Temporary 2026 Judith M. Wright Fellowship
The University of Chicago

Department
Law D'Angelo Law Library

About the Department
The University of Chicago Law School occupies a unique niche among this country's premier law schools. Located on a residential campus in one of America's great cities, UChicago Law offers a rigorous and interdisciplinary professional education that blends the study of law with the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. Students, faculty, and staff form a small, tightly knit community devoted to the life of the mind.

Job Information

Job Summary:

The D'Angelo Law Library at the University of Chicago is accepting applications for the Temporary 2026 Judith M. Wright Fellowship. This Fellowship develops promising new professionals in academic law librarianship by supporting a career training program at the D'Angelo Law Library. The Judith M. Wright Fellowship provides $5,000 to a law school or library science student or recent graduate selected for training at the D'Angelo Law Library, as described below.

The Fellowship gives candidates interested in law librarianship as a career an opportunity to apply their skills and knowledge in an academic law library setting. Fellows working in the D'Angelo Law Library under the guidance and supervision of the Law Library Director and other librarians will learn about the Library's overall functions, policies, and practices in both the collections services and user services departments. In addition to participating in the daily work of a premier academic law library, Fellows will undertake and complete a project based on the needs and capabilities of the D'Angelo Law Library and the interests and prior experience of the Fellow. As a requirement for completing the Fellowship, the Fellow will give a presentation on their project and write and submit a report summarizing and reflecting on their experiences working at the D'Angelo Law Library.

Responsibilities:

The project for Summer 2026 will be one of the following:

• The D'Angelo Law Library furthers its mission of contributing to the academic and scholarly success of the Law School by teaching legal research classes to first-year and upper-year students. The 2026 Wright Fellow will research the latest pedagogical literature on critical information literacy and its application to legal research, teaching, and practice. This research would examine the intersection of critical information literacy and the teaching and use of generative AI tools. The Fellow will then collaborate with current librarian-instructors to develop lesson plans to incorporate instruction on critical information literacy and the informed, responsible use of generative AI into the existing curriculum. Upon completing this project, the Wright Fellow will have learned about cutting-edge theories in legal research instruction and gained experience in applying theory to develop practical lesson plans.
  
• The D'Angelo Law Library builds collections and resources of local, national, and international materials to further research and learning in law and related disciplines. The Library plans to develop and curate research resources on the history of law enforcement and interactions between the community and law enforcement entities in Chicago. The 2026 Wright Fellow will work with Law Library staff and Law School and other campus partners to locate existing relevant materials in the University of Chicago Library's collections and to identify helpful resources outside the University, including in libraries, archives, and the holdings of organizations working in this area. The Fellow will create a LibGuide of resources to facilitate research on law enforcement and police work in Chicago and produce a report of findings to guide the D'Angelo Law Library staff in the continued development of the research materials. Through this project, the Wright Fellow will learn about the history of law enforcement in Chicago and the legal, social, and civic issues involved, and gain experience curating a unique set of research resources.
  
• Chicago Unbound is the institutional repository for the University of Chicago Law School and is managed by the D'Angelo Law Library. The repository preserves and provides access to UChicago Law's scholarship and research, publications, historical collections, journals, lectures, and events. The 2026 Wright Fellow will work on a project to improve the functionality of the repository site and promote its success to the Law School community. Working with D'Angelo librarians, Law School Communications, and the platform service provider, the Fellow will develop recommendations for a refresh of the homepage and navigation for the repository site and plans for a program of regular reports for Law School stakeholders on usage of content in the repository by the local, domestic, and international communities. Through this project, the Fellow will gain knowledge of repository development and maintenance, as well as skills in working with library colleagues and stakeholders in an academic community.
  

Additional Responsibilities

Education, Experience, or Certifications:

Education:

• A degree from an accredited library science or information science program and/or a J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school is required.
  
• The above degree is strongly preferred, however candidates currently enrolled in an accredited library science or information science program and/or a J.D. program at an ABA-accredited law school may be considered.
  

Experience:

• An interest in academic law librarianship, demonstrated through appropriate coursework or prior experience, is required.
  

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• This position is required to work onsite at the D'Angelo Law Library 5 days per week.
  

Compensation and Benefits:

• The Judith M. Wright Fellowship provides $5,000 for six consecutive weeks of temporary, full-time work in the summer of 2026, ideally between June 15 and September 11, 2026. The selected candidate will be paid $20.83 per hour for 40 hours per week for 6 weeks. This position is not benefits-eligible.
  

Required Documents:

• Resume
  
• A letter of application expressing applicants' interest in this opportunity, an indication of which of the proposed projects would be of interest to them, and their commitment to a career in academic law librarianship
  
• A description of applicants' Library or information science graduate program and/or J.D. degree program, including any coursework in law librarianship or legal information resources
  
• The names and e-mail addresses of three professional references
  
• Review of applications will begin after March 27, 2026
  

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family
Temporary Staff

Scheduled Weekly Hours
20

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Frequency
Hourly

Pay Rate Type
Hourly

FLSA Status
Non-Exempt

Pay Range
$5,000.00
The included pay rate or range represents the University's good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.

Benefits Eligible
This position is not eligible for benefits.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu. Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

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