In an effort to keep up with modern technologies in digital resources, the University Library has created a new digital humanities librarian position. The librarian will help students and faculty use new methods of research. The search committee aims to fill the position by the end of May, said Ned Quist, interim coordinator for scholarly research and a member of the committee.
The position requires knowledge of new technology and digitized research resources, and fits into the library's larger goal to "look ahead to the future of libraries," Quist said.
"To be prepared for the future, it's important that we in the library step up to talk about extended uses of technology," said Harriette Hemmasi, University librarian and head of the search committee. She said other universities already have similar positions and that it is almost "past time" the University created one.
According to the job posting, the digital humanities librarian will work not just in one department, but "together with other scholarly resources librarians, the center for digital scholarship and other related library and campus partners." This sort of cross-disciplinary work is "where everybody's headed," in the move towards a more modernized age, Quist said.
This is not the only library position being created with an eye towards the future. The University is also looking for an e-science librarian, who will be "in charge of managing data sets," Quist said.
The creation of these positions is an effort to "anticipate needs and meet those needs," said Hemmasi.
Last spring, the University reduced the staff of libraries by making cuts and enacting a new retirement plan to encourage older employees to retire. But more staff members left than the Library had anticipated, leaving additional funds to hire necessary librarians.
After last year, "we had to evaluate which positions we needed to keep" and whether to "keep them in the same form" Hemassi said. The digital humanities and e-science librarian positions are updated versions of positions left vacant last year, Quist said.
So far, 29 people have applied for the job of digital humanities librarian, Sheila Coleman, head of human resources and professional development, wrote in an e-mail to The Herald.
