Digital Projects Specialist

Description

The Library & Museum of the American Philosophical Society seeks to hire a Digital Projects Specialist to join a growing collaborative team at the Center for Digital Scholarship (CDS). This position will support the CDS’s efforts to increase digital accessibility and preservation of Library & Museum collections, and promote outreach and use, through digital project development. 

Primary Responsibilities

Working closely with, and under the leadership and supervision of, the Head of Digital Scholarship & Technology, the Digital Projects Specialist will be responsible for:

• Assisting with all stages of digital project development from planning to execution;
• Supporting the APS’s Library & Museum digitization program and digital library through tasks including creation, maintenance, quality control, and management of digital assets, metadata, data and datasets;
• Digitizing and transcribing material for the CDS Open Data Initiative;
• Collaborating and advising on digital projects with fellows, interns, and other APS staff;
• Engaging with the digital humanities community to promote the work of the CDS and remaining up-to-date on current trends and praxis of the field;
• Regular shifts in the Library’s Reading Room;
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Minimum 2-3 years of professional experience working on digital projects in a special collections library, preferred;
• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a humanities-related field with relevant digital project experience;
• Demonstrated experience with HTML and CSS for front end web development;
• Demonstrated experience creating or contributing to digital exhibitions;
• Demonstrated experience with digital humanities tools and techniques for building data visualizations, such as text mining, image analysis, mapping, network analysis, and/or dataset curation;
• Experience working with datasets in file formats such as CSV or JSON;
• Experience with data manipulation languages, such as Python, R, SQL, preferred;
• Experience with Drupal and Islandora;
• Knowledge of digital library cataloguing and descriptive standards;
• Strong commitment to digital access, library innovation, and critical digital pedagogy;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills;
• Demonstrated ability to be creative, flexible, adaptive to change, and to successfully collaborate and work effectively within and across organizational boundaries in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• The ideal candidate will also have a demonstrated interest in one of the Library’s core collecting areas (History of Science, Early American History, Indigenous Cultures, Anthropology, and Linguistics)

APS requires all its staff to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Application Instructions

Please submit a resume or CV with a cover letter detailing your interest in the position via Interfolio: https://apply.interfolio.com/94035. References will be requested for finalists. Please direct questions about this position to Bayard Miller at bmiller@amphilsoc.org.

The American Philosophical Society is an equal opportunity employer, dedicated to a policy of nondiscrimination in employment on any basis including race, creed, color, age, sex, gender, religion, or national origin. The APS values diversity in its many forms and encourages diverse applicants to apply.

About the APS

The American Philosophical Society (APS), the oldest learned society in the United States, was founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin for the purposes of “promoting useful knowledge.” In the 21st century, it serves to advance knowledge and promote scholarship in the humanities and social, mathematical, life, and physical sciences. Members of the Society are elected from among the most eminent scholars and civic and cultural leaders in North America and abroad. More than 100 living APS Members are Nobel laureates.

The APS’s Library & Museum collections make it among the premier institutions for documenting and exhibiting the history of the American Revolution and founding, the history of science from Newton to NASA, Native American languages and culture, and the development of American anthropology. The Library houses over 13 million manuscripts, 275,000 volumes and bound periodicals, 250,000 images, fine art, and other objects. Museum exhibitions interpret these extensive collections for the regional, national, and international visitors who come to Philadelphia’s historic district. In so doing, the exhibitions aim to nurture the spirit of inquiry, promote critical thinking, and engender enthusiasm for object-based learning by using primary source documents and authentic objects. The Library & Museum also hosts a robust fellowship program, offering over 25 short-term and 10 long-term fellowships each year to scholars using its collections.

For Further Information on Library & Museum Collections visit:
http://amphilsoc.org/library  and  http://amphilsoc.pastperfectonline.com/