Museum Presenter - Monroe County Museum

Posted on 4/29/24  

Department: Museum System

Wage Grade: Rye-5

FLSA Status: Non-Exempt

Affiliation: Non-Union/Part-Time

Salary Range: $15.54 To 15.54 Hourly

GENERAL SUMMARY:

As part of the Monroe County Museum System’s Programs Division, Presenters report to the Deputy Director. The Presenter, in coordination with the Deputy Director or their designee, delivers educational programs at the various sites managed by the Monroe County Museum System and at regional schools, senior centers, clubs, and civic organizations. Educational programs focus on the natural and cultural history of Monroe County and our region from prehistory to the present day. This position does not supervise other employees.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

1. An employee in this position may be called upon to do any of the following essential functions. These examples do not include all of the duties the employee may be expected to perform. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function satisfactorily.
2. Deliver excellent service, quality educational programs, and meaningful, memorable experiences to all visitors of the Monroe County Museum, River Raisin Territorial Park, and other locations throughout the community.
3. Assist with afterhours and/or weekend special events as required.
4. Demonstrate and teach visitors a variety of historic skills.
5. Create, maintain, use, and care for reproduction historic period clothing, which may include footwear and eyewear.
6. Assist in farm operations at River Raisin Territorial Park, including but not limited to grounds and garden maintenance, field work, livestock care, and site development.
7. Assist in cleaning, maintenance, and organization of all museum sites, settings, equipment, and utensils.
8. In May through September, the primary duty location is at River Raisin Territorial Park conducting regular farm operations and presenting programs to individual and group visitors.
9. In October through April, the primary duty location is at the Monroe County Museum.
10. Perform other duties as necessary.

This list may not be inclusive of the total scope of job functions to be performed. Duties and responsibilities may be added, deleted or modified at any time.

EMPLOYMENT QUALIFICATIONS:

Education: An ideal candidate will have completed or be working toward a Bachelor’s degree in Education, Anthropology, American history, historic preservation, museum studies, public history, theatre, or a related field.

Preferred Experience: paid or volunteer theatre (performance, set design, build crew, etc.), customer service, farm work, and working with large and/or multiple groups of diverse ages.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:

An ideal candidate will have knowledge of:

1. How to use the historical method; being able to critically understand historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
2. How to apply principles and processes to provide excellent visitor services.
3. 19th century Michigan and American History, or a willingness to learn.

An ideal candidate will have skill in:

1. Presenting clearly and confidently to the public.
2. Verbal, written, and electronic communication of nuanced and/or technical information.
3. Providing excellent customer service and professional representation.
4. Adapting presentation styles, components, and length for diverse audiences and varying schedules.
5. Managing interruptions and distractions without losing on-the-job effectiveness or performance quality.
6. Using technology appropriate to the position held.
7. Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of the work.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate the ability to:

1. Work regularly scheduled weekends, and occasional evenings.
2. Work within a defined chain of command.
3. Treat all visitors, colleagues, partners, and volunteers with kindness and respect.
4. Exhibit honesty, friendliness, professionalism, initiative, attention to detail, dependability, enthusiasm, and organization.
5. Learn how to create, maintain, and care for assigned reproduction period clothing.
6. Comfortably wear period clothing or a staff uniform for the duration of the work day.
7. Learn, understand, and adhere to workplace policies and procedures.
8. Self-assess personal strengths and weaknesses and apply self-improvement to job duties.
9. Memorize and organize educational content.
10. Identify, develop, and incorporate educational content from a variety of historical resources into presentations.
11. Lead a variety of individual and group activities for visitors.
12. Recognize and protect artifacts and historic structures from damage when necessary.
13. Learn and comfortably recreate historic lifeways, and conduct process demonstrations, including but not limited to:

• Open fire/hearth cooking, and historic food preservation & processing.
• Traditional needlework, fiber arts, and pre-industrial domestic skills.
• Basic carpentry and use of historic tools & equipment.
• Pre-industrial agriculture and horticulture.
• Identification and traditional uses of plants and plant materials.
• Identification of wildlife and the use of educational animal products such as pelts, bones, and taxidermy.
• Use of historic firearms.

14. Engage sensitive topics in history and present them respectfully without bias to diverse audiences.

15. Be patient and respectful when working with a variety of age, skill, and knowledge levels.

16. Arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules.

17. Recognize and address issues that interfere with the ability to meet and maintain performance expectations.

18. Work both independently, and cooperatively with a diverse team of museum staff and/or volunteers and partners.

The qualifications listed above are intended to represent the minimum skills and experience levels associated with performing the duties and responsibilities contained in this job description. The qualifications should not be viewed as expressing absolute employment or promotional standards, but as general guidelines that should be considered along with other job-related selection or promotional criteria.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

This job may require the ability to perform any of the essential functions contained in this description. These may include, but are not limited to, the following requirements. Specific requirements for a job will be identified at the time of employment. Reasonable accommodations will be made for otherwise qualified applicants unable to fulfill one or more of these requirements:

1. Ability to stoop, bend, or kneel for extended periods of time.
2. Ability to work through prolonged periods of standing / walking on rough terrain.
3. Ability to frequently lift, carry, climb, twist, bend, reach/grasp, and load/unload supplies.
4. Ability to lift and transport a minimum of 40 pounds.
5. Ability to work outdoors in all weather conditions.
6. Ability to routinely wear reproduction historical clothing throughout the work day, throughout all weather conditions and non-weather environments, including wet/damp, pollen/dust, and extreme heat or cold.
7. Proficiency with current computer, tablet, and media technologies and associated software, and the ability to view a computer screen for prolonged periods of time.
8. Ability to read a variety of printed materials and computer screens.
9. Ability to effectively communicate verbally, electronically, and in writing.
10. Possession of a valid driver’s license.
11. May drive a County or personal vehicle in the course of work.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

This position primarily works outdoors in all weather conditions, and/or inside non-climate controlled historic buildings. Work stations may be adjacent to cooking fires and/or within smoky environments, and/or exposed to the elements.