Polar Archivist

Department: University Libraries | Special Collections and Area Studies

About the role

The Ohio State University Libraries is seeking a Polar Archivist to join a dynamic, responsive, and high-impact archival program that strongly supports teaching and research at the university. The Polar Archivist manages the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program, leading engagement and teaching efforts with archival collections related to polar history and exploration to advance discovery and learning. This role promotes archival holdings through outreach, instruction, collection development, research and reference services, and cultivates partnerships that connect the Libraries’ expertise, resources, and services with the needs of a broad and varied constituency. The Polar Archivist provides liaison support to the faculty and students of the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center (Byrd Center) and is a crucial partner in developing and providing teaching and research programs in polar history, exploration, and related subjects.

The Archives at the Libraries is home to the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program (BPA), founded with the acquisition of the papers of Admiral Richard E. Byrd. Faculty, students, and an international community regularly utilize the BPA collections to create new knowledge and for education and scholarship.

Responsibilities

• Actively engages and communicates effectively with faculty, students, and staff, developing strong working relationships and serving as an authoritative resource for those seeking teaching and research support with archival collections dealing with the history of polar exploration and current polar research.
• Provides research and teaching support to faculty, staff, and students of the Byrd Center. Serves as an active member of the Byrd Center and assists Center faculty and staff with programming and events.
• Supports and engages in fundraising, grant writing, marketing, and outreach that strengthen the Archives’ programs, in partnership with the Libraries’ Development Officer, the university’s Office of Advancement, and the Byrd Center.
• Seeks opportunities to collaborate with other academic departments to create meaningful and impactful strategies that incorporate archival holdings into the university’s teaching and research programs.
• Serves as subject expert to external scholars and advances connections to museums, archives, and public history institutions throughout the world.
• Advances collaborative relationships throughout the Libraries to increase discovery, access, and innovative uses of the BPA holdings.
• Actively develops local, regional, national, and international partnerships and collaborations to advance the strategic directions of the Libraries.
• Participates proactively on library-wide committees, task forces, and teams to integrate archival holdings into the Libraries’ wider strategic initiatives.
• Collaborates with other curators and subject librarians to develop interdisciplinary solutions to integrating distinctive intellectual content and services into the university’s wider academic environment.
• Contributes actively to scholarship in the archival field and other fields related to polar exploration through active professional engagement and research, presenting at professional and scholarly conferences, and publishing in appropriate venues.
• Is knowledgeable about and able to speak to a range of archival issues, including electronic records, digital initiatives, and the pedagogical importance of archival collections in undergraduate and graduate education.
• Is knowledgeable about and able to speak to handling and providing appropriate guidance and access to sensitive, restricted, or classified material.
• Participates in the Libraries’ exhibition program by curating gallery exhibitions focusing on polar exploration, responsible for exhibition displays at the Byrd Center.
• Embraces Ohio State’s Shared Values and strives to enact the behaviors guided by those values in all work.

Requirements

• An ALA-accredited master’s degree, a master’s degree with a specialization in archives, a master’s degree in museum studies, or a comparable graduate degree in one of the above fields from a non-U.S. university, reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
• Demonstrated knowledge in the fields of archival studies.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Ability to engage with a broad and varied range of audiences, including students, faculty/researchers, and the general public, through oral presentations, publications, and exhibitions.
• Demonstrated knowledge of concepts for arranging, describing, and providing access to born-digital collections.
• Ability to operate a forklift at elevations up to 32 feet and ability to lift an archival box up to 40 pounds with or without a reasonable accommodation.
• Commitment to librarianship, scholarship, and service, which are required criteria to meet university and University Libraries requirements for promotion and tenure.

Qualifications

• 1-3 years’ experience working in an archival environment.
• Experience providing reference services to a wide range of researchers.
• Evidence of research, publication, service, and/or scholarly achievement.
• Graduate degree in a field associated with history, environmental science, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience with the scholarly research process.
• Experience with electronic records in an archival environment.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively and creatively in a collaborative and complex environment.
• Evidence of both professional initiative and flexibility.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively and collegially with user constituencies.
• Experience in developing and delivering innovative instruction and research support services.