Collections Specialist

The Presidio Trust is seeking a Collections Specialist who will support the Compliance team in the Planning and Compliance Department. Once an Army post, the Presidio of San Francisco is now a new kind of national park. The 1,500-acre Presidio is richly layered in history, is a natural oasis for wildlife, plants, and people, and offers iconic views known around the world. In its third decade as a park, public awareness and enjoyment of this exceptional place continues to grow.

The Collections Specialist supports all aspects of curatorial operations, including collections development, documentation, preservation, and use. The role works with a larger team of cultural resource professionals (Curator, Federal Preservation Officer, Archaeologist, etc.) to balance preserving the Trust’s collections while providing access to them for scientific, educational, and other purposes, including exhibition at the Presidio Officers’ Club. The work is performed under the direction of the Curator and in compliance with 36 CFR Part 79, The Curation of Federally Owned or Administered Archaeological Collections, agency policy, and federal law. Collections include both permanent archaeological collections and borrowed museum objects, with post-contact archaeological materials making up the majority of the collections. Exhibitions include both permanent and temporary installations that explore the Presidio’s history and make collections accessible to a broad audience.

Our ideal candidate is a creative and organized museum professional with a passion for public service, who brings a collaborative, thoughtful, and detail-oriented approach to preserving collections and sharing them with the public.

This is a full-time fixed-term position.  The position is eligible for all benefits made available to a full-time hire; however, the appointment will terminate at the end of a 5-year term from date of hire.    The starting pay range is $73,795 to $91,043, and the starting base salary is dependent on the experience and qualifications of the candidate. Applications received by December 1, 2023 will receive first consideration.

Responsibilities

• Provide collections care, including identification, handling, cleaning, cataloging, labeling, condition reporting, and storing objects in the collections. Make recommendations for conservation treatments. Conduct inventories and process uncatalogued collections material. Collaborate with archaeological staff to provide curatorial support for new acquisitions.
• Create records documenting collections transactions (accessions, outgoing and incoming loans) in accordance with established policy and guidelines. Maintain other collections information such as artifact catalogs, identification references, conservation treatments, lender and shipper files, and insurance documentation. Maintain collections database to facilitate access to and use of the collections.
• Conduct research on collections. Assemble collection materials for use in research projects, exhibitions, and other purposes. Serve as a team member on collections committees and participate in committee activities evaluating and reviewing plans for accession, conservation, loan, and other use of collections items.
• Implement preventative conservation and technical maintenance procedures for curation facility and exhibition galleries at the Officers’ Club, including curatorial cleaning and maintenance, environmental and IPM monitoring, and object and record handling and relocation. Work with facility and IPM staff to ensure proper collections environment is maintained and address concerns. Maintain inventory of curatorial furniture, equipment, and supplies.
• To facilitate public access to the Trust’s collections, participate in the exhibition development process, including idea generation and concept development, content development, design development, fabrication, and installation of exhibitions. Contribute to content creation, including selection, development, and installation of collections objects, images, and multimedia; and other tasks for use in communicating information in exhibitions. Create and maintain exhibition documentation such as research briefs, collections object and image lists, permissions, design files, and punch lists. Negotiate rights management in association with collections images and objects used in exhibition, in accordance with the lender and/or owner’s permissions or usage rights policy.
• Assist with the development of curatorial procedural manuals and reporting. Write collections finding aids. Conduct analysis of multiple data sources and synthesize findings in professional reports. Maintain the Trust’s General Facility Report to provide comprehensive facility information for potential lenders to exhibitions at the Officers’ Club.
• Provide accessible information to Trust staff and the public about ongoing curatorial activities pertinent to the park’s cultural resources and themes. Provide instruction and training on curatorial resources and operations for staff, interns, and volunteers.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in museum studies, anthropology, material culture studies, art history, history, or a related discipline with specialized training in museology.
• At least two years of relevant work experience comparable in scope and responsibility, such as, a combination of experience in collections management principles and procedures used in the physical care and record keeping of collections objects; and experience in exhibition development and preventive conservation principles and procedures used in creation and maintenance of collections-based museum experiences.
• Positive, professional demeanor. Ability to form and maintain successful working relationships and work cooperatively with many departments and with community members. Strong organizational skills and meticulous attention to detail. Ability to work simultaneously on multiple projects. Demonstrated creativity and flexibility.
• Skill in oral and written communication in order to ensure that documentation is well written, easily understood, and pertinent information is shared effectively; and that oral presentations are informative, clear, and convey the intended message.
• Strong computer and data management skills, including familiarity with and ability to use various types of cross-platform relational database and digital media software currently being used within the profession for collections management and exhibition development. Ability to learn additional software used in the field of museology and related disciplines. Competency with Microsoft Office applications is required.

Desired Qualifications

• Passion for parks; strong desire to work for the Presidio Trust.
• Familiarity with Re:discovery software.
• Experience working with basic hand tools.

 

About the Presidio Trust Compliance Team

The Presidio of San Francisco is a 1,491 acre National Historic Landmark District comprised of over 700 contributing buildings, landscapes, archaeological sites and features. We’re protecting and sharing the park’s extraordinary historical record. We’re rehabilitating this National Historic Landmark District, with hundreds of buildings, artifacts, and landscapes that tell the story of our nation’s past. We manage more than 30 archaeological areas that reveal the land’s history, from Native Ohlone settlement to U.S. Army occupation. And we steward collections of more than one million objects and associated records from multiple eras. Public exhibitions share the collections with the public and explore the Presidio’s role in shaping and serving the nation, and how this history is relevant today.

Background Investigation and Review

The Presidio Trust has identified this position as subject to an employment background investigation which shall consist of a review of applicable county, state and Federal criminal and civil records, state bankruptcy indexes, driver’s license. An individual’s granting of a background investigation and resulting report is voluntary. However, employment in this sensitive position is contingent upon the successful completion of an employment background investigation. The Presidio Trust may refuse to hire an individual, may rescind an offer of employment to an individual, or may review and terminate the employment of a current employee not successfully completing the background investigation.

The Presidio Trust is an equal opportunity employer, offering a competitive benefits package. To apply, download the employment application from our website at www.presidio.gov/presidio-trust/jobs and submit your application to our email address listed on our website.