Collections Services Archivist

Updated: almost 2 years ago
Location: Boston, MASSACHUSETTS
Deadline: The position may have been removed or expired!

The Collections Services Archivist (CSA) is responsible for an innovative program that establishes physical and intellectual control over the Center’s internationally renowned holdings, from accession through final processing and description. The CSA collaborates with, and provides leadership for, Center staff responsible for using appropriate-level strategies for processing and describing unique manuscript collections and archival records, including audio, audiovisual, and electronic records to ensure their accessibility, use, and preservation. The CSA also plays a lead role in current Center projects, including implementing ArchivesSpace, building content for the Center’s Dataverse and Omeka instances, helping implement EAC-CPF, and participating in library-wide digital initiatives.

To meet these responsibilities, the CSA manages and continually improves the descriptive program, including: Leading projects and initiatives; developing and revising policies and procedures; managing upgrades and changes in technology and technical standards; staying current on changes in local and national technical standards;
communicating, interpreting, and assisting in implementing change; and applying standards, departmental policy, and procedures in order to accession, catalog, arrange, describe, preserve, and make accessible Center holdings using University and Countway library standards, systems, and tools such as MARC, EAD, Dublin Core, Aleph/HOLLIS, OASIS, the DRS, the Dataverse, and Omeka.

The CSA leads and supervises permanent, term, and less than half-time (LHT) staff engaged in descriptive activities for manuscripts and archival records, including assisting them in developing workplans, reviewing their progress and products, providing training as needed, and resolving conflicts arising from the application of policies and standards. The CSA acts as the Center’s liaison to the University's archival description committees/projects and collaborates with colleagues in the Center, Countway Library, the Harvard Library system and profession, and carries out other duties as assigned and as necessitated by the needs of the Center and/or made possible by the incumbent’s subject strengths or technical skills. Additionally, the CSA contributes to the Center's culture of evaluation, including maintaining processing metrics and statistics.



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