Krannert Art Museum seeks candidates for an Assistant Director of Community Engagement and Learning. The primary function of this position will be to design and implement the museum’s community engagement and learning initiatives. This position has an integral role in establishing the agenda for public and campus engagement and collaboration in developing in-gallery, off-site, and digital programs, and interpretation. The candidate will work closely with the Director and other staff members to ensure that the museum’s strategic goals are achieved.
The University of Illinois is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,age, national origin, disability, or veteran status. For more information, visit http://go.illinois.edu/EEO.
As the museum’s principal educator and programmer, the Assistant Director will collaborate with a team to reconceive museum education and community engagement at KAM – on site, online, and in community. A core member of the museum’s leadership team reporting to the Director, the Assistant Director of Community Engagement and Learning will ensure that the museum’s strategic goals are achieved, particularly those involving diversity, equity, accessibility, and sustainability. An overarching commitment to inclusion and a culture of care is central to the museum’s identity, and this position is a keystone of that ongoing work.
Doing this work requires dismantling systemic barriers of exclusion, centering welcome for all visitors, and gaining the trust of long marginalized communities. The Assistant Director will lead a team of education coordinators, graduate assistants, and student employees while working collaboratively with curators. Student engagement and developing sustainable and deep relationships with our communities are priorities, building on recent work with regional Black communities as well as students and community members with disabilities. Shaping the future with existing strong collaborations with the Champaign, Urbana, and Rantoul Public Schools (all diverse, and a substantial number of households at or below the region’s ALICE threshold) will be key, especially considering the public schools’ changing needs and our commitment to center anti-ableism and anti-racism in museum’s public engagement and teaching.
Fundraising collaboratively is a key aspect of the position, and the Assistant Director will develop grant proposals and cultivate private support under the guidance of the Senior Director of Advancement and the Director. Furthering current initiatives and building on areas of strength is critical. Among the most significant include: 1) the indigenous arts of the Americas; 2) Black arts research, particularly in support of the College of Fine and Applied Arts’s Black Arts Research Initiative; 3) the museum as a crucial site for wellness; and 4) building on the university’s illustrious history around access, our wide-ranging work in disability, Crip Theory, and the arts, including collaborations with Illinois’s student service organization, regional community organizations, and the University of Illinois Chicago.
The Assistant Director will build productive partnerships with the Department of Art Education, the Community Fab Lab, the College of Education, the recently opened Siebel Center for Design, the Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, Japan House, the campus cultural houses, and Allerton Park and Gardens. A rich array of student organizations and a vibrant artist community on and off campus also offer fertile ground for collaborations.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITES
Program Development • Manage and creatively develop all museum learning experiences, including public programs, curricular-based offerings, teaching on and off-site, K-12 school programs, family events, student engagement programs, docent training, and the Giertz Education Center. • Create and direct a collaboratively developed community engagement program. • Shape visitor experience at the museum and implement improvements. Management and Administration • Recruit, select, train, and supervise education staff members, undergraduate and graduate students, interns, hourly workers, and volunteers. • Develop and coordinate all museum educational activities. • Develop and administer budget and financial commitments for public programs, engagement, and learning activities. • Develop grant proposals for education and public engagement initiatives and steward donors.
Teaching • Teach and actively engage in co-creating museum learning programs in the museum galleries, off-site, and online. Other Collaborative Duties • Participate actively in the Krannert Art Museum’s diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives • Represent the museum on administrative committees internally and externally and actively engage in the College of Fine and Applied Arts and campus communities • Build productive relationships with community members and organizations, faculty, students, university staff, schoolteachers, and other museum professionals.
QUALIFICATIONS Required • Bachelor’s degree in Art Education, Art History, Community Organizing and Advocacy, or related field. • Four years of progressive work experience, including three years leading teams. Previous experience in museums or arts organizations. Practical experience in education, social engagement, and community programming. Preferred • Master’s degree in Art Education, Art History, Community Organizing and Advocacy, or related field. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: • Commitment to delivering programs and managing teams that align with the museum’s vision for diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. • Demonstrated excellence in planning, organizational, project management, and time management skills. Capacity to lead projects while using independent judgment and discretion. • Excellent oral and written communication skills. • The ability to promote collaboration, creativity, and open communication both within the education team and with museum staff, academic departments, and external groups.
The Krannert Art Museum Krannert Art Museum (KAM) is a public engagement unit within the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. KAM’s collection of 11,000 works from the fourth millennium BCE to the present represent global cultures and cross all media, with strengths in the art of Europe, United States, the ancient Andes, and Africa. The museum’s historical collections have always been accompanied by an abiding interest in the art of our own day. KAM is free, with all activities open to the public. As a campus public engagement unit, and the only art museum in a region of over 350,000 people, both urban and rural, in east central Illinois, KAM fulfills the university’s land-grant mission of research, teaching, and outreach. We accomplish this work as a laboratory, presenting new research and approaches to object-based teaching; as a sanctuary for the community’s well-being; and as a civic center, a gathering place to explore pressing issues. The museum primarily serves two audiences: the university’s 61,000 faculty, staff, and students, and the ethnically and racially diverse communities of east central Illinois. The region is dominated by the cities of Urbana and Champaign (208,400), surrounded by expansive rural communities.
APPOINTMENT INFORMATION This full-time, 12-month, Academic Professional appointment. The start date as soon as possible after the closing date. Salary is commensurate with experience.
To Apply: Applications must be received by January 31, 2022. Apply for this position using the “Apply for Position” button below. If you have not applied before, you must create your candidate profile at http://jobs.illinois.edu. If you already have a profile, you will be redirected to that existing profile via email notification. To complete the application process:
1. Submit the Staff Vacancy Application. 2. Submit the Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability forms. 3. Upload your cover letter and resume (months and years of employment must be included), and contact information of three professional references. For further information about this specific position, contact Shanitera Walker at walker32@illinois.edu. For questions about the application process, please contact 217-333-2137.
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