ER&L IT Specialist

Electronic Resources and Libraries (ER&L), a volunteer-run conference, is looking for tech-savvy IT Specialist to administer its online resources. The conference serves as a venue for cross-departmental collaboration and discussion concerning how electronic/digital resources and paradigms are transforming the field of librarianship. 

Summary
ER&L is looking for an individual or individuals who are efficient, dedicated, and self-motivated for this project. This project is a great opportunity for those interested in library science to become acquainted with the work on the leading edge of the electronic/digital resources as well as the people who are doing it. User-friendly tools are the priority, and the Specialist will need to work closely with conference participants and planners to ensure this. At the same time, the Specialist will need to be comfortable using both off-the-shelf (openly available) tools as well as developing some in-house tools depending on feasibility for the situation in question.

The online resources use a mix of systems, including Open Conference System (OCS), MediaWiki, Wordpress, and various third-party APIs with locally hosted PHP scripts. Additional tools for a virtual conference will be needed and can be one of the areas in which the Specialist can take a lead. 

MediaWiki is used to run the main conference site and to host planning documentation. OCS is used for proposal submissions and, with use of third-party APIs, registration management and payment. Wordpress is used for group blogging.

Required skills
Familiarity with web-based development, including FTP and development/production sites
Familiarity with PHP
Familiarity with MySQL or other SQL-based database
Familiarity with HTML/CSS markup and use
Excellent communication skills
Ability to accurately assess task requirements
Self-directed and able to learn new skills and obtain resources as needed for completing tasks
Comfortable using documentation and existing resources to assess and implement third-party APIs 

Additional preferred skills
Exposure to Smarty templating engine or other templating system
Familiarity with PayPal API or other e-commerce API with a postback system
Experience working with object-oriented programming in PHP
Experience developing add-ons or extensions to open source systems
Experience with installing and/or maintaining MediaWiki-based sites
Experience in finding and installing add-ons or extensions for any of the systems mentioned in the job summary

Time Commitment
September, 2009 – May, 2010.

Time varies depending on skill set of the IT Specialist; on average 5-10 hours a week, with some weeks being heavier and many lighter. A work plan and timeline will be developed jointly with the Specialist at the start of work to assess this.

Benefits 
The ER&L IT Specialist will be given a $2,000 stipend to be paid as followed:
$1,000 by December 31, 2009
$1,000 by May, 2010

Complimentary registration to attend the 2010 ER&L Conference located in Austin, TX

ER&L is willing to work with a Library/Information School to create a practicum opportunity for a graduate student.

Submission
Please submit a letter of interest and resume/summary of relevant experience to Bonnie Tijerina at [log in to unmask] by September 30, 2009.



-- 
Elizabeth L. Winter
Electronic Resources Coordinator
Collection Acquisitions & Management
Library and Information Center
Georgia Institute of Technology
email: [log in to unmask]
phone: 404.385.0593
fax: 404.894.1723