Senior Librarian/Children's Young Adult Literature Specialist

A Senior Librarian of the Cooperative Children's Book Center works collaboratively with other librarians on staff to carry out all aspects of the Center's work, including managing the singular collection of children's and young adult trade literature, evaluating books and co-authoring the library's annual best-of-the-year list, providing education and outreach on high-quality books and other topics, engaging in the library's work around diversity and representation in books for youth and intellectual freedom in libraries and classrooms, and assisting with various administrative tasks. The CCBC is a unique and vital gathering place for books, ideas, and expertise in children's and young adult literature. It is a non-circulating examination, study, and research library for Wisconsin school and public librarians, early childhood care providers, university students and faculty, and others with career interest in children's or young adult literature. The CCBC is part of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and receives additional support from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

This position provides a wide variety of the most advanced professional services, including education and outreach, public service, specialized reference services, and book evaluation. The CCBC Senior Librarian serves as a resource for others and regularly solves complex problems based on advanced knowledge and expertise. The CCBC Senior Librarian also provides suggestions for and oversees implementation of process improvements and new initiatives, contributing to continual improvement in services and operations.

The CCBC Senior Librarian participates collaboratively in providing services to users, including responding to complex reference questions related to children's and young adult literature; providing one-on-one consultations with university students, faculty, librarians and teachers concerning children's or young adult literature; planning and implementing outreach services to Wisconsin teachers and librarians via distance education and on-site visits throughout the state; speaking about children's and young adult literature to groups of university students, teachers, and librarians; and working with School of Education faculty and Teaching Assistants to provide specialized services related to children's and young adult literature.

The CCBC Senior Librarian works collaboratively with the other CCBC librarians on all aspects of the library's work, including providing reference services; planning and implementing education and outreach; evaluating and selecting books for the CCBC's core collections; collecting and disseminating data on state of diversity in children's book publishing in the United States; and reading, evaluating, selecting, and writing annotations for the annual best-of-the-year list (CCBC Choices).

The School of Education is looking for a dynamic and flexible librarian to join the small and mighty CCBC librarian staff. The ability to thrive in a highly collaborative environment is critical. Dependability, as evidenced through initiative and follow-through, is deeply valued. The ideal candidate will embrace challenges as opportunities, think creatively, and lead through both teamwork and autonomy. A dedication to reading, enthusiasm for presenting, and ability to write for publication are essential. A deep knowledge of and passion for children's and young adult literature as well as a commitment to fostering a welcoming, respectful, and supportive environment for all individuals from all backgrounds are fundamental.

Partially remote (max 1 day/week); This position will primarily work onsite/on-campus at the Teacher Education building. In-state and
occasional out-of-state travel is required, occasional evening and weekend hours may be required.

Provides support in various administrative functions to maintain smooth and effective operations

• Cultivates and maintains productive relationships with donors, collectors, vendors, and professional colleagues

• Obtains materials, resolves issues, and answers questions that are complex and highly specialized in nature

• Designs, develops, delivers, and assesses instruction in a variety of formats to faculty, staff, students, and other patrons

• Provides specialized services utilizing a high level of expertise on a broad range of disciplines or in a designated discipline area

• Develops or coordinates specialized projects or programs

Develops materials for presentation and/or publication to interpret CCBC work or encourage critical thinking around diversity in publishing, intellectual freedom, collection development and more

• Serves on committees to advance librarianship at the campus, local, and/or state and national levels

• Oversees day-to-day functions of one or more library operations or services

• May direct the day-to-day activities of student workers

• Serves as a resource to other librarians and staff outside of their unit on a regular basis

• Develops, curates, and manages collections

• Initiates and solicits input to modify policies, procedures, and assessment tools to improve workflows and/or user experiences

CCBC

Minimum: $85,000 ANNUAL (12 months)

Depending on Qualifications

- Five (5) years experience in library management

- Three (3) years of professional experience working with contemporary children's and young adult literature

- Experience in two or more of the following areas of expertise:

• Cataloging and collection management
• Intellectual freedom with regard to books in libraries and classrooms or related advocacy
• Publisher relations
• Managerial experience (of students and/or colleagues)
• Project management
• Copy editing/proofreading
• Administrative responsibilities, such as budgeting or scheduling

-Knowledge, skills, and abilities required for this role:

• Willingness and ability to continue professional development and advancement of knowledge regarding contemporary children's and young adult literature
• Service-oriented, able to work with the CCBC's diverse constituency and understand and respond to their specific professional needs
• Ability to think creatively and problem-solve

-This position will primarily work onsite/on-campus at the Teacher Education building. In-state and occasional out-of-state travel is required, occasional evening and weekend hours may be requested.

Preferred Qualifications:

-Understanding of Wisconsin schools and /or libraries in urban, suburban, small and rural communities

-Experience with planning and providing continuing education to adults

-Demonstrated leadership experience

Mentoring skills

Please click "Apply" at the top of this page and provide a current resume, cover letter, and three professional references. Your cover letter should explicitly speak to the listed qualifications, requirements, and preferred skills and abilities that support your candidacy for this position. We will not contact references prior to the final stages of the recruitment process.

Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

tessa.schmidt@wisc.edu

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

For more information on diversity and inclusion on campus, please visit: Diversity and Inclusion

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, click here.

To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Please make your request as soon as possible to help the university respond most effectively to you.