The Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME), an education non-profit, seeks a part-time independent contractor for ~9 months to support a higher education service partner’s management of their Open Educational Resource (OER) library. As an organization, ISKME seeks to make education more participatory, equitable, and open, breaking down barriers through open access digital libraries, professional learning, and educational research studies. ISKME is in service of educators and making their work more effective and efficient. We have a collaborative culture, and candidates should be comfortable providing (and receiving) feedback on work, as well as bringing a creative, problem-solving mindset to bear.
As a Digital Librarian, this person will primarily provide collection and records management to the OERTX digital library of OER including updates and maintenance of institutional and project landing pages, “Hubs” on OERTX, continued curation of existing collections, development of new collections, and consistent maintenance of resource metadata that is guided by findings in THECB research. The chosen candidate will join our team of developers, product owners, designers, and librarian staff to implement projects that align with our organizational purpose.
As an organization, ISKME is applying Agile practices as we scale. This is an opportunity to impact that growth and work with the team as they expand. This position will report to the Manager Library Services, and work closely with the Partner Relations team by providing continuing management of the OERTX OER collection, unique curated collections, and Hubs designed to serve Texas institutions of higher education.
Primary Role Responsibilities
- Review and manage site resource records, to include deaccessioning records pointing to broken URLs, finding and updating URL for externally hosted resource records, and reviewing the records of resources created using the Open Author platform.
- Curate resource collections based on the goals and needs of the partner to highlight specific content areas of OER.
- Maintain curated collections on OERTX Hub, ensuring that the resources are high quality and meet the collection policy of THECB.
- Led by the Partner Relations team, assist in the collection design and development for new and emerging Hubs to be highlighted on OERTX.
- Identify ongoing and emerging trends across partner support needs, and use data driven decision making to develop and implement process improvements that positively impact the overall library collection management experience.
Expected Skills and Competencies
Research indicates that applicants with marginalized identities are hesitant to apply for positions if they do not meet all of the required qualifications. We want to emphasize that the right candidate may not be an expert in all of these skills, but is willing to grow into them – and we are committed to helping them do so.
- Foundational understanding of open educational resources and their use in a higher education setting
- Strong strategic thinking skills, with the ability to anticipate, communicate, and remediate obstacles
- Comfort with using data analysis tools to analyze and assess trends, as well as the ability to translate findings into clear and accessible recommendations for process improvement
- Comfort with working in a fast paced environment with shifting priorities
- Comfort with working with a fully remote team in Google Workspace (Drive, Docs, Sheets, etc…) and Slack environments
- Familiarity with administrator roles and functions in content management systems
- Ability to maintain cordial relationships with partners while holding firm on organizational timelines and priorities
- The most competitive applicants will be flexible, highly collaborative, and have familiarity or experience with instructional technology support, or general digital library service
Note: An MLIS or equivalent degree would be beneficial to the candidate but is not required. Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate, including current students in MLIS, education, or technology degree programs.
ISKME is a fully remote organization with employees and partners across North America. As such, the successful candidate will enjoy a flexible work schedule, to be determined in collaboration with their supervisor.
ISKME is committed to Equal Opportunity and does not promote or discriminate against any person, population group, or organization and is committed through its employment and hiring practices as well as in its provision of services to ensure that all employees and applicants as well as others receive equal consideration and treatment, regardless of race, color, creed, gender (including gender identity or gender expression), religion, marital or domestic partner status, age, national origin or ancestry, physical appearance, education background, language, mental or medical disability, sex, sexual orientation, citizenship, military service status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law or local ordinance.
If interested in the position, please send: 1) a cover letter summarizing your skills, interest, and background as related to this position, and 2) a current CV or resume to jobs@iskme.org.
