Title: Digital Preservation Librarian

Assignment Category: Full-Time

Rank: Instructor

Tenure Status: Non-Tenure Track

Job Description:

• Serves as the primary expert on digital preservation systems, tools, and processes, including our local preservation platform (currently Rosetta).
• Prepares born-digital materials for preservation ingest, stabilization and storage.
• Ensures best practices are followed for transfer, ingest, storage, and migration of digital assets.
• Creates workflows and implements processes for ingest into the digital preservation repository (Rosetta), upload to geographically distributed preservation, and any preservation-focused cloud storage.
• Consults and guides faculty, staff, and students on digital preservation standards, practices, and processes.
• Provides guidance, documentation, training, and a variety of routine support related to ingest, description, and storage of digital assets.
• Liaises with stakeholders within UAB Libraries and across campus to develop sustainable, long-term strategies for digital preservation.
• Actively participates in projects and teams related to the preservation of digital content, which may include accessibility studies and initiatives to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in UAB digital collections.
• Works with other members of the Digitization and Digital Preservation team to develop, enact, and evaluate digital preservation plans that support digital libraries and digital archiving of content from UAB and other institutional partners.
• Explores and implements innovative tools and methods for the preservation of UAB Libraries' digital collections.
• Collaborates with local, national, and international groups on digital preservation standards for library and archival collections.
• Maintains knowledge of developments in digital libraries, digital preservation, and digital scholarship, including advancements in both infrastructural tools and technologies and international digital curation standards.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• ALA-accredited master’s degree in library and information science
• Knowledge of digital preservation issues, strategies, standards, practices, including various assessment tools such as ISO16363/ TDR and NDSA Levels of Preservation
• Knowledge of current issues, strategies, standards, and best practices for digital preservation
• Thorough understanding of the OAIS reference model and its application to digital curation tools and technologies
• Experience working with metadata, implementing standards such as Dublin Core, METS, MODS, DACS, VRA Core, Darwin Core, ISO Standards, MARC, and EAD
• Knowledge of digital formats (image, audio, video, object, text, and web formats) and their associated best practices for preservation
• Demonstrated experience with project management skills, including planning, organization, and time management
• Familiarity with archival processes and concepts
• Exemplary analytical skills and inquisitiveness
• Experience or service that shows a commitment to promoting inclusion and diversity in the workplace and community
• Ability to establish positive and productive collaborations with diverse teams across departments and disciplines
• Excellent analytical skills and experience analyzing technical workflows for digital preservation and metadata production
• Excellent interpersonal, analytical, organizational, oral, and written communication skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master of Information Science degree, in addition to Master of Library Science degree
• Experience and skill using the following software applications: Springshare LibGuides, ArchivesSpace, DSpace, Islandora, Oxygen XML, Adobe Acrobat, MySQL
• Ability to script in Python
• Facility with XML (including XSLT, XQuery, and RDF-XML), HTML, CSS, Python, and SQL
• Knowledge of digital libraries technologies, planning, and execution, and experience creating a digital library website using a CMS like Omeka
• Experience creating metadata schema(s) and records in RDF-XML
• Experience with a wide range of tools for managing digital assets
• Facility with XML and XSLT, especially in performing style sheet transformations of MODS metadata records
• Experience in processing, arranging, and describing backlogged collections, such as processing photographs in a state archives
• Experience working with a wide range of stakeholders and patrons, such as providing reference services in an R1 university library
• Demonstrated experience in service and outreach to diverse populations and groups, especially initiating and leading projects centered on accessibility and outreach
• Training and understanding of knowledge equity and performing reparative work in library and information management work
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and interest in fostering inclusive environments and practicing socially conscious, reparative, and anti-racist descriptive practices.

UAB Libraries are committed to advancing equitable access to information, intellectual freedom, and the public good for the UAB community and the community at large. We recognize our social responsibility to advocate for marginalized voices and to inform and educate to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and mutual respect. 

UAB is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer committed to fostering a diverse, equitable and family-friendly environment in which all faculty and staff can excel and achieve work/life balance irrespective of, race, national origin, age, genetic or family medical history, gender, faith, gender identity and expression as well as sexual orientation. UAB also encourages applications from individuals with disabilities and veterans. 

A pre-employment background check investigation is performed on candidates selected for employment. 

Learn more about the University of Alabama at Birmingham here.

Learn more about the UAB Libraries here.

To apply online: https://uab.peopleadmin.com/postings/17695