Head of Reference & Collections, Lecturer in Law

Job No: 495799

Work Type: Staff Full-time

Department: Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Location: Brookdale Center, 55 Fifth Avenue, NY, NY

Categories: Legal, Library

Position Summary:

Works collaboratively with library colleagues on a variety of workflow issues, assignments, and projects. Provides legal reference service for more than 1,000 J.D. and LL.M. students, more than 90 full-time and adjunct faculty, and other patron groups.

Position Responsibilities:

Reference and Instruction Services

The Head of Reference and Collections will organize, plan, and schedule reference meetings and the weekly reference desk schedule. This position will oversee the operations of the reference desk and suggest and implement changes in structure and/or services provided with input from the Director of the Law Library, Assistant Director for Public Services, and other librarians. In collaboration with the Assistant Director for Public Services, this position will prioritize increasing the quantity and quality of reference interactions and services provided to our community. Serving as the library's reference and research expert, they will frame our service mission and coordinate and implement an in-depth and robust service model. Core responsibilities will include providing print and electronic reference service for AngloAmerican, international, foreign and comparative law by responding to in-person, telephone, and email inquiries, managing our electronic services provided to users including online research consultations and overseeing the implementation of online chat reference, supervising, hiring, and training student workers to provide reference coverage (both J.D. candidates and M.L.S. candidates), and training and overseeing research assistants for faculty.

The Head of Reference and Collections will also oversee, implement, and promote library reference services provided outside the law library facility and maintain and update collections in satellite libraries.

The Head of Reference & Collections will work closely with the Assistant Director for Faculty and Scholarly Services to provide research support to faculty members, faculty assistants, and RA/TAs. The successful candidate will demonstrate mastery and understanding of reference resources, services, and operations and assist in keeping the reference knowledge base and collection current and relevant. They will accurately record statistics on reference interactions and use a data driven approach to identify and address department needs.

The Head of Reference & Collections will have an equally student focused service orientation, where they will often meet with students about their research and reference needs, suggest improvements of services, especially related to student journal tasks, and help coordinate journal trainings for law students. As a Lecturer in Law, this position will teach Advanced Legal Research (ALR), a required course for all Cardozo law students as assigned.

Collection Development & Management

In conjunction with the Assistant Director for Public Services, the Head of Reference & Collections will chair the Collections Committee, a committee comprised of librarians and library assistants charged with maintaining and overseeing the library collection. As such, this position will oversee the maintenance of the reference and reserve collections, evaluate the reference collection, recommend the replacement of disintegrating and/or damaged materials, assist in determining which tangible titles should be replaced by electronic access, determine which materials should be placed on/remain on reference or reserve, and communicate with faculty about their use of reserve for courses.

The Head of Reference & Collections will oversee the Library's Shlansky Reading Room, a special collection of books and bound periodicals about Jewish and Israeli law. The collection emphasizes Mishpat Ivri and the various sources of law from which the laws of Israel have developed. In order to best maintain, develop, and highlight this collection, the position will maintain and leverage relationships with the University's main campus librarians specializing in collecting and cataloging materials in Hebrew. Experience or interest in developing Hebrew proficiency is welcome, but not necessary.

The Head of Reference & Collections will monitor the physical arrangement, appearance and organization of the library and library collection, make suggestions to the Director of the Law Library, and work closely with librarians involved in Collection Development on space needs and changes to the collection. This position will also actively promote our collection and new acquisitions to the YU community.

This position will also direct collection management functions and stack maintenance and will assist the Assistant Director for Public Services in assigning staff to filing and shelving materials, determining what superseded materials should be discarded, determining the physical treatment given to materials, providing the instructions for the repair and/or replacement of materials and for labeling cancelled or discontinued materials, planning the use of stack spaces, overseeing and guiding the shift of library materials, determining which materials to place in storage, and organizing storage space. Circulation and Interlibrary loan (ILL)

The Head of Reference & Collections will provide assistance with book and document retrieval and will be trained to provide back-up for circulation functions as needed.

Projects and Other Duties

The Head of Reference & Collections will assist library staff with projects, including updating research guides and the Library website and provide assistance with preparing instruction documents and will perform other duties as assigned.

Works collaboratively with other librarians when managing workflows and scheduling staff during the normal hours of operation each week (Monday - Thursday from 9am - 5pm and Friday from 9am - close). Consults with the librarians and staff on projects and in completing daily tasks.

Experience & Educational Background:

• M.L.S. and J.D. required
• Significant, relevant reference and legal research experience required
• Previous experience in library and patron service experience is required
• Strong interest in collections desired
• The ideal candidate will have a natural service orientation, be open to innovation and creativity, and work well in a team with a growth mindset

Skills & Competencies:

• Superior communication skills, both oral and written
• Strong service orientation
• Ability to handle pressure gracefully
• Demonstrated problem solving skills
• Flexibility and demonstrated ability to multi-task and maintain professionalism and collegiality while addressing many people-problems daily
• Ability to work in an atmosphere of collaboration and teamwork
• Demonstrated understanding of and ability to flourish in a multicultural, diverse, and inclusive workplace

About Us:

The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is a leader in legal education, located in Manhattan's Greenwich Village. The law school is renowned for its program in intellectual property, which includes the FAME Center for Fashion, Arts, Media and Entertainment Law. Cardozo Law has a long tradition of public advocacy and is the birthplace of the Innocence Project and the home of our Center for Rights and Justice. Cardozo offers a world-class faculty and encourages creative thinking and innovation in the legal profession. Cardozo provides students with a strong foundation in legal theory combined with practical hands-on experience in a variety of areas including criminal law, civil rights law, and business law. The school prides itself on creating a vibrant and warm community for faculty, staff and students.

A division of Yeshiva University, Cardozo Law School offers an excellent compensation package, and a broad range of employee benefit plans. The law school is a secular institution within a religious university and welcomes people of all religions, ethnic backgrounds, races and sexual identities.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

Yeshiva University is an equal opportunity employer committed to hiring minorities, women, individuals with disabilities and protected veterans.

Application Instructions:

To apply, visit https://apptrkr.com/2575985

Yeshiva University is an equal opportunity employer committed to hiring minorities, women, individuals with disabilities and protected veterans.

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