Digital Archivist

Description

The Digital Archivist will report to the Head of Special Collections and Archives.  The Digital Archivist will work collaboratively across the library and the University to expand the library's capacity to responsibly acquire born-digital archival content, manage existing digital holdings, and ensure the effective acquisition, appraisal, description, preservation, future migration, access to and security of digital archives.  In addition, the Digital Archivist will engage library and campus partners and provide guidance on best practices for data management, training and development.  The Digital Archivist may serve as a liaison librarian in assigned areas.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

• Lead efforts to acquire, preserve, describe, and provide access to born-digital archival and special collections materials.
• Develop processes for ingesting born-digital materials governed by the University Records Retention Schedule as well as those digital materials included in personal and organizational collections.
• Develop and document techniques and procedures for acquiring born-digital content directly from the creators.
• Evaluate proposed acquisitions with born-digital components in collaboration with the University Archivist and other departmental staff.
• Coordinate acquisitions of born-digital content, act as a liaison between the creators and the library's archival and technical staff.
• Develop and document work-flow across library and campus units necessary to support the preservation and access of digital materials over time.
• Build the infrastructure for the acquisition and preservation of born-digital collections and electronic records, work to identify and implement new applications and tools and continuously align local policies and procedures with national and international standards for data ingest, description, and long-term preservation.
• Assist with the research and implementation of information architecture, coding standards, and emerging technologies as well as participate in the development of controlled vocabulary, metadata structures, and metadata crosswalks.
• Coordinate the procedural integration of (or develop exporting processes from) the archival content management system.
• Engage library and campus partners and develop policies and technical standards for digital content creators.
• Advise on emerging standards and best practices for born-digital content.
• Serve as an expert in digital curation, recommend appropriate tools and procedures to capture, preserve, and make digital content available.
• Deliver born-digital content to external discovery and delivery mechanisms in collaboration with specialists in metadata, information technology, and scholarly communications, ensure that born-digital library resources are as widely accessible to the DePaul community and general public as possible.
• Serve as liaison librarian to one or more academic or co-curricular programs, as assigned, including responsibilities for provision of information and instructional services, collection management, and engagement with faculty, staff, and students promoting library resources and services.
• Maintain an awareness of best practices in academic librarianship through reading in the scholarly and professional literature, participation in relevant conferences, workshops, and professional development programs, and apply lessons learned to current needs in the University Libraries.
• Participate and represent the University Libraries in University, state, regional, or national professional service activities.
• Direct activities of one or more student assistants.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Requirements

• Master's degree from an ALA-accredited program or equivalent.
• 2 years of professional library experience, with at least one of those years working in an archival repository or similar setting.
• Experience with born-digital archiving.
• Knowledge of information technology resources, print information resources, and Web-based information resources required to provide excellent library services.
• Knowledge of integrated library systems, e-resource management systems, and library discovery systems.
• Knowledge of specifications for digital repository systems and related technologies, including auditing/checksum software, write blockers, file format identification, file migration, and media conversion.
• Knowledge of MS Office and other routine information technology applications employed at the library or University level, and enterprise-level systems employed for the management of library collections or the provision of library services.
• Familiarity with data structure standards relevant to the archival control of digital materials (e.g., EAD, Dublin Core, METS, MODS, PREMIS, XML/XSL).
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Excellent planning, project management, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong command of archival theory and best practices, especially as they relate to the particular issues posed by born digital content and electronic records.
• Visual acuity, hand-eye coordination and motor skills sufficient to use a computer, copy machine and other office equipment.
• Ability to spend extended periods of time standing, sitting, kneeling, crouching, and bending.
• Ability to routinely lift up to 25 pounds.
• Ability to communicate technical issues to non-technical staff.
• Ability to develop and document procedures and work-flow.
• Ability to work with diverse constituencies.
• Ability to work in a collegial environment in order to provide excellent library services.
• Ability to interpret bibliographic data accurately.
• Ability to work evening and weekend hours and travel among DePaul campuses, as required.

Preferred Requirements:

• Familiarity with records management practices.
• Familiarity and experience with disk imaging and e-mail and web-site archiving tools and techniques.
• Knowledge of scripting languages; such as: Ruby or Python.