Circulation Assistant

Mount Holyoke College Library

Temporary

On-site

South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States

October 1, 2024

$17.50-$17.50,Hourly

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BiblioTemps® is an employment service of the Massachusetts Library System that provides experienced library workers for temporary placements in public, academic, and special libraries throughout Massachusetts.

Title: Circulation Assistant

Location: Mount Holyoke College Library South Hadley, MA

Position Type: Temporary Start date: November 1, 2024 End date: January 10, 2025

Schedule:
• 20 hours per week • Required shifts: Friday and Saturday 5-10pm • Additional hours flexible depending on availability

Pay Rate: $17.50 per hour **CORI: ** Required

Description: Mount Holyoke College’s Library, Information, and Technology Services (LITS) Division empowers a diverse and inclusive learning community equipping every person to purposefully engage the world. We connect people with the information, expertise, spaces, and technologies that enhance their work and fuel scholarly endeavor. Mount Holyoke College is part of the Five Colleges, Inc. Consortium along with Amherst College, Hampshire College, Smith College, and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Reporting to the Director of Discovery & Access, the Circulation Assistant is part of a collaborative team that connects the Mount Holyoke Community to the many information resources available to them virtually and in the library. As a member of the Access Services department within Discovery & Access (DnA), this person contributes to the team’s work of providing circulation services, print and electronic course reserves, and stacks management services for LITS. The Circulation Assistant strives to provide exceptional customer service and serves as a primary professional staff presence at the Circulation Desk during their shifts.

Primary Position Responsibilities: • Works at the on-site Circulation Desk approximately 20 hours per week, providing excellent customer service while responding to questions in person and virtually. • Performs shared Access Services responsibilities such as checking library materials in and out, responding to patron inquiries and registering new patrons, processing requests for library materials, running reports using library system software, and collecting circulation statistics. • Works alongside and provides direction to approximately 25 student employees throughout the work week. • Furthers the College's diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals by engaging with colleagues to create a welcoming, inclusive, accessible, and user-centered environment in which a diverse population of students, faculty, and staff can thrive. • Performs related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Required Education and Experience: • Two years of experience working in a customer-service role in a user-focused organization. • Enthusiastic customer service orientation with a record of progressively responsible experience related to duties and responsibilities of the position. • Ability both to work as a team member and to work independently in the evening environment. • Evidence of supervisory potential is essential. • Basic knowledge of general office procedures. • Excellent oral and written communication, organization, and problem-solving skills, as well as the ability to convey technical information to a non-technical audience. • Flexibility to accept, manage and incorporate change and the ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously and effectively in a fast-paced environment. • Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a diverse group of faculty, students, administrators, staff, and others. • Ability to maintain a professional and tactful approach in all interactions, ensuring confidentiality and an individual’s right to privacy regarding appropriate information.

Preferred Qualifications: • Experience working in an academic setting is preferred. • Library experience and use of library technologies (e.g. a library services platform) is preferred. • Preference given to candidates with demonstrated success in supervision, coaching or mentoring roles.

Mount Holyoke College is actively building an organization that values the following skills and abilities. They want to talk with candidates who see themselves broadly reflected below:

• Works effectively in both independent and team environments; is able to set priorities and manage multiple tasks. • Embraces the opportunity to build a collaborative, accessible, and culturally diverse environment. • Possesses a love of learning, the ability to think critically with a dash of ingenuity and enjoys learning new skills. • Retains the open-mindedness to change their mind, and the confidence to admit to not knowing something as well as to learn and move on from mistakes. • Understands library services in an academic setting, via past collaborations with libraries/librarians as a colleague or user. • Shows sensitivity to the diverse needs of others at all skill levels. • Exhibits excellent and creative interpersonal, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills, and an enthusiastic service orientation.

Physical Requirements: • Employee operates office equipment and computers to perform essential duties and responsibilities. • Employee communicates in person, via email, and by telephone. • Light work: Exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.

Massachusetts Library System (MLS) is an equal opportunity employer. MLS is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, age, marital status, sex, physical or mental challenge, creed, religion, political affiliation, national or ethnic origin, or sexual orientation. Members of underrepresented groups, and those committed to working in a diverse cultural environment are encouraged to apply.