Librarian & Digital Literacy Specialist

Learn More About The Alexander Dawson School

Shared Values & Competencies of Dawson Employees

Position Summary

The Librarian and Digital Literacy Specialist serves as a leader at the intersection of curiosity, research, and technology. This role fosters a deep and lifelong love of reading while equipping learners with the critical thinking and digital fluency skills they’ll need to succeed in an ever-changing world. While managing the physical and digital resources of the library, ensuring the space is the learning heart of the school, the Librarian is deeply embedded throughout all three divisions, partnering with teachers on technology-rich, inquiry-driven experiences, helping students be the curious, capable, and adaptable learners this moment demands.

Essential Functions
The essential duties and responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to:

Professional Work Habits & Mission Alignment

• Professional Standards & Conduct: Consistently upholds professional standards of personal presentation, punctuality, attendance, and engagement at meetings, duty coverage, safety protocols, decision-making, and maintains required credentials.
• Commitment to Dawson Culture: Demonstrates a comprehensive understanding and support of Dawson's mission, vision, core values, and diversity statement; actively participates in school-wide events.
• Confidentiality & Ethical Practice: Honors confidentiality of school, student, and family information and demonstrates ethical decision-making in all professional contexts. Talks to people and not about people.
• Working Agreements: Upholds Dawson working agreements, such as assuming positive intentions in all interactions, holding self and others accountable for the impact of words and actions, mindfully sharing the air, and proactively looking for solutions before problems escalate.

Instructional Knowledge

• Classroom Climate & Management: Establishes a safe, well-organized environment with effective routines that maximize learning time, exhibits student ownership and agency, and reflects the identity of the students.

• Instructional Design & Delivery: Designs learning experiences that are meaningful, engaging, and aligned with clear learning objectives. Lessons leverage high-impact strategies that promote deeper learning, critical thinking, and meaningful technology integration; pacing of lessons is appropriate to maximize instructional time.

• Assessment, Feedback & Differentiation: Provides timely, specific feedback that supports growth and utilizes multiple assessments and adapts instruction to meet diverse learning needs.

• Student Success Skills Integration: Intentionally plans and implements instruction focused on Dawson's Student Success Skills, and systematically collects evidence of student progress toward mastery of these skills.

Expertise

Instructional Leadership

• Design and deliver developmentally appropriate classes in reading engagement, research skills, information literacy, and responsible technology use.

• Serve as a school-wide thought partner on information literacy, media literacy, and the ethical use of AI and emerging technologies.

• Co-plan and model lessons with faculty that integrate inquiry skills, media literacy, and purposeful technology use.

• Create instructional materials, exemplars, and resources to support inquiry-driven, technology-enhanced learning.

• Integrate emerging technologies, including AI tools, in developmentally appropriate ways.

• Refine and implement a cohesive library and technology scope and sequence for EC-8.

Library Stewardship

• Manage the daily operations of the library, including acquisitions, cataloging, and circulation.

• Maintain a diverse, current, and inclusive library of physical and digital resources.

• Provide day-to-day direction and coordination of the Library Assistant to ensure smooth library operations.

• Curate and lead vibrant programming, including reading programs, author visits, and book fairs, that build a culture of reading and intellectual excitement

• Foster an inviting, inclusive library environment that serves as the intellectual heart of the school community.

• Manage the library budget and vendor relationships, monitoring expenditures and preparing reports as needed, while ensuring compliance with copyright, privacy, and accessibility standards.

Professional Growth & Self-Awareness

• Self-Reflection & Growth Mindset: Demonstrates deep self-awareness, consistently seeks feedback, identifies areas for improvement, and implements meaningful changes to practice.
• Professional Learning & Adaptation: Creates personal development plans, actively seeks learning opportunities, and demonstrates flexibility in adapting to Dawson's culture and practices.
• Effective Communication & Listening: Demonstrates excellent listening skills, remains alert to diverse perspectives, and communicates effectively with various stakeholders throughout change processes.

Care for Others & Community Investment

• Family Communication & Partnership: Establishes reliable, clear communication systems with families, regularly shares student progress, and responds appropriately to concerns with supervisor consultation.
• Team Collaboration & Engagement: Actively participates in team meetings and collaborative efforts, contributes positively to grade-level or department teams, and seeks appropriate guidance from colleagues.
• Learns From Others: Consistently consults with mentors, supervisors, and colleagues for guidance on student interventions, parent communication, and classroom challenges.
• Identity Awareness: Demonstrates a commitment to ongoing cultural competency and exhibits a deep understanding of how identity and lived experiences influence relationships and interactions.

Qualifications, Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Education or a related field required; Master’s degree in Library and Information Science (MLS/MLIS) or a related field (e.g., Curriculum & Instruction, Educational Technology) strongly preferred
• Experience teaching and designing instruction across a range of grade levels, ideally Early Childhood through Grade 8
• Demonstrated expertise in research instruction, information literacy, and media literacy
• Experience integrating digital tools and emerging technologies into learning in developmentally appropriate and pedagogically sound ways
• Curiosity about and experience with AI tools and their responsible, developmentally appropriate application in educational settings
• Strong collaborative skills and the ability to partner effectively with faculty across divisions
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Experience curating diverse, inclusive collections and fostering equitable access to resources

• Innovative, reflective approach to programming and the evolving role of libraries in schools

Work Environment

• The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Physical Demands

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand and walk; use hands to handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 40 pounds.