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Digital Culture

ZOMG! I has a n3w j0b!

After a lot (and I mean a LOT…probably far too much) soul searching, I’ve decided to try out a different position here at UTC Lupton Library. I was offered and I have accepted the position of Head of Library Information Technology.

This means a transition out of doing tons of reference and instruction work…but I’m planning on keeping my nose in that realm as much as possible. It’s just too good for tracking what the patrons are actually concerned with to not stay involved. At the same time, I’ll be taking on the huge burden of all tech in the library…all wires, systems, applications, and boxen are to be my purview. I’d be lying if I wasn’t a bit nervous about the whole thing.

The big concern? We use the VTLS library system…and byzantine wouldn’t begin to describe my feelings about ILS’s. Add in that we’re one of less than a dozen academic libraries that use it, and my circle of assistance is pretty low.

The big opportunity? Pretty much everything. Digital repository, ticketing system for patron issues, getting our archives online…tons to keep me busy. I’m really excited about the opportunity.

By griffey

Jason Griffey is the Director of Strategic Initiatives at NISO, where he works to identify new areas of the information ecosystem where standards expertise is useful and needed. Prior to joining NISO in 2019, Jason ran his own technology consulting company for libraries, has been both an Affiliate at metaLAB and a Fellow and Affiliate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, and was an academic librarian in roles ranging from reference and instruction to Head of IT at the University of TN at Chattanooga.

Jason has written extensively on technology and libraries, including multiple books and a series of full-periodical issues on technology topics, most recently AI & Machine Learning in Libraries and Library Spaces and Smart Buildings: Technology, Metrics, and Iterative Design from 2018. His newest book, co-authored with Jeffery Pomerantz, will be published by MIT Press in 2024.

He has spoken internationally on topics such as artificial intelligence & machine learning, the future of technology and libraries, decentralization and the Blockchain, privacy, copyright, and intellectual property. A full list of his publications and presentations can be found on his CV.
He is one of eight winners of the Knight Foundation News Challenge for Libraries for the Measure the Future project (http://measurethefuture.net), an open hardware project designed to provide actionable use metrics for library spaces. He is also the creator and director of The LibraryBox Project (http://librarybox.us), an open source portable digital file distribution system.

Jason can be stalked obsessively online, and spends his free time with his daughter Eliza, reading, obsessing over gadgets, and preparing for the inevitable zombie uprising.

5 replies on “ZOMG! I has a n3w j0b!”

Congratulations on the new appointment! I do alot of the computer systems for our library down here in a rural Georgia college and your blog has proved helpful. Thanks.

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