Museum Studies Blog at Tufts University

From the American Philosophical Society
104 South Fifth Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106

Associate Director and/or Associate Librarian

The American Philosophical Society (APS) has decided to integrate its Library, home to a renowned research collection, with its Museum, a nationally-recognized exhibition program, in order to form the American Philosophical Society Library and Museum. The new unit will bring together programming, curatorial, and archival staff with the plan to grow the APS’s collection, expand its public and scholarly programming, and increase its exhibition activity and outreach efforts.

As part of the re-organization, the Society is seeking to hire an Associate Director/Librarian to help manage the expanded operations. Because this is a new unit, the Society is holding an open call for applicants interested in taking on a leadership role at one of the foremost research institutions in the country. The Society is especially interested in candidates who have extensive experience in libraries, museums, and/or public history and who have shown scholarly productivity and creativity. The new hire will report to the Society’s Librarian (Director of the Library and Museum), supervise the operations of approximately half of the APS Library and Museum’s staff, and have involvement in senior-level decisions for the APS Library and Museum. The specific contours of the job and its administrative responsibilities will be tailored to fit the hire’s skillset. Likely areas of involvement are scholarly and public programming, digital scholarship, and curatorial and exhibit planning. Applicants with extensive library experience may have more involvement in library operations.

The integration of the Library and Museum presents an exciting moment of change for a venerable institution and for the right candidate interested in being a part of it. We encourage all those interested in learning more about the position to email the Librarian at librarian@amphilsoc.org.

Candidates must apply at https://apply.interfolio.com/63358 with the following:

1. Cover letter of no more than three pages that outlines how their experience can help guide and grow the APS Library and Museum through this transition. Applicants are also asked to include their salary expectations and a list of three references in their cover letter. No letters of reference, please.
2. CV that highlights work accomplishments and major scholarly achievements.
   

Applications will be accepted through June 17, 2019.

The American Philosophical Society is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Successful applicants will be asked to show proof that they can legally work in the U.S.

About the American Philosophical Society Library

Founded in 1743, the American Philosophical Society’s Library, located near Independence Hall in Philadelphia, is a dynamic research center that holds over 14 million pages of manuscripts, 275,000 bound volumes, a remarkable rare book collection, and a growing digital library. The Library’s holdings make it among the premier institutions for documenting the history of the American Revolution and Founding, the study of natural history in the 18th and 19th centuries, the study of evolution and genetics, quantum mechanics, and the development of cultural anthropology, among others. The Library also hosts two Centers that build upon its collection strengths. The Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR) promotes innovative uses of the Library’s collections that benefit indigenous communities and academic scholarship and the Center for Digital Scholarship (CDS) promotes the collections through digitization, digital humanities, and the development of innovative library software. The Library offers over thirty fellowships a year (approximately twenty-five short-term and ten long-term) and hosts a robust slate of programming, including conferences and symposium that draw an international audience. The Library has a staff of approximately twenty-five across seven departments. More information on the Library can be found here: https://www.amphilsoc.org/library.

About the American Philosophical Society Museum

The American Philosophical Society Museum’s exhibitions showcase the Society’s renowned collections. The current exhibition—Mapping a Nation: Shaping the Early American Republic—traces the creation and use of maps during the early American republic. Past exhibitions have featured items such as Thomas Jefferson’s hand-written draft of the Declaration of Independence, a notebook from Lewis and Clark’s Western expedition, a rare 18th-century telescope, Darwin’s hand-written title page for On the Origin of Species, and the only known portrait of Benjamin Franklin’s wife Deborah. Each exhibition offers imaginative programs from guided school tours for grades four through twelve to tailored visits for undergraduate and graduate courses, which interpret the historical themes and objects on view and connect them to relevant issues in the world today. Exhibitions are open to the public every year from mid-April through December and attract over 130,000 visitors annually. The Museum has four full-time staff plus two curatorial postdoctoral fellows. More information on the Museum can be found here: https://www.amphilsoc.org/visit-museum.