Temporary Museum Specialist

City of Brighton; Brighton (CO); On-site; USD 38,000 - 40,000; Part time

Job summary

City of Brighton operates the Brighton City Museum and seeks a part-time Museum Specialist to manage collections, curate exhibits, digitize historical materials, and support educational programs. The role emphasizes careful archives handling and collaboration with the HPC and Community Development Department.

The position requires a bachelor’s degree in Public History, Historic Preservation, or Museum Studies and at least 3 years experience with historic documents/artifacts.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Public History, Historic Preservation, or Museum Studies.
• Minimum of 3 years handling historic documents/artifacts.
• Experience designing, creating or assembling museum exhibits is highly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Curates, organizes and archives the Brighton City Museum collections and ensures long-term storage best practices.
• Maintains catalog records and digital assets using PastPerfect and related systems.
• Develops and implements collection plans, policies and procedures including pest management and housing.
• Creates exhibits and accompanying educational materials for on-site and off-site viewing.
• Develops educational and outreach programs for diverse audiences and coordinates events.
• Oversees volunteer management, training, and daily museum operations.

Skills

Past Perfect Software

Collections management

Grant writing

Historic interpretation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Public History, Historic Preservation, or Museum Studies

Tools

Past Perfect Software

Job description

Starting hiring salary - $27.45 to $29.08 hourly

Definition

30 hours per week, Monday through Thursday

This temporary position is responsible for preserving and sharing Brighton’s history through the daily operations of the Brighton City Museum. This position is responsible for collections management, curation, the development and production of new exhibits for public viewing and educational purposes, record keeping including archiving historical documents, operations, promotion, staff and volunteer management and development, and properly caring for the museum’s collection. In addition, this position performs and oversees property research and other duties as needed by the public, Historic Preservation Commission (HPC), and the Community Development Department. This position must work well in a group setting with peers and with the public, while providing excellent, respectful customer service and human relations skills, which support the City of Brighton’s mission and values.

Supervision Exercised and Received

This position is supervised by theDevelopment Coordinator of the Community Development Department. The Museum Specialist will act as the lead for museum volunteers.

Examples of Essential Responsibilities and Duties

• Curates, organizes and archives the historic elements located within the Brighton City Museum ensuring long-term safe storage best practices.
• Cares for the museum’s collection of objects, photos, and archives, while adhering to professional standards regarding acquisition, documentation, housing, and exhibiting.
• Develops and implements collection-oriented plans, policies, and procedures (collections management, pest management, operations manual, etc.).
• Digitizes historic newspapers, documents, photographs, and artifacts; performs data entry of material information and archival, restoration, and storage of the historic elements.
• Maintains catalog records in PastPerfect software.
• Creates and rotates displays of the historic materials within and around the museum.
• Accepts and tracks donations of new materials and accessions items into the collection.
• Creates exhibits, both on and off-site, including script development, design, and installation of materials. Locates appropriate artifacts/objects/documents for use in exhibits.
• Develops and executes educational and outreach programming for a wide variety of audiences through dynamic museum events and initiatives.
• Assists the HPC, staff, and/or general public with historic research.
• Identifies grant opportunities, writes grant applications, administers grant funding, and prepares grant reporting and documentation.
• Works with staff, volunteers, the HPC and the Museum Committee to organize and hold museum events.
• Promotes the Brighton City Museum through partnerships with other organizations, cooperative programming, attendance at public events, and other means.
• Creates educational and promotional public information and disseminates that information to the public with oversight from the Communications and Engagement Department.
• Oversees the daily operations of the Brighton City Museum including purchasing, pest management, scheduling and management of volunteers, and maintaining vital statistics of museum interactions. Recruits, manages, and trains volunteers to assist in daily operations of the museum.
• May perform other duties as necessary to assist the Community Development Department.

Qualifications

Knowledge of:

• Past Perfect Software and standard museum practices regarding collections, exhibition development, historical interpretation, design, and educational programming.
• Collections management, including acquisition, artifact and archival care and handling, environmental controls, and standardized documentation systems.
• Grant writing and grant management.
• Historic interpretation and education methodology and practices.The Ten Agents of Deterioration and preventative conservation.

Ability to:

• Be highly self-motivated, detail-oriented, and organized.
• Work independently with minimal direction but also coordinate with other staff and the general public.
• Train and direct temporary volunteers in collections work and exhibit creation.
• Develop and maintain relationships with community members and organizations, volunteers, and donors.
• Demonstrate competence with computers and large scanners and input data with ease.

Education and Experience

• A bachelor’s degree, or equivalent experience, in Public History, Historic Preservation, or Museum Studies is required.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience working with and handling historic documents and/or artifacts.
• Experience designing, creating or assembling museum exhibits is also highly preferred.

Physical Requirements

• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to twenty-five (25) pounds.

Special Requirements

• Valid Colorado Driver’s License with safe driving record.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred.