Job Title: Part-Time Curator/Archivist

Reports to: Executive Director Cassandra Dean

Salary: $20.00

Hours of work: thirty per week

Benefits: paid sick, paid holiday, professional development, and paid mileage for events

JOB OVERVIEW

This position will support the Executive Director, Cassandra Dean, and is ideal for an individual with previous professional experience in museums. The role of a curator encompasses various responsibilities related to the museum's collection, including caring for and storing items, conducting research, supervising loans, engaging with the public, and organizing exhibitions. The archivist's role in this job is to assist the director in managing the inventory and documentation of collections for the Community Archives. The position also includes general administrative duties of the museum, such as serving as a docent, responding to phone calls and emails, managing gift shop sales, coordinating events, and writing for the newsletter. In the absence of the director, this position will serve as supervisor of employees and volunteers.

• MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

  Collections Management

• ·         Accession and catalog objects into the museum’s permanent collection.
• ·         Create and improve Past Perfect database entries, including digitization of paper records and photographing objects.
• ·         With the director’s input, create and update collections-related policies as needed.
• ·         Lead the donation process, including gathering background research, making recommendations for potential donations, leading Collections Committee meetings, and contacting donors.
•          Manage incoming and outgoing loans.
• ·         Inform the director of possible deaccessions and gaps in the collection.
• ·         Meet with the director monthly to go over collection and storage needs.
• ·         Assist the director in creating the summer and winter exhibits.
• ·         Oversee the creation of off-site exhibits and rotating exhibits.
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• Collections Care

•          Maintain collections storage rooms, including reorganizing and rehousing objects.
•         Conduct inventory of the museum collection, including creating condition reports.
• ·         Collaborate with the director and maintenance in recording, maintaining, and interpreting environmental monitoring data of galleries and collections storage areas.

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  Community Archives

• ·         Inventory the archival records, noting unnecessary duplication, uncertain accession information, and condition issues.
• ·         Bring items not accessioned to the committee for review.
• ·         Organize and describe archival collections in the creation of finding aids.
• ·         Assist the director in identifying remaining needs of the Community Archives project.
• ·         Supervise volunteers in the inventorying and scanning of the collection.
• ·         Assist in the completion of grants.

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  Supervisory

• ·         Get with the director monthly over volunteer assignments.
• ·         Supervise, train, and assist volunteers and interns in collections-related projects.
• ·         Supervise other employees and volunteers when the director is not in the office.

General Administrative Assistance

• ·         Assist in greeting and orienting the visitors with the museum, and operate the gift shop.
• ·         Assist in the data collection of information on members and volunteers into the CRM.
• ·         Respond to phone calls and emails.
• ·         Create social media posts and newsletter articles related to assigned projects from the collection.
• ·         Assist with events.
• ·         Additional office duties as assigned.

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  TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

• ·         The starting pay for this position is $20 per hour.
• ·         Working hours are 30 hours per week, usually between 10 am and 4 pm, Tuesday through Saturday. The exact hours to be worked during the week are negotiable.
• ·         The place of employment will be the Gage County Museum in Beatrice, Nebraska.
• ·         This is an at-will position and can be terminated at any time.

Required Qualifications:

• ·         Bachelor’s degree in history, museum studies, anthropology, or a related field
• ·         Experience working with museum collections.
• ·         General knowledge of museum standards and best practices
• ·         Ability to think creatively and work independently.
•        Detail-oriented
•          Excellent at writing for various audiences
• ·         Strong project and resource management skills
• ·         Ability to lift up to thirty-five pounds.
• ·         Proficiency in Microsoft Office products, including Excel and Word
• ·         Excellent communication skills
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Preferred Qualifications:

• ·         Master’s degree in museum studies, similar curriculum, or equivalent work experience
• ·         Experience with digital content creation (website and social media)
• ·         Experience with museum database software
• ·         Experience creating museum exhibits.
• ·         Strong use of a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database

The position will be open until a qualified candidate is found. Please contact the director at director@gagecountyhistory.org to get an application.