SPEC Kit 349: Evolution of Library Liaisons · 157
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
Position Description Framework for Liaison Librarians
Page 1 of 3
The UNIVERSITY of OKLAHOMA
L I B R A R I E S
libraries.ou.edu
University Libraries
POSITION DESCRIPTION
FRAMEWORK FOR
LIAISON LIBRARIANS
The University of Oklahoma Libraries represent a strategic investment of the university that is essential to support
of the teaching, research, and service missions of the University.
Liaison librarians serve as the primary contact between the University Libraries and academic departments, schools,
colleges, and/or programs or centers. The nature of the liaison role requires librarians to develop and maintain
positive working relationships with faculty, students, staff, and scholars and other campus constituencies in ways
that enhance the strategic investment of OU in libraries as part of the research and educational infrastructure of the
institution. The primary focus of a liaison’s role is to build and sustain relationships.
Liaison librarians work to enhance the visibility of library services across the campus and seek input and feedback
from faculty, students, staff, and scholars about library services and programs in ways that ensure the libraries meet
the current and emerging needs of the institution and are able to provide sustainable and scalable services.
Liaison librarians act as expert guides to the research and scholarly literature of specific disciplines provide research
support and consultation at the point of need teach classes and workshops on research tools, methods and
strategies curate research-level collections that include both print and electronic materials as well as special
collections and support development of emerging forms of digital scholarship.
In order to actively promote research and educational services and facilitate research and scholarship within the
evolving scholarly communication ecosystem and higher education environment of research universities, liaisons are
expected to be proactive in developing and maintaining their professional expertise and knowledge of current and
emerging changes, trends, and issues in the rapidly changing environments of academic librarianship and specific
disciplines.
****
Liaison duties fall into the teaching category for library faculty, a category that generally covers between 60 to 80 percent of a library
faculty member’s time. Liaison duties are part of the primary job responsibilities for a professional librarian.
The specific duties of a liaison librarian fall into several areas and generally include the following specific duties:
1. Serves as the liaison librarian for the following assigned areas: __________.
2. Serves as an embedded librarian, physically located within the __________________either full- or part-
time. Provides personalized consultation services to faculty and students within the
department/college/school. Offers library services and programs custom designed for constituency.
[APPLICABLE ONLY TO LIBRARIANS EMBEDDED INTO SPECIFIC
DEPARTMENTS/COLLEGES/SCHOOLS]
RELATIONSHIP DEVELOPMENT
3. Develops and maintains positive working relationships outside the library with administrators, library
representatives, faculty, and students in academic and affiliated units for assigned subject areas. Meets
and/or communicates regularly with administrators and library representatives.
Previous Page Next Page