Teen Services Librarian Job at The Seattle Public Library in Seattle

Ballard Branch, 5614 22nd Ave. N.W., Seattle, WA 98107

Regular, FLSA non-exempt, part-time (72 hours per two-week pay period)

Salary Range: $43.36 - $52.57 per hour

The anticipated schedule for this position is as follows:

Week 1: Wed 11:30am-8:00pm, Thur 9:30am-6:00pm, Fri 9:30am-6pm, Sat OFF, Sun OFF, Mon 9:30am-6:00pm, Tues 11:30am-8:00pm

Week 2: Wed 11:30am-8:00pm, Thur 9:30am-6:00pm, Fri OFF, Sat 9:30am-6:00pm, Sun 9:30-6:00pm, Mon 9:30am-6:00pm, Tues OFF

A pay period is two weeks in length that starts on Wednesday and ends on Tuesday. This schedule is subject to change based on the Library’s current operational need and is part of a bargaining unit represented by AFSCME.

This recruitment is open to the public and to The Seattle Public Library’s employees. Please submit your NEOGOV application, cover letter, and resume by 5:00 p.m. on March 17, 2025.

Overview

The Seattle Public Library’s mission is to bring people, information and ideas together to enrich lives and build community. We view Seattle as a city where imagination and opportunity continue to thrive. Since 1891, we have grown from a single reading room in Pioneer Square to a world-class library system with 27 locations.

The Library works every day to foster and support a healthy city and a healthy democracy. We do this work guided by the principles of intellectual freedom, literacy and the love of learning, racial equity, privacy and confidentiality, respect for the community, strong partnerships and innovation. We are an active and committed partner in the City of Seattle's Race and Social Justice Initiative.

Library employees are highly regarded by the public for their knowledge, quality of service and caring. As a workplace, we value respectful and transparent communication, partnership and engagement. We are enriched individually and organizationally because of our diversity. We take time to recognize and celebrate the achievements of others.

The Seattle Public Library is actively seeking innovative librarians who see community engagement as essential to all aspects of developing, delivering, evaluating and improving programs, services and content. Successful candidates will be creative, self-directed professionals with a strong work ethic, a commitment to equity work, a collaborative work style, a good sense of humor, and the ability to thrive in an environment that requires supportive teamwork to maintain a safe and welcoming service environment for patrons and staff.

Teen Services Librarians serve tweens, teens, and young adults defined as ages 13-26 as well as their caregivers and families. They are able to provide innovative and proactive services consistent with developmental needs of youth and the needs of parents, families and caregivers.

The Ballard Teen Services Librarian will provide Teen Services support for the Mid-City West region, focusing on the Ballard and Fremont branches. This role will regularly have some information services desk shifts at both the Ballard and Fremont branches.

This role will be heavily focused on working with unhoused youth and older teens up to age 26 by partnering with nearby housing communities and the local food bank. The Ballard Teen Services Librarian will be responsible for building relationships with schools in the Ballard and Fremont neighborhoods which may include school visits, collaboration, and programming.

The successful candidate must demonstrate a strong commitment to providing high quality learning opportunities and understand tween, teen, and young adult learning and development as well as the role of the family and community in the larger context. Demonstrated experience engaging and collaborating with partners using culturally responsive strategies and have an understanding of relationship building, power sharing, and collaboration when working with and between community and institutional partners, and experience operating in a cross-functional team is preferred.

This position will respond to the evolving needs and interests of our communities by developing, facilitating, and supporting community-led programs and activities that promote cultural enrichment, school and career readiness and success, teen development and engagement, community building, and emerging literacies, such as social, digital, media, information and text based.

Minimum Qualifications

• Cultural Competency: Recognition of the need to continually develop and practice cultural competence in customer service, reference services, reader’s advisory, program development, community engagement, team work and leadership with communities and staff that a librarian does not identify with.
• Community Engagement and Partnerships: Understand the role of community engagement in identifying community needs and goals, and develop relevant and responsive programs, services, and content that meet those needs. Engage with community members and organizations to develop and maintain both formal and informal relationships to realize outcomes that further the community’s and Library’s goals.
• Reference Services and Reader’s Advisory: Assist patrons of all ages and interests in finding information they need and materials that surprise and delight. Develop and maintain expertise in a wide range of information resources to deliver high quality reference and reader’s advisory service in a variety of modes (in person, phone, virtual).
• Program and Service Design, Development, Delivery, and Evaluation: Commitment to continually support community needs and interests. Use community information to create relevant programs, services, and content that responds to specific community interests and needs.
• Programmatic Leadership: Understand how the role of the librarian functions within the context of the system-wide service initiatives and local service delivery.
• Operational Leadership: Knowledgeable in the effective use of library facilities, equipment, services, and programming.
• Project Management: Create, execute, and manage all aspects of project planning for designed services delivery including budget, resources, timeline, and outcomes based evaluation.
• Information Services: At least one year of experience providing information services to the general public.
• Programming: At least one-year experience providing programming to teens and demonstrate the ability to develop, plan, implement and evaluate a program using a community and youth and family voice.
• Exemplary Customer Service: Minimum one year of experience providing customer service in person, via online chat, or over the phone; and/or instructional or outreach services to the general public.
• Intellectual Freedom: Applicants must have a strong commitment to intellectual freedom as defined by the American Library Association’s Bill of Rights.
• Race and Social Justice Initiative: Applicants must be able to support the City of Seattle’s Race and Social Justice Initiative and have a strong commitment to providing equitable services to marginalized or underserved populations throughout Seattle.
• Project Management and Team Work Skills: Experience planning programs and designing outreach, developing and implementing a project, and evaluation; preferably using outcome-based evaluation methods.
• Excellent Communication and Interpersonal Skills: Must be able to communicate clearly, diplomatically, and in a friendly and positive manner.
• Commitment to Continuous Learning: Acquire and maintain the necessary skills to better serve our patrons and help our organization evolve.
• Resiliency: Applicants must be resourceful and able to deal with evolving and emerging dynamics in the community as well as the workplace.
• Leadership: Applicants must be able to utilize their knowledge, skills, and abilities to effect positive change.
• Technology and Informational Resources: Must have current working knowledge of PCs in a Windows environment and library applications.
• Other Required Skills and Abilities: Candidates must be flexible, able to handle multiple competing priorities and tasks, adaptable to change, and able to work effectively in a fast-paced, high-volume environment.
• Education: Must have a MLS or MLIS degree from an ALA-accredited library school and a Washington State Librarian Certification.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience in public speaking and formal writing skill is highly desired, as is fluency in Spanish.
• Interest in developing library programs for unhoused teens.

How to Apply

Please submit the following items by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, March 17, 2025 to be considered for this position. Your application will not be considered if these items are missing or incomplete.

1. Complete online application.
2. A cover letter that describes how your experience and skills align with the job responsibilities and qualifications.
3. Current resume that summarizes relevant education, experience, knowledge and skills.

Applications that do not include a cover letter, resume, and complete online application will not be considered.

Benefits and Salary Information
The full salary range for this position is $43.36 - $52.57 per hour.

The City of Seattle offers a comprehensive benefits package including vacation, holiday, and sick leave as well as medical, dental, vision, life, and long-term disability insurance for employees and their dependents.

If you have questions regarding this bulletin or employment at The Seattle Public Library, please send an email to job.applications@spl.org.