPF01935
Applications must include:
- a cover letter describing qualifications and experience;
- a current resume/vitae detailing education and relevant experience; and
- the names and contact information for three professional references, including a current or previous supervisor.
Candidates applying by February 26, 2016 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.
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
Employment is contingent upon completion of satisfactory background investigation.
Visit the UCLA Library Employment and Human Resources website at: http://library.ucla.edu/about/employment-human-resources.
