Job Details

Director of the Library, Hampshire College (Amherst)

Hampshire College seeks an enthusiastic and strategic Director of the Library to lead the Harold F. Johnson Library into its next chapter—as a dynamic, inclusive, and responsive center for learning at the heart of an innovative academic community. The Director leads a small, dedicated team in delivering outstanding library services while building deep partnerships students, faculty, and staff across the campus and within the Five College Consortium. With responsibilities that span strategic planning, research instruction, collections strategy, stewardship of archives, and budget management, the Director seeks the integration of library programs into the academic and co-curricular life of the college, strong campus and consortia partnerships, and a balance of visionary planning with daily operational leadership.

At Hampshire, we value innovation, independent inquiry, and community engagement. We’re looking for someone who believes in the power of libraries to transform learning—who brings curiosity and purpose to their work. The ideal candidate will bring a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and a generous vision of how an academic library can foster intellectual exploration, discovery, and belonging. This is an opportunity for a hands-on leader who thrives in a collaborative environment.

Hampshire College, an independent, innovative liberal arts institution and member of the Five College consortium, is located on a beautiful rural campus in Amherst, Massachusetts. We provide residential undergraduate education to nearly 900 students.



DESCRIPTION OF RESPONSIBILITIES:

Provide strategic, inclusive leadership for all aspects of the Harold F. Johnson Library, aligning operations with Hampshire College’s academic mission and values.
Oversee all library departments, including access services, acquisitions and technical services, archives and special collections, media, and the campus gallery.
Develop and implement strategic and operational plans that support innovation, academic integration, sustainability, and equitable access to information.
Design and deliver research instruction and information literacy programs in collaboration with faculty, supporting course-integrated learning and independent student work.
Foster a welcoming, service-oriented, and intellectually vibrant environment for a diverse student body, faculty, and staff.
Supervise, mentor, and support library staff, including professional librarians and paraprofessionals, promoting a collegial and growth-oriented workplace.
Manage library finances, including budgeting for acquisitions and programming.
Lead collection development strategies to ensure timely, inclusive, and relevant physical and digital resources that reflect evolving curricular and scholarly needs.
Steward digital infrastructure and unique collections, including digital assets, archival materials, and the College’s art collection, ensuring long-term preservation and researcher access.
Represent Hampshire College within the Five College Consortium, Museums10, and other external partnerships, advancing shared services, resource access, and collaboration.
Lead planning of library space uses that promotes sustainability and academic engagement.

Qualifications

REQUIRED SKILLS:

Demonstrates knowledge of the mission and values of higher education and a creative, generous vision for how an academic library can partner with faculty, students, and staff.
Passionate about working in an organization that values and promotes diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism.
Demonstrates and supports a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism, with evidence of applying these values to collections, staffing, programming, and services.
Ability to cultivate and develop inclusive and equitable working relationships with students, faculty, staff, and community members.
Broad understanding of library operations and the roles of all library staff.
Demonstrated creativity and innovation in library service delivery.
Familiarity with budget planning and resource allocation.
 

REQUIRED CERTIFICATION, EDUCATION, AND EXPERIENCE:

Advanced degree in job-related field (MLIS or equivalent).
Demonstrates leadership and management experience, including at least 3 years of supervisory experience, in an academic library or comparable academic setting.
Experience designing and delivering research instruction and information literacy programs.
 

Alternatives to formal education and paid work experience may be considered as equivalent qualifications to include military service/training, volunteering, activism, and other non-traditional programs and experiences related to the position.



PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

At least five years of progressively responsible experience in academic libraries or comparable academic settings.
Experience with strategic planning, project management, and assessing organizational effectiveness.
Experience working within a library consortium or collaborative library system.
Familiarity with evaluating and designing physical library spaces to support evolving user needs.

Full/Part Time

Full Time

Education

MLS/Masters

Salary Range

$90,000.00 - $95,000.00  / year

Closing Date

Applications received by June 15, 2025 will receive priority consideration.

How to Apply

HOW TO APPLY:

Please submit via our website at https://jobs.hampshire.edu/:

A cover letter, including a statement addressing your approach to justice, equity and antiracism (JEA) in leadership philosophy and practice.
Resume/CV.
Names/phone numbers of three professional references.

Posted

2025-05-19 |  Quick link to this job