University of Washington is hiring: PHOTOGRAPHS AND VISUAL MATERIALS ARCHIVIST i

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PHOTOGRAPHS AND VISUAL MATERIALS ARCHIVIST

Benefits: As a UW employee, you will enjoy generous benefits and work/life programs. For a complete description of our benefits for this position, please visit our website.

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills, and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world.

The UW Libraries has an outstanding opportunity for a Photographs and Visual Materials Archivist.

Under the general direction of the Director of Special Collections, the Photographs and Visual Materials Archivist works to manage, preserve and provide access to a large and growing collection of visual materials (photographs-analog and digital, graphics, drawings, paintings, architectural blueprints, posters, menus, postcards, etc. but excluding film and video) that serves as a resource for scholarship and study for faculty, staff, and students, as well as for national and international researchers. Processing, reformatting, and providing access to our collections will require creative problem-solving, curiosity and a collaborative approach.

More information about Special Collections at the UW Libraries.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Manages photographs and visual materials collections (photographs, graphics, etc.) including accessioning and processing, coordinating the preservation and digitization of materials for preservation, public access and outreach.
2. Supports the direction and goals of the UW Libraries Special Collections Division regarding work on photo/visual materials collections.
3. Hires, trains, and supervises volunteers, interns, and student employees, assuring their work is in line with archival standards and best practices.
4. Appraises and processes photographs and visual materials collections.
5. Researches and determines rights management and permissions issues related to photograph and visual material collections reproductions.
6. Assists with reproduction of photographs and visual materials including managing orders, and permissions, invoicing, vendor communication, and preservation.
7. In collaboration with curators, develops processing plans for collections, including determining the level of granularity of description and recommending materials for conservation and preservation treatment.
8. Collaborates with Technical Services team to develop and implement workflows, rehouse collections, write and edit EAD finding aids according to DACS standards, and manage collections spaces and archival supplies.

1. Provides reference service.
2. Manages gift and grant funding for photograph collections, and identifies appropriate uses and projects for external funds.
3. Coordinates with Technical Services to develop procedures and workflows for both in-house and vendor provided reformatting of Special Collections photographs, in collaboration with Special Collections staff, Preservation, Information Technology Services/Digital Strategies and other internal and external stakeholders.
4. Makes recommendations with regards to identifying and evaluating photographs and other visual materials for digitization.
5. Collaborates with Libraries Copyright Librarian and other stakeholders to develop legally and ethically grounded digital reformatting and access policies.
6. In collaboration with Preservation and other stakeholders, helps to develop workflows to support access to and preservation of photographs and other virtual materials, including reproduction requests.
7. Assists users with complex research-related questions at the Reference Desk, via telephone, and through LibAnswers and email.

1. Performs any other related duties that will help Special Collections sustain and enhance their services, fulfill the Libraries' mission and vision, and align with the Libraries' values.
2. Understands and abides by the Libraries Personal Communication Responsibilities.
3. Communicates appropriately, effectively and positively.
4. Plays an active role in staying informed and participating in Libraries and Special Collections unit meetings, activities and events.
5. Demonstrates a commitment to equity and inclusion and an understanding of the contributions that a diverse workforce brings to the workplace.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

1. Master’s degree with an archival focus or a domain specific field, and 1 year of archival work experience.
2. Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

1. Experience managing collections of photographs and visual materials.
2. Experience with preservation of photographs and visual materials.
3. Experience with digital preservation of photographs and visual materials.
4. Experience with community outreach.
5. Public Service experience.
6. Knowledge of MARC, EAD, XML, ArchivesSpace, and other archival encoding systems as well as tools for description of archival materials, such as RDA, LCSH, LCGTM, AAT, and AMIM.
7. Ability to function well in a rapidly changing environment, work effectively within a large complex organization, and exercise initiative.
8. Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively as a member of the Technical Services team, with colleagues in Special Collections and other Library units.
9. Attention to detail.
10. Demonstrated ability to think flexibly and creatively.
11. Experience identifying and handling restricted material and culturally sensitive collections.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

1. Specialized education in history, management, preservation, and technology of photographs.
2. Archival or Library related degree.
3. Experience managing all aspects of photographs and visual materials collections in a historical archive.
4. Experience in managing digital preservation of photographs.
5. Experience supervising staff, students, interns, and volunteers.
6. Familiarity with ArchivesWest and Orbis-Cascade Alliance archival practices.
7. Familiarity with Aeon or other Atlas Systems software.
8. Familiarity with digitization and digital collections metadata creation and the CONTENTdm platform or similar digital asset management systems.
9. Knowledge of and/or interest in Pacific Northwest history.

Application Process:

The application process may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are access ready.