Careers at UMass Amherst

About UMass Amherst

UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region.

Job Summary

Essential Functions

• Along with SCUA colleagues, serve as an advocate for SCUA’s social change and racial justice collections and as a resource for historically oppressed and marginalized communities through outreach and support. 
• Provide reference service to users of collections held by SCUA as required, handling questions directly or referring them as appropriate. Search departmental databases, websites, other finding aids and collections to answer questions by remote and in-person users.
• Partner across SCUA, campus, and in the local and national community to integrate SCUA’s racial justice-related collections in curriculum, class visits, and programming.
• Work with SCUA colleagues to continue to build SCUA’s collections and connections documenting racial justice movements and allied areas of activism.
• Lead developing exhibits, events, and other programming highlighting SCUA’s racial justice and related material.
• Oversee the processing, arrangement, description, digitization, and creation of finding aids and other discovery tools for SCUA’s racial justice-related collections.
• Participate in collecting, maintaining, and analyzing collection usage statistics for monthly reports as needed. Ensure transparency in sharing collection assessment activities to support data-driven decisions.
• Make recommendations on departmental policies, procedures, and acquisitions and participate in departmental planning activities.
• Work closely with the Du Bois Center and other groups in the Libraries, on campus and in the community, to bring our unique resources to a larger and more diverse audience. 
• Maintain an active professional presence through publication, presentations at professional meetings, and committee service for professional organizations.
• Supervise student workers who assist with racial justice-related collections.
• Work creatively, collaboratively, and effectively to promote teamwork, diversity, equality, and inclusiveness within the UMass Amherst Libraries and the Campus.
• Develop collegial working relationship with other Five Colleges archivists to facilitate resource and information sharing, develop cooperative projects, and create best practices guidelines as applied to the documentation and memory care practices of oppressed and marginalized communities. Represent the Libraries at Five College Committees, Boston Library Consortium Committees, or other selected professional meetings and conferences as required.
• Serve on internal library committees as needed.
• Perform other related duties as assigned in support of the mission and goals of the Libraries and the department.

Other Functions

• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)

• Graduate degree in Librarianship, Archives Management, African American Studies, History, Political Economy, or related field.
• Minimum of 2 years of experience working with stakeholders and materials in an archives, cultural heritage, or memory work.
• Experience building relationships with internal and external partners with a strong commitment to public service and proven ability to work effectively with a diverse population of faculty, staff, students, community members, or other stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience in building public programming, engaging diverse audiences, and increasing accessibility to archival and cultural heritage collections.
• Demonstrated experience conducting outreach to faculty, campus units, student groups, external community, or other relevant groups.
• Evidence of excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills including the ability to communicate clearly in presentations and in outreach or advocacy work.
• Familiarity with material history collections management and best practices relating to artifact care, processing, and exhibition.
• Ability to manage time effectively, set performance goals, and work both independently and collaboratively in a flexible, energized, and supportive environment that celebrates a growth mindset.
• Knowledge of archival and other relevant metadata standards.

Preferred Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)

• Experience developing collections from or in collaboration with marginalized communities.
• Experience with memory and community care traditions and practices in activist and marginalized communities.
• Experience with archival appraisal, arrangement, and description.
• Grant writing
• Prior experience engaging with the movements and communities reflected in SCUA’s collecting areas.

Physical Demands/Working Conditions

• Typical office environment.

Work Schedule

• The regular working schedule for this position is Monday - Friday, day hours.
• The incumbent of the position is expected to work on a flexible schedule, which includes some evening, weekend, and holiday hours.
• This position has the opportunity for a hybrid work schedule, which is defined by the University as an arrangement where an employee’s work is regularly performed at a location other than the campus workspace for a portion of the week. As this position falls within the Massachusetts Society of Professors (MSP) Union, it is subject to the terms and conditions of the MSP collective bargaining agreement.

Salary Information

•  Librarian II or III
  1. Librarian II salary floor: $61,500
  2. Librarian III salary floor: $69,500
• Salary commensurate with experience.

Benefits

University benefits may differ based on collective bargaining agreements (unions). Please see below for the potential benefits MSP Librarians can be entitled to obtain: benefits for the Massachusetts Society of Professors (MSP) members and benefits for MSP Librarians positions:

• Human Resources: Faculty & Staff General Benefits
• Massachusetts Society of Professors (MSP) Benefits
• MSP Librarian Positions Benefits

Promotion

MSP Librarian positions are eligible for promotion, defined as a change in rank as a librarian from one rank to the next higher rank. The bargaining unit member who gets a promotion shall receive the base salary increase in line with the MSP collective bargaining agreement. You can view the MSP Collective Bargaining Agreement, particularly, article 20, to learn more about MSP Librarian Personnel Actions, including promotion, appointment, reappointment, and continuing appointment.

Special Instructions to Applicants

Along with the application, please submit a cover letter and resume. References will be checked at the finalist stage. Please be prepared to provide contact information for three (3) professional references.

The University is committed to active recruitment of a diverse faculty and student body. The University of Massachusetts Amherst is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer of women, minorities, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities and encourages applications from these and other protected group members. Because broad diversity is essential to an inclusive climate and critical to the University’s goals of achieving excellence in all areas, we will holistically assess the many qualifications of each applicant and favorably consider an individual’s record working with students and colleagues with broadly diverse perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds in educational, research or other work activities. We will also favorably consider experience overcoming or helping others overcome barriers to an academic career and degree.