Tennessee Secretary of State

Librarian/Archivist Assistant 2

Tennessee Department of State

Tennessee State Library & Archives

Public Services

Mission: The mission of the Office of the Secretary of State is to exceed the expectations of our customers, the taxpayers, by operating at the highest levels of accuracy, cost-effectiveness, and accountability in a customer-centered environment.

Supervisor: Director of Public Services

Summary: Assists the General Assembly, staff, and the public in person, in writing, via email, and by telephone by answering reference questions from simple to complex.

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates strong interpersonal skills as a representative of the State Library and Archives and its collections and policies to the public.
• Performs general reference services such as greeting the public, handling routine history and genealogy inquiries, and suggesting research strategies to patrons – in person, by email, online, and over the telephone.
• Provides reference assistance for online institutional resources, such as the Tennessee Electronic Library (TEL), Ancestry, Fold3, HeritageQuest, ProQuest Historical Newspapers, and related content; keeps current with new databases added and navigational changes within TEL.
• Retrieves and files materials.
• Staff a Public Service desk in the Reading Room, including a minimum of one Saturday per month.
• Collaborates with staff on a variety of project assignments both large and small, including but not limited to data entry, digital scanning, creating research guides and instructional materials for patrons and staff, and historical research.
• Works regular shifts in the Legislative History Unit of Public Services, providing access to legislative history and recording materials, and using and assisting patrons with audio listening equipment.
• Serves on one or more of the Library and Archives building-wide committees.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in American History or related field.
• Experience equivalent to two years of full-time office/clerical or library/archival work of which at least one year must have been in library or archival work.
• Additional post-secondary education may be substituted for the required experience on a year-for-year basis for the required general experience.
• Customer service experience and comfortable with working with the public, including scholars, researchers, genealogists, and the community at large.
• Experience and familiarity with genealogy or Tennessee history desired.

Knowledge and Abilities:

• Communicates complex information to individuals and small groups.
• Possesses skills in researching print and microfilm sources and websites for the purpose of gathering and collating data for patrons.
• Demonstrates excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Possesses skills in intermediate to advanced computer operations.
• Applies sound analytical thinking to problem-solving.

Health, Safety, and Collections Security:

• Assist the organization to create a safe and healthy work environment by working safely with the equipment provided.
• Follow instructions given for health and safety purposes and immediately report any unsafe working practices or hazardous working conditions.
• Take whatever measures are necessary to protect the collections from loss, mutilation, or theft.

Salary: $45,000 annually plus the State of Tennessee benefits package.

To Apply: Send your resume and cover letter to [email protected]. Please include the position you are applying for in the email subject.

Tennessee Secretary of State