Specialist-Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication

Digital Initiatives And Scholarly Communication Specialist

Founded in 1863, Boston College is a Jesuit, Catholic university located six miles from downtown Boston with an enrollment of 9,654 full-time undergraduates and 5,072 graduate and professional students. Ranked 37 among national universities, Boston College has 923 full-time and 1,336 FTE faculty, 2,822 non-faculty employees, an operating budget of $1.4 billion, and an endowment in excess of $3.9 billion.

The Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication Specialist (the Specialist) supports the creation, curation, and long-term preservation of digital projects and collections. The incumbent builds digital collections, collects and promotes the Law School's intellectual output, develops websites and applications for the Library and the Law School, and works with the Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication Librarian to identify and complete new digital projects and initiatives. This position shares a number of core responsibilities with the two Library Assistant positions in Collection Services & Digital Initiatives (CSDI), such as checking in serials and staffing the Information Desk, but also requires more specialized skills related to web design and development, scholarly publishing, copyright, digital repositories, and other complex technological projects. This position provides significant support for completing the day-to-day tasks otherwise completed by the Digital Initiatives & Scholarly Communication Librarian, which frees up more time for the Librarian to concentrate on high-level initiatives that are of value to the Law School, and makes it possible for both the Specialist and the Librarian to take on more projects, complete projects faster, and be more responsive to requests from the community.

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to the following:

Support faculty scholarship and scholarly communication. 30% Create and continually update digital collections in the law school's institutional repository. Create metadata for faculty publications, law review articles, and other materials, and post those materials to the repository. Update and maintain the Law Library's web pages and the web pages of Law School faculty members. Update the local database used to manage workflows and reporting related to faculty publications and presentations.

Support, design, develop, and maintain digital projects and initiatives. 30% Following guidance from the Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication Librarian, work with individuals and departments as needed to create digital resources and applications. Create and contribute code to complex websites and workflow tools using technologies such as JavaScript, jQuery, Python, SQL, CSS, and HTML.

Staff the Information Desk. 20% Provide a full range of service at the Information Desk, including circulation, basic technical support, and reference assistance.

Perform technical processing operations. 15% Perform a range of intersecting technical services activities including opening mail, cataloging, check-in and processing of serials, government documents, and microforms.

Monitor public printers and computers. 5% Keep printers stocked with paper and toner, and troubleshoot and resolve issues with public printers, scanners, and computers. Answer basic questions about network access/connectivity.

The Specialist reports to the Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication Librarian. On some projects and tasks, they may also receive training and guidance from the Associate Law Librarian for Collection Services & Digital Initiatives and the Access Services Librarian.

Position Details: Department: 056601 - Law Library Position: 00004090 - Law Library Assistant Grade: 2ND Hiring Range: $27.47/hr. to $34.34/hr. Pay rate commensurate with relevant experience.

Experience & Education:

• Bachelor's degree required.
• Library experience is preferred, especially experience in digital projects, metadata creation, or experience working with legal materials.

Functional and Technical Competencies

• Detailed knowledge of LIRA (the institutional repository), Selected Publications (public faculty bibliographies), Open Journal Systems, Interfolio Faculty180 (Faculty Annual Reports), Microsoft Access, SQL, and other tools used to support digital initiatives and scholarly communication workflows. Skills required for web development and content creation and maintenance, including some familiarity with JavaScript, jQuery, Google Apps Script, Python, HTML, CSS, Git, AEM editing, and the ability and willingness to learn new technologies in order to support specific projects.
• Fluency in metadata standards such as Dublin Core, MARC, and RDA.
• Ability to provide support to students encountering a range of problems with hardware, software, network connections, file management, printing, and scanning. Ability to operate and troubleshoot problems with a range of library equipment including audio-visual equipment (video recording and playback, cable television, computer data display), microform reader/printers, scanners, photocopy machines, and compact shelving.
• Ability to assist students with the use of computer-based legal information and research products and systems, such as LEXIS/NEXIS, Westlaw and CALI (Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction). Understanding of the complex and unique patterns of legal publication, including loose-leafs, transfer binders, cumulative supplements and editions, and patterns of updating, superseding, revising and replacing information sufficient to ensure that they can describe these materials accurately and retain or discard them appropriately.
• Detailed knowledge and understanding of multiple modules in the University catalog, Alma, including circulation, acquisitions, cataloging, course reserves and both staff and Web-based online public access catalogs. Ability to monitor changes which may occur after monthly updates in Alma and to report those changes when necessary.

Core Competencies:

• Strong technical skills and an eagerness to learn new technologies
• Comfortable working with a range of hardware (including peripherals such as networked printers and scanners) and software (such as word processing, spreadsheet, content management systems, and database applications)
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Ability to work with complex legal materials
• High degree of flexibility to handle changing priorities and schedules
• Ability to work both independently and as a team member
• Strong customer service orientation
• Demonstrated proficiency in a computerized environment and familiarity with electronic mail, networked environments, Windows OS
• Experience with word-processing, spreadsheet, HTML

Boston College offers a broad and competitive range of benefits depending on your job classification eligibility:

• Tuition remission for Employees
• Tuition remission for Spouses and Children who meet eligibility requirements
• Generous Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• Low-Cost Life Insurance
• Eligibility for both University-Funded 401k and Employer-Sponsored 403b Retirement Plans
• Paid Holidays Annually
• Generous Sick and Vacation Pay
• Additional benefits can be found on

Boston College conducts pre-employment background checks as part of the hiring process.

Boston College is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of any legally protected category, including disability and protected veteran status. Boston College's Notice of Nondiscrimination can be viewed at