Job Summary:

The Barnard Library’s Critical LIS Practice GA position is designed to provide current Library and Information Studies (LIS) students with the time, space, and resources to explore and deepen their critical praxis. Within a dynamic and supportive community of practice, the GA will organize and realize a concrete semester-long project that centers criticality, that is, it “takes an ethical and political approach to library work and is concerned with exposing and questioning the historical, political, and social bases of our assumptions and practices." (Meredith Farkas, 2020)

Job Description:

The Barnard Library is seeking applications for a Critical LIS Practice GA working under the supervision of the Director of Teaching, Learning, and Research Services and the Director of Collections Strategy, Access, and Engagement. This spring, the Critical LIS Practice GA will gain hands-on experience in an academic library and archives, with a focus on collection development (in particular, related to food studies, Black studies, cookbooks, and rare books.) Beyond the project itself, the GA will draw on and explore the rich resources and individual expertise within Columbia University Libraries and Barnard’s Academic Centers. The GA supervisor and other Barnard library directors will work with the GA to build a dynamic and multifaceted experience together. The GA will participate in Collections Strategy Team and Critical Collections Community meetings, as well as join an existing cohort of Archives Fellows.

Duration: Up to 260 hours; scheduled between February 2024 through June 30th, 2024; scheduling is flexible (but will average 1-2 days a week.) 

Compensation Range: $30/hr - $30/hr

To apply:

• Write a cover letter (max 750 words) telling us 1) your past and/or potential future contributions to promoting a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment through research, teaching, supervision, mentoring, community engagement, and/or service and 2) about your interest in critical approaches to librarianship and imagine one or more examples of how you might approach a library project critically (shelving, weeding, collection development, etc). We are interested in your vision for crafting a project, rather than a lesson. Your ideas will give us a sense of how you are thinking about this subject and what excites you, this is not a project proposal per se. It is more important for us to get a sense of who you are, what you are hoping for from this experience, and how you think. 

• Submit a current C.V. or resume

• Provide two academic or professional references

Skills, Qualifications & Requirements:

Requirements:

• Have a proven commitment or demonstrated success with supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion through their work, service, research, and/or teaching.

• Have a demonstrated interest in academic libraries and/or special collections.

• Be currently enrolled in an LIS or Archives graduate program.

• Be able to work onsite at the Barnard College campus in New York City. 

Preferred Qualifications:

Applicants with an educational background or demonstrated experience in Black Studies, Ethnic Studies, Food Studies, and/or related subjects are especially encouraged to apply. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the College's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Submit specified application materials to tbryant@barnard.edu.