User Experience Librarian

Description

Position Summary

The Marydean Martin Library at Nevada State College (NSC) invites applications for the position of User Experience Librarian. Reporting to the Library Director, the successful candidate will join a dynamic team with an established culture of assessment and continuous improvement. The User Experience Librarian will coordinate usability and assessment studies of library services including spaces, discovery services, and learning objects. They will use information gathered from quantitative and qualitative assessment projects to demonstrably improve the learning experience for the College’s student population.

The User Experience Librarian will have primary responsibility for the design and usability of the library website (WordPress), the library presence in the learning management system (Canvas by Instructure), and the library discovery system (Ex Libris Primo). They will also provide information literacy instruction and research services to students in designated subject areas. Potential projects in this position may include, but are not limited to:

• Evaluating and updating the library’s web presence
• Redesigning the process for reserving a library study room
• Creating a seamless and intuitive workflow for faculty to request library services
• Collaborating with the library faculty and staff to implement a new library portal tool

While some basic experience with web development will be useful in this position, only a small percentage of time will be spent in web development activities. Instead, we are seeking candidates who can make improvements by optimizing third-party, hosted solutions that are sustainable for a small college library.

About Nevada State College

Founded in 2002, Nevada State College (NSC) is a four-year public college located on a developing 500-acre campus in the foothills of Henderson, Nevada (adjacent to Las Vegas). Our faculty members enjoy the rare opportunity to mold the college as it continues to grow into a cornerstone of higher education in Southern Nevada.

NSC serves approximately 4,200 students who are highly diverse and largely underserved; a majority of our students are first generation, racial/ethnic minorities, parents, and/or returning students. As a teaching-oriented institution, our faculty focus on high-quality instruction, engaging learning experiences, and innovative techniques to improve student learning.

At Nevada State College, we celebrate the storied backgrounds of our campus community. We operate with a shared commitment to represent and serve the diverse population of Nevada and to encourage the exchange of ideas that respects and honors the lived experiences of our students, staff, and faculty. We foster a culture of inclusive excellence so our members can live authentically, fully engage, and flourish. To strengthen the College and progress its mission, the College dedicates itself to intentional and ongoing reflection to meet the evolving needs of NSC, the surrounding communities, and the State of Nevada.

About the Marydean Martin Library

As the first “bookless” academic library in the state of Nevada, the Marydean Martin Library focuses its effort on improving outcomes for the College’s student population. Our team works in a highly collaborative project-based work environment that rewards demonstrable improvement. This position is an ideal fit for candidates that are excited by:

• A culture of assessment that encourages experimentation and drives improvement
• An energetic project-based work environment that is both reflective and results-oriented
• Meaningful collaboration with colleagues within and outside the Library
• A supportive work environment with the leading academic unit scores in a recent climate survey

The Library regularly partners with instructors on course design; enhances the affordability of course content with open educational resources; and collaborates with instructors to integrate new technology such as 3D printing services into the curriculum. The Library also has a deep collaboration with the Office of Institutional Research that has led to research findings indicating that students who use the Library’s digital collections and services have improved research assignment grades, semester GPA, academic standing, and one-term retention.

Primary Responsibilities

• Provides leadership for the library’s user experience and assessment activities (20%)
• Designs and implements qualitative and quantitative assessments of library resources and services (20%)
• Identifies and implements changes that demonstrably improve the learning experience for students, faculty, and staff (20%)
• Identifies, evaluates, and recommends third-party, hosted solutions to improve the library user experience (10%)
• Provides information literacy instruction and research services for students in designated subject areas (10%)
• Creates scholarly products; actively participates in professional engagement or service at the library, college, and national level; and meets other NSC requirements for promotion and tenure (20%)

Required Qualifications

• ALA-accredited master’s degree or equivalent by the start date
• Excellent oral and written communication skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience using best practices to conduct usability tests and utilize the results to improve user interfaces
• Experience customizing third-party, hosted library products such as SpringShare’s LibCal and LibGuides, ExLibris Primo, or similar technologies
• Familiarity with a variety of quantitative and qualitative assessment methods
• Knowledge of best practices for the collection, storage, and analysis of assessment data
• Experience providing information literacy instruction and research services in an academic library
• Knowledge of common web development languages

Rank, Salary & Benefits

Tenure-track, Assistant Professor level. Budgeted salary for this position is $55,000, plus excellent benefits, including 14.5% retirement match, 24 annual leave days, beginning balance of 30 sick leave days, 11 paid holidays, educational benefits, and the choice of three health insurance plans that can be supplemented with flexible spending accounts or health savings accounts.

Early career librarians are encouraged to apply. NSC is committed to building a culturally diverse faculty and strongly encourages applications from women and racial minorities.