Art History & Visual Arts Librarian, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT 

 

Application close date is November 29, 2021  

 

Salary Range :
$61,300- $72,300 

 

Compensation Practices:
Experience is taken into consideration in the determination of salary offers.  For more information visit https://www.wesleyan.edu/hr/handbook/compensation-practices/index.html 

 

Position Details 

Located in Middletown, Connecticut, Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier colleges of liberal arts and sciences with 3,000 undergraduates and 200 graduates. Established in 1831, Wesleyan University is known for its rich, open curriculum and interdisciplinary curriculum combining Humanities, Sciences, and Social and Behavioral Sciences. Wesleyan attracts students who are creative, intellectually independent, and driven to take risks to make the world a better place. The University has a long-standing commitment to providing underrepresented students from all racial, ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds access to our dynamically diverse campus. 

 

The Wesleyan University Libraries are privileged to play an important role in the educational, research, and creative endeavors of Wesleyan faculty and students. Our general and unique collections provide both information and inspiration. The Art History & Visual Arts Librarian serves as the library liaison and brings collections to life for the departments of Art & Art History, Film Studies, and Theater. They develop innovative educational programming and communication pathways to help students and faculty discover, understand, and employ informational sources in their work and extracurricular pursuits.  

Reporting to the Associate University Librarian for Academic Services, the Art History & Visual Arts Librarian works in and contributes to a collegial and supportive environment. They will initiate and participate in efforts that advance the student experience and institutional priorities, such as diversity, equity, and inclusion; practical idealism; and campus and community engagement. 

They will also support and engage with colleagues within the library and across the university, including the Archaeology and Anthropology Collections, Center for the Arts, Davison Art Center, Digital Design Studio, East Asian Art & Archival Collection, IDEASprogram, Special Collections & Archives, and the World Music Archives.  

 

Responsibilities include:  

• Design, provide, and assess multimodal instruction on the use and understanding of visual and performing arts resources, concepts, and tools, including visual and media literacy across the curriculum. 
• Promote and provide reference and in-depth research support in the visual and performing arts.  
• Serve as the primary communication conduit between the library and assigned academic departments, developing creative pathways that ensure faculty and students are aware of library services, collections, and initiatives, including broader developments in scholarly communication and digital initiatives. 
• Design, provide, and assess outreach programs that promote information and visual literacy within and across the disciplines. 
• Support the growth and maintenance of analog and digital collections to meet the needs of faculty and students and represent the diversity of contributors in the field.  
• Build relationships with members of the Wesleyan community and beyond to share information and develop complementary or interconnected services that relate to the Library and/or support the overall success of Wesleyan students and faculty. 
• Engage in professional development to maintain current knowledge of trends and changes in academic public services and scholarship, particularly those related to the visual and performing arts.  
• Perform additional duties as assigned. 

 

Minimum Qualifications 

• Graduate degree and knowledge in art history or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience 
• Experience working in public services in an academic or special library, or in providing specialized support in arts research 
• Knowledge of information resources used in the study of visual arts 
• Excellent interpersonal skills 
• Effective communications skills with the ability to present information and ideas to various audiences 
• Proven ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team-based environment 
• Demonstrated commitment to work within a diverse environment and interact collegially with individuals of different backgrounds 
• Strong user-service orientation and desire to work with constituents in an academic environment 
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends 

 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Masters degree in Library Science or advanced study in another related field 
• Working knowledge or fluency in languages used in art research and art library catalogs, especially German, French, or Italian 
• Understanding of visual literacy 
• Understanding of information literacy in the visual and performing arts 
• Experience providing group instruction 
• Experience developing analog and/or digital collections in the visual and performing arts 
• Knowledge and understanding of how trends in scholarly publishing and academia are impacting library services, collections, and physical spaces 

 

Supplemental Questions 

Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*). 

 

1. *As the Art History & Visual Arts Librarian, how would you draw upon your own experiences and your enthusiasm for the arts to enrich the educational experience of Wesleyan’s students? Please give at least two specific examples. (Open Ended Question)
   

2. *Please tell us how you specifically heard about this position? (e.g., CareerBuilder, LinkedIn, Higher Ed, InsideHigher Ed, CT.Jobs etc.) (Open Ended Question) 

 

Optional & Required Documents 

 

Required Documents 

1. Cover Letter 
2. Resume 

 

Optional Documents 

1. Curriculum Vitae 

 

Apply at:  https://careers.wesleyan.edu/postings/8363/pre_apply