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Location: Northampton, MA

Salary: $65,000-80,000

Employment Term: Full-time

Employer Contact: [log in to unmask]

The Digital Asset Specialist supports the creation, collection, organization, and use of digital assets, including images, videos, 3D models, web content,  data visualizations, and other related materials for teaching and scholarship. Working as part of a collaborative team in the Imaging Center, they manage daily operations of digital asset production and instruction while stewarding the lifecycle of existing collections. They support campus-wide pedagogical use of digital assets through collaborations with the Art Department, Art Museum, College Libraries and others. They stay abreast of developments in the field of visual resources, serving on relevant campus-wide and Five College committees. They support the continued evolution of Imaging Center facilities and services through beta testing of new tools and continued attention to emerging practices, methodologies, and technologies.

Metadata and Digital Asset Production Management (20%): Manage digital asset and metadata creation workflow. Develop, manage, document and maintain data standards, policies and procedures for asset and metadata production. Create original metadata for digital assets covering a range of disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and arts adhering to national metadata standards and best practices. Provide quality control for all assets and metadata imported and exported to and from College digital asset management systems. Supervise and train student assistants in research, quality control, and pre-cataloging of digital assets for the Department of Art and the College.

Instruction/Access Services (20%): Plan and conduct digital asset instruction to facilitate faculty and student digital scholarship, including asset creation and editing software, presentation tools, copyright, image management, and storage systems in workshops and tutorial settings; perform digital asset reference service for Imaging Center patrons and create both online and print training materials. Collaborate with the Art Department, College Libraries and the Art Museum in visual and information literacy programs. Assist in the management of student assistants creating social media to promote these and other Imaging Center Services.

Digital Technology and Innovation (20%): Manage the adoption and implementation of new digital systems and services for art scholarship and the digital humanities; Participate in development of strategic long-range plans for producing, managing, storing, preserving, and delivering digital assets, in partnership with the Museum and Libraries; develop related skills in asset production software, storage systems, related programming languages and their pedagogical and research uses; maintain awareness of advances in digital assets for teaching and research, metadata standards, and database and storage technology; advocate for campus-wide utilization of digital resources, and participate in institutional initiatives for access to digital resources.

Collection Management (40%): Provide collection management, stewarding the life cycle and preservation of the analog and digital teaching collections of the Department of Art. Provide collection management and preservation of Imaging Center teaching materials and documents. Contribute to the stewardship of digital assets for the museum, and collaborate on planning and implementing data migrations. Collaborate with faculty to build collections for digital teaching that reflect current and developing curricular and research needs; train and monitor faculty student assistants using imaging and personal collection building tools. Monitor developments among licensed content providers; identify and evaluate assets for inclusion in “digital teaching material” platforms. Contribute to development of asset presentation systems and provide guidance on metadata creation and display; participate in metadata mapping between local, remote, and personal collections. Perform related duties as required.

Education/Experience: Master’s degree in the visual arts or library and information science preferred; Bachelor’s degree plus five years relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Demonstrated knowledge of digital asset creation and storage applications (i.e., Photoshop, JSTORForum, etc.), coding and script writing for imaging and metadata, metadata standards, and intellectual property issues; awareness of new technology and trends and their application for digital asset services in an academic environment; awareness of best practices in the digital humanities; project management skills; ability to take initiative, solve problems and prioritize work effectively; knowledge of the visual arts and collection management; reading knowledge of one language (or computer language) in addition to English; excellent oral and written communication skills; Demonstrated ability to work flexibly, independently and collaboratively with colleagues, faculty, and students in a rapidly changing, service-oriented environment.

Review of applications will begin July 11, 2023.