Opening: Associate Director for Public Services, Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law

Southern Methodist University’s Underwood Law Library is seeking candidates for its Associate Director for Public Services position.

Responsibilities:  The Associate Director for Public Services will coordinate the Underwood Law Library’s public services operations, including reference and circulation services; provide research assistance to the law library’s patrons, including staffing the reference office 8-10 hours per week; serve as library liaison to approximately 8 members of the law school’s faculty; deliver lectures on legal research, possibly teach law school courses for credit; develop research guides and other instructional materials; and serve on university and professional organization committees.

Required qualifications:  Candidates must possess a graduate library degree and a J.D. (law) degree; a minimum of three years of professional experience as a law librarian, including at least one year in a leadership role; a strong commitment to supporting faculty and student research; strong legal research skills; substantial knowledge of an academic law library’s reference and circulation operations; a strong service orientation; an ability to develop and manage innovative services to library patrons; an understanding of technological trends affecting libraries and research; and publication-quality writing skills and excellent oral communication skills.

Environment:  The Underwood Law Library houses more than 620,000 volumes and is the largest private law library in the Southwest. Its collections rank in the top 18% of U.S. academic law libraries in volumes held and the top 16% in titles held. U.S. News & World Report ranks the SMU Dedman School of Law in the top 25%. SMU is located in the heart of Dallas, Texas, which offers a dynamic economy and reasonable cost of living. Texas has no state income tax.

Compensation:  Compensation will be competitive, based upon qualifications and experience, and will include a comprehensive benefits package.

Application:  Apply online at http://www.smu.edu/hr/recruit/. Submit a resume, cover letter, and names and contact information of at least two references. The application deadline is May 23, 2008. This position is available on or after June 1, 2008.