Digital Archivist

Description

Under the supervision of the Assistant Director for Technical Services of the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections (RMC), the Digital Archivist provides oversight and management of RMC’s digital collections, with a particular focus on born digital materials. The Digital Archivist will take the lead on developing and documenting workflows for accessioning, stabilizing, arranging, and describing born-digital collections. The Digital Archivist will work closely with colleagues in RMC and other Cornell University Library (CUL) units, in particular Digital Scholarship and Preservation Services (DSPS) and CUL-IT, to ensure coordination and communication around issues of shared interest. Additionally, s/he participates in RMC’s public services program, facilitating access to digital collections and providing reference services as needed.

The Digital Archivist will work with the University Archivist and the Records Manager in developing policies for Cornell University electronic records, coordinating their acquisition, preservation, and access mechanisms. S/he will work with subject curators and donors to assess and appraise digital materials.

In collaboration with technical services staff in RMC, the Digital Archivist will establish policies and workflows for accessioning, describing, preserving, and accessing born-digital materials. S/he will perform as well as train others to perform preservation tasks related to incoming digital materials such as creating disk images, performing digital forensics tasks, and collaborating with digital preservation staff in Cornell University Library. S/he will arrange and describe born-digital archival materials, following archival standards. S/he will work with CUL colleagues to coordinate the ingest of materials into the digital preservation repository.

In coordination with CUL-IT and DSPS, the Digital Archivist will participate in the ongoing development of access systems for digital collections and born-digital materials. As needed to facilitate management and use, s/he will upload digital collection materials to digital collections platforms for access and/or make access copies for in-house use. S/he will aid in the development of the Cornell University Library Archival Repository (CULAR) by articulating the workflows and standards employed to the CULAR Manager and development team to assure that appropriate development can be managed within the repository. 

The Digital Archivist will also provide reference assistance to researchers, including those requiring access files on obsolete media. S/he will participate on library-wide committees and will be expected to participate in professional activities related to archives and digital preservation.

Requirements:

• Master's degree from an ALA-accredited program with a concentration in archives management, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Demonstrated knowledge of archives and records management theory and practice, including experience processing archival records.
• Knowledge of digital preservation theory and practice, as well as strategies and technologies utilized by the archival community for managing born-digital archival and manuscript material.
• Knowledge of relevant standards for archival description, including DACS, EAD, and EAC-CPF, and familiarity with other metadata standards such as METS and PREMIS.
• Familiarity with web archiving.
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to plan, coordinate, and implement complex projects.
• Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively with a variety of staff in a rapidly changing environment.

Preferred:

• Two to three years of relevant professional experience, preferably in academic archives.
• Experience implementing policies, standards, and procedures for stewardship of digital material in an archival or special collections setting.
• Experience with digital archives tools such as BitCurator, FTK, floppy drive controllers (e.g. Catweasel, Kryoflux), writeblockers, Sleuth Kit, fiwalk, and emulators.

Experience with XSLT and programming languages (PHP, Perl, Python).

Background:

The Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections is Cornell’s principal repository of rare books, manuscripts, and archival materials. The Division holds over 500,000 printed volumes, more than 80 million manuscripts, and another million photographs, paintings, prints, and other visual media. Among these are particularly strong collections of early photography, the history of science, human sexuality, witchcraft, the French Revolution, the Civil War and the abolitionist movement, Icelandic history and literature, architecture and planning, new media art, and musical movements such as Hip Hop and punk. The Division is also home to Cornell University’s Archives.

One of the leading academic research libraries in the United States, Cornell University Library is a highly valued partner in teaching, research and learning at the university. With an operating budget of over $58 million and a diverse and innovative staff of more than 400, the Library supports 2,700 faculty, 22,000 students and 94 PhD fields. Its world class collections, expert librarians, responsive services in physical and virtual library spaces inspire and nourish scholarship and learning.