P/T - Collections Manager - Weeksville Heritage Center

Weeksville Heritage Center is a historic site of great national significance. Weeksville is one of the only African American historic sites in the Northeast on its original property and the only African American historic site in New York that teaches post enslavement history. During the 19th century, the village of Weeksville was a vibrant and independent African American community. Weeksville holds a collection of approximately 1,600 objects including three historic houses restored to three different time periods, the 1860’s, 1900’s and 1930’s. Our mission is to document, preserve and interpret the history of free African American communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and beyond and to create and inspire innovative, contemporary uses of African American history through education, the arts, and civic engagement.

Weeksville seeks a part-time Collections Manager who will be responsible for preserving our artifact and archive collections including the historic Hunterfly Road Houses. The Collections Manager will report to the Resource Center Director.

Primary responsibilities:

* Complete and implement our Collections Plan and Policies
* Create a Collections Handbook
* Complete data management for PastPerfect records: condition reports, object history, object date/year, donor history, development of search terms (people, classification, subject, and keyword), and yearly inventory
* Create and implement plan for transferring objects and artifacts to new building
* Catalog archaeological and architectural collections with integration into PastPerfect
* Organize and catalog past building records from 1980 and 2005 restoration
* Manage maintenance and care of historic Hunterfly Road Houses including formal maintenance plan, schedule and housekeeping manual
* Develop Disaster Preparedness Plan
* Develop and administer restoration related budgets and activities
* Mange all restoration projects
* Work with Development Manager to research and pursue restoration and collections related grants

Requirements/Qualifications:
The ideal Collections Manager candidate will:

* Have 3 to 5 years of professional experience in historic house restoration
* Hold an advanced degree in a relevant discipline (Master’s or above)
* Have experience working with PastPerfect software
* Be an excellent project manager and communicator, capable of thinking and working strategically and handling administrative tasks thoroughly;
* Have a dedicated work ethic, including being a self-starter with the ability to work independently but also be able to be a hands-on team member;
* Be well-organized, detail-oriented, and able to handle multiple projects simultaneously, often under time constraints; and
* Have excellent database, computer, and time management skills.

The candidate should be flexible, committed, personable and comfortable multi-tasking while working in a small, fast-paced office.

Equal Opportunity Employer. No phone calls please. You will only be contacted if we request an interview.
How to Apply:
E-mail or mail resume with cover letter to:
Pamela Green
Executive Director
Weeksville Heritage Center
PO Box 130-120, St. John’s Station
Brooklyn, NY 11213

pam@weeksvillesociety.org

Originally posted on idealist.org