Department Summary

One of 10 constituent colleges and schools of the University of Denver - the only private higher educational institution in the Rocky Mountain Region to be recognized with Carnegie Research 1 (R1) status - the Sturm College of Law features a highly research-active faculty and a Top 20 program in legal research and writing. Housed in a state-of-the-art, LEED Gold building, the Westminster Law Library supports innovative and interdisciplinary faculty research, trains students in legal research skills across multiple subject matter areas, and familiarizes students with technologies relevant to modern-day legal practice.

Position Summary

Occupying a faculty position within the Professorial Series in University Libraries, and reporting to the Associate Director of the Westminster Law Library, the Faculty Services Librarian leads the Sturm College of Law's Faculty Research Service, which supports faculty scholarship through a variety of research-related initiatives. Working across a range of scholarly areas and methodological approaches, the Faculty Services Librarian provides expert support to law faculty members in association with their research, including (but not limited to) assistance with literature searches, research design, document delivery requests, and the promotion of faculty scholarship. In addition to working closely with faculty members, the successful candidate will collaborate with other faculty colleagues in the Westminster Law Library to advance instruction in legal research, including by teaching in the innovative and highly popular Certificate in Legal Research (CLR) Program and in an uppe r-division course in advanced or specialized legal research.

This position is a full-time faculty appointment in the University Libraries series subject to the University of Denver's Policies and Procedures Relating to Faculty Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure. Although our preference is to hire someone who can work in-person, we will accept and consider applications from qualified candidates who wish to engage in telework if such arrangements are advantageous to securing the preferred candidate for this critical role.

Essential Functions:

• Plan, develop, coordinate, oversee, and participate in the Sturm College of Law's Faculty Research Service, which supports faculty scholarship through a range of research-related initiatives. This includes serving as the primary point of contact for faculty research support in the Law Library, including management of an electronic research request queue, direct research support, and the delegation of work to members of the reference team, as needed.
• Hire, train, schedule, and oversee the Law Library's pool of Research Assistants (RAs), who support the Faculty Research Service, in a manner consistent with human resources policies and with the annual budgetary allocation governing such positions.
• Work to preserve and publicize scholarship published by faculty members of the Sturm College of Law, including serving as the point person in the Law Library for maintaining faculty scholarship on the University's institutional digital repository (currently the Digital Commons) and the Social Science Research Network (SSRN).
• Maintain statistics on the use of the Faculty Research Service to assess its effectiveness and assist in data-driven decision making.
• Establish and execute new policies, procedures, and workflows in the area of faculty services, as well as regularly evaluate the effectiveness of such services.
• Stay abreast of new developments in library research and faculty services, including innovative ways to leverage new technologies to improve relevant workflows.
• Actively participate - and teach - in the Law Library's Certificate in Legal Research (CLR) Program, an optional legal research training program.
• Teach an upper-division law school course, preferably in an area of advanced o specialized legal research.
• Provide high-quality service at a combined circulation and reference desk.
• Participate on the Law Library's collection development team, which aids in decisions relating to the selection, cancellation, and retention of materials, as well as the regular evaluation of collection priorities.
• Serve on relevant committees in the law school, within the University Libraries system, and at the University.

• Perform other duties as assigned. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Legal research proficiency, including knowledge of key legal research sources and how best to use them in a variety of formats, or the demonstrated potential for rapid growth into such skills.

• Effective oral and written communication skills, including strong presentation skills in both one-on-one and group settings.
• Excellent time management, organizational, and project management skills.
• Attention to detail, timeliness, and dependability.
• A strong customer service orientation, including a demonstrated ability to work flexibly with faculty, students, staff, and a diverse research community.
• Knowledge of professional librarianship concepts, principles, and practices and a commitment to staying abreast of new developments.
• A strong commitment to innovation, including comfort with technology and proficiency in a variety of library-related technologies, such as legal research platforms, next-generation library systems, and other relevant technologies.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• The ability to exercise independent judgment and to work independently.
• The ability to work as a team member.
• The ability to establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships, both inside and outside the law library.
• Flexibility, resilience, and the ability to adapt to a rapidly changing environment.
• A commitment to an inclusive learning environment.