Job Title: Assistant Director Youth & Family Services
Requisition Number: JO-1606-5590
Grade: 14
Salary Range: $96,756.00 - $135,458.00
Promotion Potential:
Agency: Public Library, DC
Location: 901 G St NW (MLK Jr Memorial Library)
Area of Consideration: Open to the Public
Opening/Closing Date: 6/1/2016 - 6/22/2016
Type of appointment: Management Supervisory Service (MSS)
*MSS: A position in the Management Supervisory Service (MSS) is “at will” employment. Appointees to the MSS serve at the will of the appointing Authority and may be removed at any time on 15-day notice.
Area of consideration: Open to the public
Primary Work Location
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library
901 G Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
Tour of Duty: Full-time, 40 hours per week, including evenings and weekends as needed.
The District of Columbia Public Library is a large urban library system with 25 neighborhood library locations throughout the District and one central library. With a budget of approximately $60 million and 600+ staff, DC Public Library is seeking thought leadership in the area of youth services. This newly created position is one of five Assistant Directors who together oversee public service delivery, customer service, programming, and outreach in the neighborhood libraries, the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial Library and the Programs & Partnerships department.
In addition, this position will ensure the effective use of resources by planning, organizing, monitoring, evaluating, and measuring impact against service objectives. The successful candidate will have experience managing budgets (including grant funded projects) and researching and preparing monthly reports. This position will also work closely with the community, representing the library to the public, developing key relationships, and serving as the library’s point person in a wide range of partnerships and collaborative projects with schools, government agencies, philanthropic organizations, and other service providers. The position will also work closely with the Library Foundation and the Communications and Collections departments.
The primary duties are:
- Guide DCPL’s strategy around services to children, teens, and their caregivers
- Supervise four positions: Teen Coordinator, Children’s Coordinator, Early Literacy Coordinator, and Books from Birth Assistant Manager
- Provide leadership and service standards for approximately 50 youth services librarians and other staff who serve youth
- Cultivate a system-wide understanding that everyone serves youth
- Represent DCPL in a variety of forums: city-wide committees, non-profit task forces, testifying at various hearings, speaking with the press
Education
- A Master’s degree in Library Science from an ALA accredited library school
Licensures, Certifications and other requirements
Key Qualifications
- Minimum of six (6) years’ experience as a professional librarian is required, including two or more years of management or supervisory experience
- Emphasis is placed on supervisory or leadership capacity in a mid-sized to large urban public library
- Experience working directly with youth in a public library system is desired but not required
- Comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of the principles and practices of serving youth and their caregivers in a large public library system
- Ability to plan and manage, directly and indirectly, 21st century library services
- Demonstrated skill in conducting evaluation and assessments of service operations and service delivery. Critical thinking skills are a must
- Demonstrated skill and ability in envisioning, planning, and implementing innovative services, collections, project management and programs
- Demonstrated skill in establishing and maintaining relationships with community partners
- Demonstrated ability to advocate for children and youth and their families in senior policy discussions
- Deep knowledge of childhood literacy principles and practices
Preferred Qualifications
The right candidate will bring passion and commitment to the task of providing excellent, innovative library services for youth and their families and caregivers. This person will have a deep knowledge of theories of infant, child, and adolescent learning and development, and of trends and issues in youth services in and beyond libraries, and a rich and creative understanding of their implications for effective library services. Reporting to the Director of Public Services and a member of the Public Services Administrative team, this person will understand how to look at services to youth from a 40,000 foot level and have an understanding of how to guide the work of branch staff without supervising them directly. The successful candidate will be a leader, an experienced manager, a collaborative team player, be able to roll with the punches, have a sense of humor, and be committed to a healthy work environment.
Key Projects During First Year (in addition to key responsibilities listed above)
- Establish and build the youth services administrative team. Current staff include Teen Coordinator, Children’s Coordinator, Early Literacy Coordinator, and Books from Birth Assistant Manager.
- Conduct an assessment of youth services service standards, including programming, storytime, and outreach expectations. Compile recommendations.
- Work with Associate Director of Collections to assess the children and teen collections.
- Work closely with the Associate Director of Collections and the Director of Strategic Planning to establish the new All Access shared technical services department.
Work Experience
Experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to preform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Work Environment
The work environment involves everyday risks or discomforts and requires normal safety precautions typical of such places as offices, meeting and training rooms and libraries. The work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated.
Conditions of Employment
General Suitability Screening
This position is subject to general suitability screening; verification of employment history, reference checks and degree/license, as applicable. The appointee to the position may be offered employment contingent upon receipt of a satisfactory general suitability screening.
Enhanced Suitability Screening
- The position for which the individual is applying has been identified and designated as requiring enhanced suitability screening;
- If tentatively selected for the position, a criminal background check, traffic record check, consumer credit check, and mandatory drug and alcohol test will be conducted (as appropriate); and
- The appointee to the position may be offered employment contingent upon receipt of a satisfactory enhanced suitability screening.
Employment Benefits
Selectee will be eligible for health and life insurance, annual (vacation) and sick leave and will be covered under the District of Columbia government's retirement plan. However, if selectee was previously employed in the District of Columbia government under an appointment for which he/she was eligible for Civil Service Retirement (CSR), contributions to CSR will resume upon re-employment. See Employee Benefits.
Essential/Emergency Employee
This position DOES NOT hold the essential/emergency employee designation.
Collective Bargaining Unit
This position IS NOT in a collective bargaining unit.
Apply at http://careers.dc.gov/ts2__JobDetails?jobId=a0K1600000hQsrtEAC&tSource=