Faculty Employment Opportunities

Digital Scholarship Librarian, Osgoode Hall Law School Library, York University

The Osgoode Law Library invites highly qualified applicants for a two-year Contractually Limited Appointment as an Adjunct Librarian with a start date of April 1, 2023 or as soon as possible.

The Osgoode Digital Commons (ODC) is the institutional repository of the Osgoode Hall Law School. ODC was launched in the fall of 2014 and has had over 4 million downloads from around the world. The ODC hosts and preserves faculty research, scholarship, publications, research centres work, Osgoode journals, selected records, and digital initiatives.

This position plays a key role in showcasing the contributions to legal scholarship of Osgoode faculty. The successful candidate will be responsible for all aspects of management and maintenance of the ODC, including overseeing Osgoode faculty submissions to the Selected Works, SSRN (Social Science Research Network), assisting with HeinOnline Author Profiles, ORCiD (Open Researcher and Contributor Identifier), Scopus accounts, and other emerging technologies.

In consultation with the Associate Dean Research and Institutional Affairs, Chief Law Librarian, and Head of Technical Services, the successful candidate will lead, develop, and implement processes to streamline and facilitate law school faculty scholarship dissemination including the acquisition and submission of faculty scholarship to the Institutional Repository. In addition to these responsibilities there will be opportunities to pursue research related activities.

This position will also liaise and collaborate with York University Libraries Open Scholarship and Digital Scholarship Infrastructure departments on parallel initiatives.

Librarians and Archivists at York University have academic status and are members of the York University Faculty Association bargaining unit (https://www.yufa.ca).

Digital & Scholarly Communication Duties:
• Oversee and participate in the maintenance of Law School scholarly works on the ODC, including liaising with faculty and ensuring copyright compliance.
• Participate in the addition and maintenance of Law School working papers on SSRN (Social Science Research Network).
• Work with faculty to create and update online profiles including on BePress SelectedWorks, HeinOnline Author Profile, Google Scholar, ORCiD, SSRN, Scopus and other emerging tools.
• Manage staff and student workers in the acquisition and posting of faculty scholarship.
• Develop educational materials, presentations, and workshops on scholarly communications, copyright awareness, author rights, and open access.
• Liaise with Osgoode Research Centres, student journal editors, and other stakeholders on best practices for digital services.
• Awareness of current issues and trends regarding scholarly communications, institutional repositories, and rights management.
• Knowledge of current and emerging trends in legal scholarship and law publications.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and planning skills; demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with faculty, students, and staff about data and technical matters.

Reference and Instructional Duties:
• Assist the Law Library Liaison Program with their research, teaching, and scholarship projects.
• Serve as a reference librarian in the Public Services Department for at least 10 hours on average per week, providing legal research, reference assistance, and instruction.
• Participate in library instruction, workshops, and research instruction.
• Prepare and promote innovative technology services for library and law school use.
• Assisting law faculty with innovative course design to enhance classroom learning and scholarly communications experience.
• Participate in collection development of legal materials.
• Prepare statistical and other reports as assigned.

Others:
• Participate in the implementation of the Law School and Law Library Strategic Plans.
• Serve on local, regional, and national law library related organizations and committees as applicable.
• Perform other duties as assigned or required.

Qualifications:
The candidate must have:
• Masters of Library and Information Science (M.L.I.S) Degree from an ALA-accredited program or its recognized equivalent.
• The successful candidate should have a minimum of one (1) year of experience providing reference services in a law library.
• Demonstrated experience with technology tools, social networking sites, and law library software and databases.
• Familiarity with legal databases (Lexis Nexis, Westlaw, HeinOnline)
• Familiarity with editing software (HTML, CSS, RSS, and AV).
• Advanced knowledge of MS Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook; database and data entry skills.
• Demonstrated decision-making, problem solving, and analytical skills.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality in all aspects of duties and responsibilities.
• Excellent organization, planning, and customer services skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues and supervisory staff at all levels.

Hiring Policies:
• York offers a competitive salary commensurate with qualifications and an exceptional benefits package.
• All York University positions are subject to budgetary approval.
• York University has a policy on Accommodation in Employment for Persons with Disabilitiesand is committed to working towards a barrier-free workplace and to expanding the accessibility of the workplace to persons with disabilities. Candidates who require accommodation during the selection process are invited to contact Geoffrey Fox, Manager, Office of the Dean and Faculty Relations at gfox@osgoode.yorku.ca.
• York University is an Affirmative Action (AA) employer and strongly values diversity, including gender and sexual diversity, within its community. The AA Program, which applies to women, members of racialized groups, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities and those who self-identify as 2SLGBTQ+, can be found at http://acadjobs.info.yorku.caor by calling the AA line at 416-736-5713. Applicants wishing to self-identify as part of York University’s Affirmative Action program can do so by downloading, completing and submitting this voluntary self-identification form.
• All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and Indigenous peoples in Canada will be given priority. No application will be considered without a completed mandatory Work Status Declaration form.
• Consideration will also be given to those who have followed non-traditional career paths or had career interruptions.

How to Apply:
• The deadline for receipt of completed applications is January 31, 2023.
• A letter of application with an up-to-date curriculum vitae and contact information for three references should be sent to: Chair, Digital Scholarship Librarian Search Committee, Osgoode Hall Law School, Ignat Kaneff Building, Room 2017, 4700 Keele St., Toronto, ON M3J 1P3 via email to: Geoffrey Fox, Manager, Office of the Dean and Faculty Relations, Osgoode Hall Law School at gfox@osgoode.yorku.ca.
• Reference letters will only be requested for shortlisted candidates. Interviews will be held either in person or online and will be scheduled in the week starting February 27, 2023; there will be a presentation and interview in the morning and additional meetings in the afternoon.

University Context:
• York is a leading international teaching and research university, and a driving force for positive change. Empowered by a welcoming and diverse community with a uniquely global perspective, we are preparing our students for their long-term careers and personal success. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.
• York is located in Toronto, Canada’s largest city and one of the world’s most diverse. In 2022, Forbes named Toronto one of the Ten Best Cities to Live.York is accessible from Toronto by subway.