Head of International & Area Studies, Doe/Moffitt Libraries

Hiring range: Librarian I – Librarian III
$70,956-$84,996 per annum, based upon qualifications

This is a full-time appointment available starting August 2013.

The University of California, Berkeley seeks a collaborative, service-oriented librarian with demonstrated management experience to advance the Library’s engagement with research, teaching, and scholarship in support of international and area studies.

The Environment

The UC Berkeley Library is an internationally renowned research and teaching facility at one of the nation's premier public universities. In a highly diverse and intellectually rich environment, Berkeley serves a campus community of 25,500 undergraduate students, 10,300 graduate students, and a faculty of 1,500. The Library comprises 20 campus libraries - including the Doe/Moffitt Libraries, the Bancroft Library, the C. V. Starr East Asian Library and subject specialty libraries. With a collection of more than 11 million volumes and a collections budget of over $15 million, the Library offers extensive collections in all formats and robust services to connect users with those collections and build their related research skills.

Responsibilities

The Head of International & Area Studies manages a department of 13 librarians and library assistants with responsibility for collections, instruction, reference, and academic outreach.  This position provides leadership within the department for enhancing the collections and user-centered services.  Cultivating and sustaining strong connections with faculty and students associated with key academic departments and centers is critical to understanding and meeting the research and curricular needs of these scholars. Staff in this department develop and sustain collaborations with academic departments, interdisciplinary programs, institutes, and centers (many receiving US Government Title VI funding) focused on regions including Africa, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East, Near East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. The incumbent has a leading role in shaping the collections of the Doe/Moffitt Libraries located in Gardner (MAIN) Stacks, which houses more than two million volumes in 200 languages, and an additional two million volumes in off-site shelving at the Northern Regional Library Facility. 

The Head works collaboratively with departmental colleagues to assess strengths and weaknesses in the various collections, determine priorities, and develop departmental service plans that enhance and support the academic mission of the University.  In partnership with colleagues in the Library, across campus and at other institutions, the Head will play a guiding role in initiatives (such as collaborative agreements, cooperative cataloging, and digitization projects) supporting the current and future research needs of faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students. 

The Head is a member of a library-wide management team and the Doe/Moffitt management team.  The position has a dual reporting line to the Associate University Librarian for Educational Initiatives and the Associate University Librarian for Collection Services.  The Doe/Moffitt management team works collaboratively to guide and coordinate the strategic directions, programs, services, collections, facilities, and policies associated with all units in the Doe/Moffitt Libraries.   The Head serves as the collection fund group coordinator for area studies librarians across campus, providing oversight of substantial collections, endowments, gifts and various budgets and joining other disciplinary fund coordinators to develop collection policies and strategies for the benefit of the Library overall.

As our Library organization continues to evolve, the Head will play an important role by helping build strong links between and across disciplines, departments, and campus libraries.  To be an effective manager, the Head will be a fair, progressive leader to Library staff; lead department-wide and library-wide discussions; aid in creating and communicating Library policies; manage personnel and financial matters; contribute to department-wide and library-wide priority setting and project management; encourage ongoing staff development, and foster an environment of collaboration, creative thinking, and continuous improvement.

The Head will assume responsibility as library liaison and selector for one or more departments or disciplines as matches their subject and language expertise.  In this role he/she will be engaged with activities akin to others in the department: selecting materials in all formats; providing research consultations for faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students; developing guides and web pages to facilitate user access to resources; offering orientations and instructional seminars; and contributing to reference services for the humanities and social sciences in the Doe/Moffitt Libraries.  Collection development is coordinated through a number of consortial agreements with libraries in the University of California system, Stanford University, and national organizations. The librarian maintains an awareness of scholarly communication issues, and identifies relevant online resources to purchase through campus funds or in group agreements within the California Digital Library and the Center for Research Libraries.

UC Berkeley librarians are expected to participate in library-wide planning and governance, and work effectively in a shared decision-making environment.  Advancement in the Librarian series is based in part on professional contributions beyond the primary assignment; the successful candidate will show evidence or promise of such contributions to the Library, campus, UC System, and profession.

Qualifications

Required:

• MLS or equivalent degree from an ALA-accredited library school
• Degree in an area studies-related field (such as language, history, culture, or literature)
• Experience supervising and/or leading librarians and career staff
• Excellent analytical, organizational, problem solving, project management, and communication skills 
• Experience participating in collection development in an academic or research library
• Demonstrated record of success effectively managing collection funds (including a variety of sources such as  state funding, endowments, grants, etc)
• Demonstrated commitment to providing highly responsive public service
• Demonstrated comprehension of and competency in one or more languages
• Demonstrated understanding of the information needs of researchers studying topics in area studies-related fields
• Knowledge of initiatives and trends related to research in international and area studies fields and to the evolving scholarly communication landscape
• Experience providing reference and instructional services related to humanities, social sciences, and/or area studies in an academic or research library environment
• Demonstrated ability to foster and maintain partnerships with a broad-based constituency
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with diverse staff and campus user communities
• Capacity to thrive in an environment of change and respond effectively to shifting needs and priorities

Desirable:

• Management experience in an academic library environment
• Demonstrated record of success managing and overseeing complex projects
• Experience developing innovative services to enhance research and/or teaching
• Experience in grant writing and fundraising
• Knowledge of cataloging and access issues for non-English language materials
• Experience with cooperative library agreements at the regional, national, or international level

The Library at the University of California, Berkeley is committed to the support and encouragement of a multicultural environment and seeks candidates who can make positive contributions in a context of ethnic and cultural diversity.

As a management position, this librarian position is not represented by a bargaining unit and is covered by the UC Academic Personnel Manual (APM).  Librarians 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.

Deadline:  Consideration will be given to applications received by July 15, 2013.

Submit applications online at https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/apply/JPF00146. Applications must include a cover letter detailing a statement of qualifications, curriculum vitae noting degrees and relevant work experience, and the names and contact information of three references who are knowledgeable about the applicant's qualifications for this position.

Send inquiries to:

Susan E. Wong
Director, Library Human Resources
Library Human Resources Department
110 Doe Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
Phone: (510) 642-3778
Email: librec@library.berkeley.edu

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer