Description
The University of Denver Sturm College of Law is a national leader in experiential legal education, a recognized innovator in legal pedagogy, and the home of multiple nationally-recognized programs, including a Top 10 program in legal research and writing. Housed in a state-of-the-art, LEED Gold facility on the campus of the University of Denver, the Westminster Law Library supports cutting-edge faculty research, trains students in legal research across multiple subject matter areas, and familiarizes students with a range of technologies relevant to modern-day legal practice.
Position Summary
A member of the Westminster Law Library’s management team and reporting to the Assistant Director, the Head of Access Services is responsible for the day-to-day management of the law library’s access services functions. Most importantly, this includes hiring, training, scheduling, managing, and backing up the part-time hourly workers who staff the law library’s circulation desk, as well as oversight of the library’s part-time Weekend and Evening Circulation Supervisor. Other duties include management of the law library’s circulation of materials, including reserves and interlibrary loan; stacks maintenance; library building maintenance; and library-related outreach, among other duties. Outreach responsibilities include helping law faculty promote their scholarship, serving as a liaison to the law school’s various student-edited law journals to help facilitate their use of research-related materials, and creating connections outside the Sturm College of Law.
This position may be filled as either a staff position or a faculty position, depending on the qualifications and preference of the selected candidate.
FOR A FACULTY APPOINTMENT ONLY: A candidate appointed to a faculty position in the University Libraries faculty series will require a JD degree (or its equivalent) and a commitment to regular teaching in the law library’s Certificate in Legal Research program and the Sturm College of Law. Faculty positions in the University Libraries faculty series are eligible for a long-term contract and are subject to the University of Denver’s “Policies and Procedures Relating to Faculty Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure” (https://www.du.edu/sites/g/files/lmucqz251/files/2019-09/apt_june_2019.pdf).
Essential Functions
- Plan, develop, coordinate, manage, and participate in the day-to-day access services functions of the law library, including oversight of the law library’s circulation of materials, including reserves and interlibrary loan; signage; and stacks maintenance. Responsibilities include setting new policies, procedures, and workflows in access services, as well as regular evaluation of the effectiveness of such services.
- Hire, schedule, train, manage, and back up the part-time hourly workers who staff the law library’s circulation desk. This includes regular approval of their time in the University’s electronic timekeeping system.
- Supervise the work of the law library’s part-time Weekend and Evening Circulation Supervisor.
- Participate in the law library’s management team, along with the Director, the Assistant Director, and the Head of Technical Services.
- Manage and participate in the daily operations of the law library’s resource sharing programs, including interlibrary loan and Prospector.
- Work closely with the Assistant Director in areas such as access services planning, budgeting, monitoring, and assessment.
- Provide high-quality service at a combined circulation and reference desk and contribute to the law library’s continuing implementation of its integrated library system, including better configuration and utilization of the circulation module.
- Engage in regular law library marketing and outreach both inside and outside of the Sturm College of Law. This outreach includes helping law faculty promote their scholarship, serving as a liaison to the law school’s student-edited law journals, the creation of signs and displays, and building connections across campus.
- Stay abreast of new developments in library access services, including innovative ways to use technology to improve relevant workflows, and lead efforts to adopt them in the law library.
- Serve as the primary contact for building management issues (e.g. facilities requests, technology-related troubleshooting, weather-related issues, and security) and take a leadership role within the law library in addressing such issues as they arise. This entails working closely with the law school’s Assistant Dean of Business & Operations and Operations Assistant, as well as IT Managers within the law school and the University at large.
- Serve on relevant University- and unit-level committees.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
- FOR A FACULTY APPOINTMENT ONLY:
- Teach in the law library’s Certificate in Legal Research program, an optional legal research training program reflected on student transcripts that currently supports three different legal research certificates (basic, specialized, and international).
- Teach a law school course, preferably in an area of advanced or specialized legal research.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
The following skills are critical to success in this position:
- A strong customer service orientation and the ability to establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships, both inside and outside the law library.
- A strong commitment to innovation, including comfort with technology and proficiency in a variety of library-related technologies used to support access services, including online catalogs and interlibrary loan platforms, or a demonstrated potential for rapid growth into such skills.
- Supervisory and training skills or a demonstrated potential for rapid growth into such skills.
- Strong analytical ability and problem-solving skills and the capacity to exercise independent judgment and work on an independent basis.
- Excellent time management, organizational, and project management skills.
- Attention to detail, timeliness, and dependability.
- Flexibility, resilience, and the ability to adapt to a rapidly changing environment.
- Excellent oral and written communication skills.
- The ability to work flexibly with a diverse community of faculty, students, staff, and other patrons.
- An ability to work evenings and weekends.
- FOR A FACULTY APPOINTMENT ONLY:
- Legal research proficiency, including knowledge of key legal research sources and how best to use them in a variety of formats.
- Strong presentation skills in both one-on-one and group settings, or the demonstrated potential for rapid growth into such skills.
Requirements
Required Qualifications:
- MLS in Library & Information Science (or equivalent) from an ALA-accredited institution. (Note: A Bachelor's Degree and substantial relevant work experience may substitute for the MLS degree.)
- FOR A FACULTY APPOINTMENT ONLY: JD (or equivalent) from an ABA-accredited law school.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Prior work experience in academic services.
- Prior work experience in an academic library or a law library.
- Prior experience hiring and supervising part-time/hourly staff.
Work Schedule
Negotiable, but a nontraditional schedule will likely be required due to the scope and nature of responsibilities in the access services area.
Physical Demands
- The ability to lift 20 pounds.
- The ability to unpack and shelve books.
- The ability to push carts of books.
Salary Grade
The salary grade for the staff position is 11. The salary grade for the faculty position is UC.
Salary Range
The salary range for this position is $67,000-$75,000.
The University of Denver has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what the University may pay for the position at the time of posting. The University may ultimately pay more or less than the posted compensation range. The salary offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal salary equity considerations, and available market information, but not based on a candidate’s sex or any other protected status.
Benefits:
The University of Denver offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO pass. The University of Denver is a private institution that empowers students who want to make a difference. Learn more about the University of Denver.
Required Qualifications:
- MLS in Library & Information Science (or equivalent) from an ALA-accredited institution. (Note: A Bachelor's Degree and substantial relevant work experience may substitute for the MLS degree.)
- FOR A FACULTY APPOINTMENT ONLY: JD (or equivalent) from an ABA-accredited law school.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Prior work experience in academic services.
- Prior work experience in an academic library or a law library.
- Prior experience hiring and supervising part-time/hourly staff.
The University of Denver Sturm College of Law is a national leader in experiential legal education, a recognized innovator in legal pedagogy, and the home of multiple nationally-recognized programs, including a Top 10 program in legal research and writing. Housed in a state-of-the-art, LEED Gold facility on the campus of the University of Denver, the Westminster Law Library supports cutting-edge faculty research, trains students in legal research across multiple subject matter areas, and familiarizes students with a range of technologies relevant to modern-day legal practice.