Museum Curator.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Bowie (MD); On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum seeks a curator/research professional to identify authenticity of records and objects, conduct provenance work, and manage documentation for the Museum's Permanent Collection. You will coordinate interns and volunteers, respond to inquiries, and participate in professional meetings as a representative of the Museum.

The role requires advanced research skills, experience with provenance and collection management, and the ability to engage with multilingual

Qualifications

• Degree in a museum-related field or applicable subject-matter
• Specialized experience in documenting physical condition of collection materials
• Proven ability to translate information and decipher inscriptions
• Selective placement factor requires reading fluency in at least two non-English European languages

Responsibilities

• Applies research skills and historical knowledge to identify authenticity of records, objects, or specimens
• Gathers information and conducts provenance research on materials in the Permanent Collection
• Searches for materials aligned with collection priorities including witnesses, victims, and perpetrators
• Prepares recommendations to accept or decline donations or purchases for review
• Facilitates processing of materials with custody receipts and Deeds of Gift
• Coordinates research efforts by interns, curatorial assistants, and volunteers
• Responds to inquiries about the collection and coordinates related activities by volunteers and staff
• Represents the USHMM at professional meetings and lectures on collections

Skills

Research skills

Provenance research

Documentation

Reading fluency in multiple languages

Education

Museum work degree or applicable field

Job description

Duties

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is a federally chartered, nonpartisan institution that was created by the US Congress to serve as America’s national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust and an educational institution dedicated to the history and lessons of the Holocaust. The Museum seeks to educate Americans from all 50 states and all walks of life as well as international audiences. The Museum has three areas of expertise: Holocaust remembrance, Holocaust scholarship and education, and genocide prevention.

In carrying out its important memorial and educational mission, the Museum is guided by its institutional values for our workplace: Honor the memory of the victims; carry out our work with dignity, humility, integrity and respect for others; and strive for excellence through teamwork, rigor, and a culture of continuous learning. Consistent respect for others is the foundation for trust, collegiality and inclusion.

Duties Include

• Applies research skills and historical and material knowledge to identify and determine the authenticity of records, objects, or specimens, and materials related to the Holocaust.


• Gathers information, prepares documentation, and conducts provenance research on materials currently in the Museum’s Permanent Collection, and determines history and provenance etc., for Museum records.


• Conducts searches for materials that align with the Museum’s collection priorities. This may include materials related to witnesses, victims, and perpetrators.


• Prepares recommendations to accept or decline donations or purchases of materials and submits these for review by relevant stakeholders.


• Facilitates the processing of already received materials, completing custody receipts, Deeds of Gift, and other required documents.


• Coordinates research efforts by interns, curatorial assistants, and volunteers.


• Responds to written and telephone inquiries about the collection and coordinates similar activities on the part of volunteers, curatorial assistants, and interns.


• Represents the USHMM at meetings of professional museum organizations and curatorial committees and lectures on the collections to various public groups.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

You must be a U.S. citizen or national to apply.

This agency provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. The decision granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

As a condition of employment, all new hires must agree to direct deposit of their salary checks. Employees will have up to two (2) pay periods from the date they enter on duty to arrange for their direct deposit transaction.

On-line resumes must be submitted by 11:59pm EST of the closing date.

You must be a suitable for Federal employment.

You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).

A one year probationary/trial period may be required.

Payment of relocation expenses is not authorized.

The USHMM is an equal opportunity employer.

This is a Federal agency. Former employees who received a voluntary separation incentive (“buyout”) must repay the full amount of it if reemployed under any type of appointment or under a personal service contract within five years after separation with a buyout.

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations e.g., professional; philanthropic, religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies; knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Basic Requirement

Degree: Museum work; or in an applicable subject-matter field.

OR

Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

OR

Four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown in A above.

In addition to the basic requirements above, all applicants must meet the following Specialized Experience and Selective Placement Factor as follows.

Specialized Experience

Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. The specialized experience requirements for the GS-11 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-09 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position specialized experience is documenting physical condition of materials in the Museum's Collection; translating information, deciphering inscriptions, and conversing effectively with foreign donors or potential sources of materials or information; preparing and delivering verbal and written presentations on behalf of the Museum on various topics; organizing and preparing correspondence, reports, briefing papers, or other data on projects for internal and external constituencies.

Selective Placement Factor

Selective Placement Factors (SPF) are special requirements, in addition to the minimum requirements, that are essential in successfully performing the duties of this job. If the SPF is not documented in your resume, you will not receive further consideration under this announcement. The SPF is listed in the online application as follows: reading fluency in at least two non-English European languages, including but not limited to French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, and Yiddish, in order to decipher inscriptions when assessing authenticity of objects under consideration.

• Failure to submit required documentation will result in an ineligible rating.

Education

For positions with an education requirement, or if you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses showing title, number of credits, grade, and date of completion.

A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page. If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. Refer to the OPM instructions. There is no positive education requirement for this position.

Additional information

All applicants are required to submit a résumé either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing.

Please limit your resume to two-pages. Only the first two (2) pages will be reviewed. To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/date/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your résumé. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your résumé to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. For resume writing guidance, please visit USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?

VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans preference, please see applicant guide for required documentation. In order to be considered for veterans preference, you must submit all required documentation as outlined in the applicant guide.

CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PLAN (CTAP) OR INTERAGENCY CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PLAN (ICTAP) DOCUMENTATION: ICTAP Applicants: To be considered well-qualified and exercise selection priority as an ICTAP candidate, displaced Federal employees must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and rate highly qualified. ICTAP candidates must provide copies of all of the following documentation at the time of application: 1) agency notice; 2) most recent performance appraisal; and 3) most recent SF-50 or notification of personnel action that includes position, grade level, and duty location. Applicants who do not provide this documentation will not receive consideration as an ICTAP candidate.

Selective Service: This link provides information on the Selective Service System Registration.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

A career with the U.S. Government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

A career with the U.S. Government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Learn more about federal benefits. Explore the benefits offered to most Federal employees

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.