Statement of Duties:  The Young Adult Librarian provides professional services and support to engage with teens in grades 6-12. The Young Adult Librarian plans and executes programs for young adults, provides a nurturing and supportive atmosphere in the library’s Junior Department, and builds and maintains the young adult collection of materials. The Librarian is responsible for participating in outreach to the Danbury schools and other local agencies that provide services to young adults.

Supervision Required:  Under the general supervision of the Head Librarian. The employee is familiar with the work routine and uses initiative to carry out recurring assignments independently, with specific instruction.  The supervisor provides additional, specific instruction for new, difficult, or unusual assignments, including suggested work methods.  The employee is expected to recognize instances which are out of the ordinary and which do not fall within existing instructions; the employee is then expected to seek advice and further instructions.   Reviews and checks of the employee’s work are applied to an extent sufficient to keep the supervisor aware of progress, and to ensure that completed work and methods used are technically accurate and that instructions are being followed.  

Supervisory Responsibility:   The employee, as a regular and continuing part of the job, is required to lead other employees to assist them in completing their assigned work.  Employee also performs non-supervisory work that is of the same kind and level as is done by the employee(s) being supervised. The employee(s) supervised work at the same location and the same work shift, and the staff size is well established and relatively stable throughout the year.

Confidentiality:  Employee has access to confidential information of the department such as patron records.

Accountability: The nature of work assures that errors are usually detected in succeeding operations. Consequences of errors, missed deadlines or poor judgment may include time loss caused by back checking by others and slowdowns in the processing of the work.  Errors are generally confined to a single department, such as billing or accounting errors.

Judgment: Numerous standardized practices, procedures, or general instructions govern the work and in some cases, may require additional interpretation.  Judgment is needed to locate, select, and apply the most pertinent practice, procedure, regulation or guideline.

Complexity:  The work consists of the practical application of a variety of concepts, practices and specialized techniques relating to a professional or technical field.  Assignments typically involve evaluation and interpretation of factors, conditions or unusual circumstances; inspecting, testing or evaluating compliance with established standards or criteria; gathering, analyzing and evaluating facts or data using specialized fact-finding techniques; or determining the methods to accomplish the work.

Work Environment:  The work environment involves everyday discomforts typical of library settings. Noise or physical surroundings may be distracting, but conditions are generally not unpleasant. Employee may be required to work beyond the normal business hours of City Hall to attend evening meetings on weekends in accordance with the library’s hours of service.

Nature and Purpose of Public Contact:  Relationships with co-workers and the public involving frequent explanation, discussion, or interpretation of practices, procedures, regulations, or guidelines to render service, plan or coordinate work efforts, or resolve operating problems.  Extraordinary courtesy, tact, and diplomacy may be required to resolve complaints or deal with uncooperative or uninformed persons. Employee may furnish news media or the public with routine information such as department operating procedures and practices regarding use of print or electronic resources.

Occupational Risk:  Duties of the job present little potential for injury to the employee.

Essential Functions:

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position.

1. Performs collection development, program development, and outreach activities for young adults, grades 6– 12.  Creates a welcoming environment for young adults in the Junior Department.
2. Meets or exceeds professional standards and best practices in reader’s advisory and reference work for young adults and their parents or guardians.
3. Selects, trains, and supervises volunteers in the Junior Department.
4. Develops and works closely with the Teen Library Council
5. Liaises with schools and community partners to support library programming for Danbury youth. Maintains regular communication and coordinates visits to schools and other children’s area facilities on a regular basis.
6. Initiates, plans, and conducts a variety of programs and activities to encourage the use of the library by teens, including after school, vacation, and summer reading programs.   Responsible for actively and creatively marketing the youth services collection and services. Involves teens in planning and implementing services for their age group.
7. Provides in-person library service at a public service desk. Utilizes library technology, including online databases as well as traditional library resources, in answering patron queries.  Promotes and helps teens navigate library resources and services and provides friendly, responsive customer service. 
8. Engages in professional development appropriate to youth services, including reviewing current professional journals, attending professional workshops and meetings, and communicating with peers in library settings.  Represents the Danbury Public Library appropriately at workshops and educational meetings relating to Youth Services.
9. Prepares library displays to promote programs, events, and topics of interest to young adults. 
10. Collaborates regularly with the Children’s Program Coordinator, Children’s Librarian, and Librarian II- Youth Services, to develop and execute department goals as well as collaborate on larger family programs.
11. Possess a knowledge of cultural trends as they relate to teens as well as an understanding of teen development. 
12. Ability to travel independently to community outreach events.

Minimum Qualifications (Required):

 Education and Experience: 

Master’s in Library Science from an ALA-accredited graduate school

3-5 years of library work experience

1 year working in a public service environment

Must be available evenings and weekends

Knowledge of teen literature

Knowledge of collection building & programming for teens and/or young adults

Commitment to community development & growth