Vacancy Announcement: Senior Library Associate, Arthur D. Jenkins Library, The Textile Museum
The Arthur D. Jenkins Library (ADJL), with more than 20,000 items, is among the most important resources for the study of textiles in North America. This noncirculating research library at the George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum is open to the public, and offers materials on textile and rug history, costume and fashion history and on textile-making techniques. The ADJL collection includes monographs, serials, ephemera, auction catalogs, visual resources, and media. The library advances the mission, vision and goals of the Museum and promotes the educational mission of the George Washington University.
Reporting to the Senior Curator, the Senior Library Associate is responsible for the effective management of day-to-day operations and long-range planning for the Arthur D. Jenkins Library (ADJL). Duties are performed in accordance with ADJL’s mission to foster and facilitate the creation of textile arts knowledge by collecting and making accessible resources on the cultural, social, political, technical and economic importance of textiles in human history. Responsibilities include collection management, archives management, resource description, reference, promotion and outreach, and provision of editorial support to museum staff.
The Senior Library Associate will:
- Develop and implement the library’s strategic goals, policies, long-range plans, mission, and other initiatives and align them with educational mission of the George Washington University while adhering to best practices.
- Direct and oversee all daily activities of the library.
- Collaborate with the George Washington University Libraries and Academic Innovation (GWLAI) and departments and as well as other research and academic libraries.
- Develop and execute strategies to strengthen library’s scholarly role and stature as one of the top textile history libraries in North America.
- Establish and manage the library’s budget, tracking all expenditures to ensure all essential services are provided.
- Prepare reports related to library activities for the Museum administration; develop and maintain library record-keeping procedures.
- Participate in the Museum’s Textile Working Group and the Research, Publication, Library, and Education (RPLE) Task Force.
- Recruit, train, and manage library volunteers and interns.
- Provide in-person, online and telephone reference assistance to the Museum staff, GWU community, scholars, and members of the public.
- Provide library orientation and assistance to GWU classes and other academic entities.
- Plan for future growth of the collection and select materials for acquisition; organize materials, including archival records, digital images, periodicals, books, and media, with special attention to materials produced by The Textile Museum; oversee collection maintenance activities including preservation, shelving, digitization, de-accessioning and offsite storage of materials.
- Maintain collections management policy in line with the missions of the Museum and GWU.
- Develop roadmap for digitization of library’s print and archival collections; establish and maintain digital repositories and archives.
- Plan for and implement acquisition of research archives in accordance with the library’s archives development policy.
- Maintain vertical file collections.
- Guide all library technical services activities.
- Manage the ongoing migration of the ADJL catalog to the Washington Research Libraries Consortium catalog on the ALMA platform.
- Select and index textile-related serial citations.
- Establish and maintain relationships with other galleries, libraries, archives, and museums.
- Contribute to library fundraising efforts by working with the development department to develop proposals, identify funding sources, and engage with donors/potential donors.
- Coordinate and mount annual Textile Research Day poster session for students and recent graduates who have engaged in textile studies or practice.
- Represent the library in the academic community and maintain an active professional role and visibility by engaging in collegial exchange and dialogue as well as attending and participating in professional events and activities.
- Promote a positive image of the library to the GWU community, donors, volunteers, other library professionals and the public.
- Provide editorial support as needed to the curatorial department and Washingtoniana staff, including copy-editing and proofreading of exhibition materials, museum correspondence, collections justifications, The Textile Museum Journal materials and other documents.
Performs other work-related duties as assigned. The omission of specific duties does not preclude the supervisor from assigning duties that are logically related to the position.
For more information and application guidelines, visit https://www.gwu.jobs/postings/55823