Associate Director at the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology

Job Title: Associate Director

Job Status: Full-time

Location: Ann Arbor, MI

Salary: $104,000 – $130,000

Description

About the Kelsey Museum

The Kelsey Museum of Archaeology is a unit of the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. It serves as steward of a large collection of art and artifacts from the ancient Mediterranean, Near East, and northeast Africa, including one of the world’s great collections of excavated Graeco-Roman artifacts from Egypt.  The Kelsey sponsors ongoing fieldwork and research projects and a lively exhibition program geared both to the general public and to academic audiences. Activities also include an expansive program in public education and outreach, an ever-increasing web presence, and a program of publications serving all facets of our endeavors. The Kelsey’s Director and faculty curators hold academic teaching positions within disciplinary departments of the College. Professional staff includes two conservators, two collections managers (registrars), two specialists in outreach teaching, an exhibition designer/preparator, an editor of publications and web sites, a graphic artist, security personnel, and a business office staff serving all these activities. See the Museum’s website for further information: www.lsa.umich.edu/kelsey.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Associate Director

The Kelsey Associate Director (AD) is a museum professional with high level administrative experience, a graduate degree, and a background in the geographic areas covered by the museum and related fields, as well as relevant research interests.

The AD will report to the Director and will work closely with the faculty curators, Chief Administrator, and the Internal Operations Committee to coordinate the strategic vision of the museum, consistent with its place as a unit within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts at the University of Michigan. This role helps coordinate the operational aspects of the museum, providing project management and optimizing synergies among departments. Facilitating the Museum’s special exhibition program procedures, logistics, and scheduling will be a key component of the job.

A key function of this role is to manage  the museum-specific staff members of the Museum, in consultation with the Director where appropriate. The AD works very closely with the Director and Chief Administrator, sits ex officio on the Internal Operations Committee and is a member of other relevant committees. The AD will work collaboratively with the academic curators to facilitate their Museum-related projects.

The Associate Director is a full-time permanent position on a 12-month (i.e. full year round) contract.

Summary of Primary responsibilities

  • Manage overall operational activities and planning
  • Liaise across campus with relevant university departments, units, services and facilities to optimize operations
  • Project management for logistics and scheduling of displays and exhibitions, as defined by the Faculty Curator’s Committee, the Exhibitions Committee, and the International Operations Committee, making sure that these projects stay on track and on budget, in collaboration with the CA
  • Support continuing development of the strategic planning, historic preservation and the programmatic and storage needs of the museum
  • Spearhead the creation of a strategic plan for outreach, representing the Kelsey Museum to its key audiences
  • Provide professional support to employees in collections care, collection management, exhibition design, education, and publications
  • Implement and support DEIA principles in museum operations and messaging
  • Filling in for the Director as needed

Requirements

Required Qualifications

An advanced degree or equivalent experience, and previous work in a museum setting.  Knowledge of the archaeology of the geographic areas covered by the museum and related fields, as well as relevant research interests. 3-5 years of high level museum administrative and leadership experience and 2-5 years of staff supervision and budget management.  Demonstrated success in leading and managing people and programs in complex non-profit, governmental, or similar organizations.  A track record of building and maintaining successful relationships with relevant external stakeholders such as community and government agencies, as well as an ability to develop and execute strategic plans, excellent writing and verbal skills, and a history of successful grant applications.

More details can be found at Kelsey Museum Position, where applications should be submitted. The deadline for applications is May 6, 2023.

Any inquiries can be addressed to the Director, Professor Nicola Terrenato, (kelsey-director@umich.edu)

**All applications must be submitted through https://careers.umich.edu/job_detail/231534/kelsey-museum-archaeology-associate-director.