Disciples of Christ Historical Society
Nashville, TN and Bethany, WV
The Disciples of Christ Historical Society (The Society) seeks an Archivist and Librarian. The successful candidate will be temporarily assigned in Nashville, TN before permanently locating to Bethany, West Virginia on the campus of historic Bethany College.
The Society, a general ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), serves as the archive for the denomination and an archive of the Stone-Campbell movement. Since 1941, The Society has served its mission of preserving and making available to researchers the many documents, books, periodicals, and audio/visual materials telling the story of the Stone-Campbell heritage. The Society exists to document and interpret the history of Stone-Campbell churches (Churches of Christ, Christian Churches/Churches of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The Society holds the largest collection of this material in the world, included hundreds of thousands of photographs, thousands of rare books, 40,000 biographical files, records of tens of thousands of congregations, and thousands of artifacts.
The Society is currently building a state of the art archival facility at the Renner Visitor Center, next to the historic Campbell Mansion in Bethany, West Virginia. The new facility will provide space for up to 17,000 linear feet of storage, conference facilities, and offices. The new partnership with Bethany College will provide opportunities for the archivist to work in partnership with Historic Bethany to teach the history of the movement, work with docents of Historic Bethany, the faculty of Bethany College and student interns, workers and researchers.
The Society is seeking an archivist and librarian who will:
- Direct the relocation of the archives from Nashville, TN to Bethany, WV;
- Maintain access to historical and educational documents by improving the preservation, arrangement and description of library documents;
- Preserve the collection by applying standards-based maintenance measures to archival collections in all formats, reformatting material as needed;
- Demonstrate proficiency in all levels of archival operations, including appraising, accessing, preserving, and providing archival reference services;
- Provide access to the collection by working directly with researchers and members of The Society, answering inquiries from around the globe;
- Produce and edit finding aids, developing appropriate metadata, using archival software and databases;
- Arrange documents by organizing and properly storing original, re-housed, and reformatted materials;
- Provide outreach for the archives and maintain appropriate relationships with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the ministries associated with the Stone-Campbell movement (Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Churches of Christ, Christian Churches/Churches of Christ Christian), the Bethany College community and the public at large;
- Participate in appropriate teaching, training and resourcing events related to the Stone-Campbell movement;
- Promote awareness and use of the material, creating descriptive and contact information for webpages, hosting researchers and tour groups;
- Work collegially with the college faculty to serve as a guest lecturer in the areas of Library Science, Church History, and/or History;
- Work collaboratively with the college faculty to direct the work of student interns and work-study students, directing student’s work;
- Manage budgets related to the preservation of the collection;
- Maintain professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops and reviewing professional publications; and
- Seek grant funding for and coordinate the digitization of records.
Required: Successful candidates will be required to have an ALA accredited Masters in Library Science, Archival Studies or advanced degree in an applicable subject field and 3 years of archival experience.
The candidate will be required to be proficient with all aspects of archival operations including reference services; have experience with computer applications as they relate to archival collections and finding aids; skills in the use of MS Office; have knowledge of technical standards and practices for audio video and digital formats; an ability to work independently; strong customer services skills; strong communication skills; ability to train and lead staff, and an ability to promote the use of material.
Preferred: archival certification; grant writing experience; membership in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) or a church of the Stone-Campbell tradition (Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Churches of Christ, Christian Churches/Churches of Christ Christian), and membership in professional societies / associations.
Education Required: Master Library Science (ALA Accredited), Archival Studies or advanced degree in an applicable subject field. Experience Required: 3 years archival experience. Resumes with cover letters received by February 21, 2016 will receive first consideration. Compensation: This full-time exempt position will include a competitive salary, health insurance, and other benefits including retirement through the Pension Fund of the Christian Church.
Confidential resume and cover letter submission:
Archie Jenkins, Board Chair
[email protected]