Exhibitions Coordinator

Employment Type:

Full-time, Non-exempt, Termed (1.5 years)

Reports to:

Exhibitions Manager

Location:

Wisconsin Historical Foundation, Madison, Wisconsin

This is an in-person position and will require on-site collaboration and research four to five times a week.

The Wisconsin Historical Foundation exists to advance the mission of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

• Mission:
  The Society connects people to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories.
• Vision:
  Enriching and transforming lives through unparalleled access to history.
• Values:
  We believe that increasing the public's knowledge of history has profound societal, cultural and economic benefit.

As a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, the Foundation receives grants and private contributions benefiting the Society and administers the membership program. A major initiative is the Campaign for a New Wisconsin History Center for which the Foundation engages a qualified team for planning, transition, and initial and ongoing operations.

The Coordinator supports the Society’s Division of Library, Archive, and Museum Collections projects and is a key collaborator in the development phases of the Wisconsin History Center project. Reporting to the Exhibitions Manager, the Coordinator supports the research, documentation, acquisition, and interpretation of Society collections, and other collections necessary for the History Center project. Specifically, the Coordinator supports History Center gallery teams, and other involved departments, and ensuring that deliverables and deadlines are met by History Center work groups.

The Coordinator is responsible for a variety of exhibit, collections, and research tasks including contributing to exhibit content, historic asset documentation and management, rights coordination and tracking, and acquisition activities as required. The Coordinator collaborates with colleagues across the Foundation and Society, particularly the Society’s Division of Library, Archive, and Museum Collections, to fulfil these responsibilities, throughout the development phases of the History Center project.

• Support all aspects of the History Center gallery process working closely with the Foundation Exhibitions Manager, Society Director of Collections, and individual gallery teams.
• Assist with research including, but not limited to, archival and library research; compilation of biographies, chronologies, object studies; and documentation of historic assets in collections management systems.
• Assist the Exhibitions Manager, Director of Collections, and individual gallery teams with daily requests necessary to advance completion of the History Center project.
• Develop, communicate, and track detailed documentation pertinent to the History Center galleries, including asset management and maintaining gallery asset matrices, content documents, and analytics.
• Engage, and actively participate, in exhibition design and development, and gallery preparation by working closely with History Center gallery teams.
• Coordinate and facilitate the development of exhibitions and interpretive spaces, by workshopping with History Center gallery teams, and contributing to outcomes and associated deliverables.
• Work with, and develop documents for, contractors and institutional partners related to the History Center.
• Assist with developing processes for Division of Library, Archive, and Museum Collections projects and the History Center project.
• Assist with drafting and producing correspondence, loan forms, and other materials related to collections development and acquisitions. Contribute to the maintenance of physical and electronic collections files.
• Handle artifacts and assist in the physical evaluation and documentation of historic assets.
• Nurture collaboration, respect, and communication across the organization, providing support to staff across Foundation and Society teams including Public Services, Library, Archives, Curatorial, Programs & Outreach, Fundraising, and Marketing & Communications.
• Encourage and contribute to an inclusive, rewarding, and inspiring workplace, where constant learning cultivates a sense of belonging…