DigitalKoans – What Is the Sound of One E-Print Downloading?

Linked Data Librarian at Middle Tennessee State University

Reporting to the Chair of the CDM department, the Linked Data Librarian will respond to the rapid developments in metadata and web technologies and the transition to the semantic web through linked data. The successful candidate will work to leverage the potential of linked data to expand web-based discovery of the library’s resources and address the conceptual, technical, creative, and management aspects of linked data.

https://tinyurl.com/4r26ahy8

“Applying the COUP Framework to a Library-Sourced eTextbook Adoption: A Mixed Methods Study”

A growing number of studies have reported that using open educational resources benefits students, but few studies have investigated academic impacts of adopting library-sourced eBooks as the course textbook. This mixed-methods study utilizes the Open Education Group’s COUP Framework (Cost, Outcomes, Usage, Perceptions), which has previously been used to investigate the impact of OER adoptions, and applies it to the adoption of a library-sourced eBook for a large university course. Results are based on analysis of qualitative data obtained from a student survey and focus group, as well as quantitative student grade point average and drop/fail rates. Findings show that this library-sourced eBook adoption significantly reduced costs for students with no statistically significant impact on student success metrics. Additionally, students reported that cost savings were appreciated and beneficial; they further described the course eBook as high quality, easy to find and use, and supportive of their performance in class. The authors conclude that the potential benefits to students justify the time, cost, and effort expended by the library to facilitate and support eBook adoptions.

https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.86.2.235

Copyright Librarian at University of London

The Copyright Librarian will act as the main point of contact between the university and the Copyright Licensing Agency. They will oversee the Reading Lists Online digitisation process for course readings and associated automated reporting to the CLA using the Talis Aspire system. Also, they will deliver copyright guidance and support in response to enquiries received from students, researchers, and teaching staff.

https://tinyurl.com/42f8j3b9

“Affordable College Textbook Act Reintroduced in U.S. Congress”

The Affordable College Textbook Act was introduced today in the U.S. Senate by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Angus King (I-ME), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Ron Wyden (D-OR), with companion legislation sponsored by Representative Joe Neguse (D-CO) expected in the U.S. House. Although the bill’s prospects are tied to the broader Higher Education Act reauthorization process, its sponsors have worked to deliver immediate results for students by securing annual funding for the Open Textbook Pilot grant program. Distributed by the U.S. Department of Education, the Open Textbook Pilot has funded 28 projects since 2018, which are projected to save students an estimated $250 million—a substantial return on federal investment.

https://tinyurl.com/25vnn9r5

Digital Collections and Emerging Formats Librarian at Virginia Tech

This position is responsible for managing Virginia Tech’s digital library of cultural heritage, natural history, and scientific materials, placing a special emphasis on integrating emerging digital formats such as 3D imagery, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR).

Responsibilities include developing, managing, and innovating digital collections that encompass digitized archival materials, cultural artifacts, audio-visual formats, and biodiversity specimens.

https://tinyurl.com/2rnbbths

“The Economic Impact of Open Science: A Scoping Review”

This paper summarised a comprehensive scoping review of the economic impact of Open Science (OS), examining empirical evidence from 2000 to 2023. It focuses on Open Access (OA), Open/FAIR Data (OFD), Open Source Software (OSS), and Open Methods, assessing their contributions to efficiency gains in research production, innovation enhancement, and economic growth. Evidence, although limited, indicates that OS accelerates research processes, reduces the related costs, fosters innovation by improving access to data and resources and this ultimately generates economic growth. Specific sectors, such as life sciences, are researched more and the literature exhibits substantial gains, mainly thanks to OFD and OA. OSS supports productivity, while the very limited studies on Open Methods indicate benefits in terms of productivity gains and innovation enhancement. However, gaps persist in the literature, particularly in fields like Citizen Science and Open Evaluation, for which no empirical findings on economic impact could be detected. Despite limitations, empirical evidence on specific cases highlight economic benefits. This review underscores the need for further metrics and studies across diverse sectors and regions to fully capture OS’s economic potential.

https://osf.io/preprints/metaarxiv/kqse5_v1

Open Education Librarian at Texas A&M University Libraries

The Open Education Librarian plays a key role in the coordination, development, and implementation of Open Education Resources (OER) programs. This position supports our faculty, staff, and students in finding, adopting, adapting, and creating OER. Additionally, this librarian, as part of the Open Education team, will lead informational sessions on open education topics, including open licensing, fair use, and public domain materials, to promote course affordability.

https://tinyurl.com/2ff8253f

Paywall: “Implementing Read and Publish Agreements at the College of Charleston Libraries”

Focusing primarily on the Read and Publish agreements with Cambridge, Wiley, and Springer Nature, this article gives insight into managing Read and Publish agreements, specifically for academic libraries with no designated scholarly communications librarians.

https://doi.org/10.1080/0361526X.2025.2471077

Collection Systems Manager at Getty

The Collection Systems Manager will support Getty Digital’s initiative to modernize workflows, reduce system redundancy, and further harmonize use and practices across our ecosystem to build a consistent, connected, and collaborative digital environment. To achieve this, we are looking for an experienced and inclusive leader to guide the work of a talented and close-knit team of product managers. The candidate will have a strong background in systems-thinking, metadata schema and practice, aligning roadmaps, balancing operational and project work, and a track record as an expert business systems analyst working with cultural heritage applications.

https://tinyurl.com/2wjx2dvy

Paywall: “Digital Humanities in Us Academic Libraries: Case Studies”

This case study highlighted key areas of academic library DH practices including Space, Technology, Staff, Instruction and Collaboration. Practices in these areas were compared against each other and literature to comment on the current state of DH library practices and offer some recommendations for select areas.

https://doi.org/10.1108/DTS-03-2024-0040

University Librarian at University of California Riverside

As chief executive officer for the UCR Library, the UL provides strategic vision and operational leadership for the Library, with overall responsibility for collection development and management; library services; budget and planning; application of emerging information technologies; personnel; fundraising, public relations; and state and national cooperative efforts. Reporting to the executive vice chancellor and provost, the UL is a member of the Academic Senate and serves on the deans’ council, collaborating with campus leadership at UCR and across the University of California system.

https://tinyurl.com/mr2jm7ws

“Building Trustworthy AI Solutions: Integrating Artificial Intelligence Literacy into Records Management and Archival Systems”

This paper explores the essential role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) competencies and literacy in the fields of records management and archival practices, within the framework of the InterPARES Trust AI project. . . . The study employs two complementary approaches: (1) a detailed competency framework developed through literature reviews, interviews with archival professionals who have applied AI to the processing of records, and validation workshops with practitioners; and (2) a comprehensive AI literacy framework derived from multiple case studies and theoretical discussions. . . . Findings indicate that archival professionals can leverage AI in their work practices by acquiring basic AI literacy, practical AI skills, data-related skills, tool-testing and evaluation, adaptation of AI to their workflows, and by actively engaging in collaborative projects with information technology (IT) developers.

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2307.14852

Library Systems & Technology Specialist at University of North Alabama

This position oversees library information and discovery systems, as well as other specialized library systems, in a highly-collaborative environment. Primary responsibilities include managing, configuring, maintaining, implementing, and troubleshooting the library’s systems and website to ensure optimal performance, as well as serving as the primary liaison to technology vendors and the campus IT department.

https://tinyurl.com/37ne46w5

“Datafication and Cultural Heritage Collections Data Infrastructures: Critical Perspectives on Documentation, Cataloguing and Data-sharing in Cultural Heritage Institutions”

The role of cultural heritage collections within the research ecosystem is rapidly changing. From often-passive primary source or reference point for humanities research, cultural heritage collections are now becoming integral part of large-scale interdisciplinary inquiries using computational-driven methods and tools. This new status for cultural heritage collections, in the ‘collections-as-data’ era, would not be possible without foundational work that was and is still going on ‘behind the scenes’ in cultural heritage institutions through cataloguing, documentation and curation of cultural heritage records. This article assesses the landscape for cultural heritage collections data infrastructure in the UK through an empirical and critical perspective, presenting insights on the infrastructure that cultural heritage organisations use to record and manage their collections, exploring the range of systems being used, the levels of complexity or ease at which collections data can be accessed, and the shape of interactions between software suppliers, cultural heritage organisations, and third-party partners. The paper goes on to include a critical analysis of the findings based on the sector’s approach to ‘3s’, that is standards, skill sets and scale, and how that applies to different cultural heritage organisations throughout the data lifecycle, from data creation, stewardship to sharing and re-using.

https://doi.org/10.5334/johd.277

Systems and Discovery Services Librarian at SUNY Cortland

The Systems and Discovery Services Librarian is a tenure-track, full-time academic faculty librarian reporting to the Director of Libraries. This position takes the lead in administering the library services platform, discovery system, information management systems, and digital asset management systems. The Systems and Discovery Services Librarian works in collaboration with other units of the library and Information Resources.

https://tinyurl.com/n67a5rmm

“Exploring Academic Librarian Support of Open Pedagogy: A Survey of U.S. and Canadian Perspectives”

Case studies have demonstrated various ways in which academic librarians support open pedagogy, but little has been done to look at the bigger picture of what this support entails. This study surveyed 145 US and Canadian academic librarians about how comfortable they are with the concept of open pedagogy and whether they have supported it, along with what that support has looked like. The study also sought to understand what factors might affect this support, as well as how these librarians themselves could be better supported. Results show that a majority of respondents are at least somewhat comfortable with open pedagogy and have even supported it in at least one course. Respondents also expressed an interest in supporting open pedagogy in the future, but many expressed a desire for more resources and professional development.

https://tinyurl.com/3jrrdryw

Digital Scholarship Developer at University of Pennsylvania

Serve as technical consultant on digital scholarship projects, providing guidance and recommendations for project infrastructure.

In collaboration with the RDDS team and others, develop and maintain open-source tools, platforms, or projects for digital scholarship use.

Work with the Digital Projects, Publications, and Partnerships team to plan workflows, review project proposals, and assist as project manager on some projects.

https://tinyurl.com/ztt26upm

Pew Research Center: “U.S. Workers Are More Worried Than Hopeful About Future AI Use in the Workplace”

About half of workers (52%) say they’re worried about the future impact of AI use in the workplace, and 32% think it will lead to fewer job opportunities for them in the long run, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.

And while 36% of workers also say they feel hopeful about how AI may be used in the workplace in the future, a similar share (33%) say they feel overwhelmed.

https://tinyurl.com/3kcnwbnu

Digital Initiatives Librarian at West Chester University

Oversee the conception, development, and implementation of digital projects

Support in the acquisition of born-digital content, web-archiving, and other digital collecting initiatives

Develop the vision for digital content hosting and sharing across a variety of platforms, including policies, workflows, procedures, and the selection and maintenance of various CMS

Develop the vision for digital asset management and preservation, including policies, workflows, procedures, and selection and maintenance of the libraries’ dedicated server spaces and DAMS

https://tinyurl.com/3xy62wvj

“Open Infrastructures for Responsible Research Assessment: the CoARA Working Group publishes Its First Report”

The OI4RRA report stresses that transitioning to OIs requires institutions and stakeholders to identify the advantages that OIs offer in comparison with closed systems. These can be summarised in four key contributions.

In contrast to the traditional focus on publications and journal-based metrics, OIs support the consideration of a broad range of scholarly contributions in research evaluations.

OIs have the ability to integrate data-driven indicators with the nuance of contextual and narrative based information.

Thirdly, interoperability paired with community-driven governance for evaluations promote the uptake of best practices and foster trust.

Lastly, an emphasis on transparent data automation streamlines workflows, allowing researchers to devote more time to actual research.

https://tinyurl.com/vasmmrsh

Open Infrastructures for Responsible Research Assessment: Principles and Framework

Scholarly Communication and Affordable Learning Librarian at Ball State University

As a part of the Digital Scholarship and Scholarly Communication team, this person is directly responsible for advocating for, supporting, and educating the campus community on issues related to scholarly communication, copyright, open access, and open education. The Scholarly Communication and Affordable Learning Librarian will participate in the library liaison program, building collaborative relationships with faculty and championing affordable course materials, open resources, and open publishing.

https://tinyurl.com/y489yb73

“Building as They Come: Comparative Case Studies of Co-constructing Data Visualization Services with Academic Communities”

Academic libraries are well-situated to be strong supporters of democratizing and building knowledge and expertise in the use of data and data visualization as they cut across all of academia, regardless of discipline or department. Within the past decade, many academic libraries across North America have added data visualization services to their offerings. This has been done in several ways, from existing librarians with related portfolios like GIS or research data learning new skills to libraries creating new positions with the focus on the portfolio on data visualization. This chapter presents and compares two case studies of building data visualization services at York University Libraries and McMaster University Library.

https://hdl.handle.net/10315/42647

Data Services Librarian at George Washington University

This position will play a vital role in helping students and faculty navigate cross-disciplinary datasets, data visualization tools, and statistical software. GWLAI staff and librarians are champions of open access and support open scholarly communication and publishing practices, including the adoption and creation of open educational resources.

https://www.gwu.jobs/postings/118221

Clarivate Change Reactions: “Library Database Providers Clash Over Subscription Models”

Lo [Leo Lo, president of the Association of College and Research Libraries] predicted that “as libraries adjust to leasing-only arrangements, they are likely to become more selective, prioritizing high-demand or core resources while potentially overlooking materials in emerging fields, niche subject areas, or interdisciplinary research.” He also thought the change could strain the relationship between librarians and publishers, hasten a shift to open-access initiatives, or “drive libraries to negotiate more aggressively” for favorable licensing terms.

https://tinyurl.com/yahhr9kd

E-Resources and Collection Assessment Librarian at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Reporting to the Head of Technical Services, the e-Resources Librarian provides comprehensive management of electronic resources from start to finish, covering assessment and setup, maintenance, coordination and administration of the library’s e-resources, ensuring optimal and accurate user access to subscription resources, including databases, electronic journals, and e-books in a consortial environment.

https://tinyurl.com/4737r3sn