Positions at Minnesota Historical Society

Paper Conservator
Minnesota Historical Society

The Minnesota Historical Society is seeking candidates for the
position of Paper Conservator to manage the Society's well equipped
and state of the art paper and book conservation lab. This is a
full-time, regular position in an institution which is nationally
recognized for its commitment to excellence and leadership in its
field.  The conservator, working in conjunction with the head of
conservation, is responsible for overseeing a full range of paper
and book conservation activities in a large historical society with
a major research library and archives and active programs of
collecting, collections maintenance, exhibits and education. The MHS
paper lab is primarily a documents conservation facility although
the opportunity does exist for treating works of art on paper.
Duties include examination, assessment, planning, and executing
paper conservation treatments; planning and direction of collections
maintenance activities of  bound material in the collections,
supervision of  2.5 FTE staff as well as interns and volunteers;
assisting in the formulation of priorities, procedures standards,
and policies as they relate to an extensive book and paper
collection; working with other staff conservators, librarians,
archivists, curators, collection managers, and exhibits design and
production personnel in selecting appropriate treatments, housings,
and exhibit mounts; and, in collaboration with other staff
conservators, providing technical expertise and professional advice
and education to the staff, other institutions, and public.

The MHS paper and book lab is one of three well-equipped, purpose
built spaces which first opened in 1992 as part of the new Minnesota
History Center located in St. Paul.   The paper and book lab is 2400
square feet of work space, with additional offices, secure holding
room, photo documentation room, and materials storage spaces.  The
documentation room (which also houses a polarizing microscope) and
two of three materials storage rooms are spaces shared with the
textile and objects conservation labs.  The book and paper lab is
equipped with fume hoods, flexible fume extractor arms,  large wash
sinks (one with laminar-flow fume extraction), dedicated deionizing
water system, drying racks for paper, board shear, wall mounted
board cutter, a vacuum table, ultrasonic welder, stereomicroscope,
binding benches, and tables for flat paper work.

The qualifications for this position are normally acquired through
graduation from an accredited conservation program and significant
work experience or an equivalent in education and experience in
paper conservation.  The qualified candidate will have extensive
knowledge of conservation theory, chemistry, and practices; thorough
knowledge of 19th- and 20th-century book and paper history,
materials, and construction; demonstrably well-developed skills in
the examination, evaluation, treatment, and documentation of library
and archival collections; experience in project planning and
management, supervision, and excellent interpersonal skills.
Competitive salary commensurate with qualifications and experience
together with excellent benefits.

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Conservation Outreach Coordinator
Minnesota Historical Society

The Minnesota Historical Society is seeking candidates for a new
position--Conservation Outreach Coordinator.  This is a regular,
full-time position in an institution which is nationally recognized for
its commitment to excellence and leadership in its field.  The Outreach
Coordinator, working in conjunction with the head of conservation and
other staff, is responsible for developing and implementing a program to
provide information on conservation preservation principles and
practical preservation options to the public, museums, county and local
historical societies, libraries, and archival repositories throughout
Minnesota.  This is a generalist position and, in conjunction with other
staff conservators and preservation professionals in other departments,
is responsible for formulating and implementing a strategic plan to
educate the general public and the staff of cultural institutions about
the preservation and conservation of material culture.

Included in the duties will be: planning, developing, and implementing a
program that educates the clientele about general principle, needs
assessment strategies, as well as preventive and remedial options for
preserving material culture; consulting with organizations that
telephone or write with specific questions or concerns about the
preservation of their collections or that require follow-up and advice
resulting from workshop attendance; expand, maintain and publicize a
resource file/library of books, articles, bibliographies, and
audiovisual programs on the preservation and conservation of collections
for loan or distribution; maintain and expand a program to lend
environmental test kits to cultural institutions throughout the state so
that they can assess environmental conditions in their buildings and
plan improvements for their collections.

The qualifications for this position are normally acquired through
graduation from an accredited conservation program and significant
work experience or an equivalent in education and experience in
conservation. The qualified candidate will have broad knowledge of
conservation theory, chemistry, and practices, materials, and
construction; experience in project planning and management,
experience in working with small and medium size institutions which
have limited resources and staff, and will have superior
communication and interpersonal skills. Competitive salary
commensurate with qualifications and experience together with
excellent benefits.

To request application materials for either position, call
612-296-0542.  Please send letter of application, resume and
completed application form to:

    Human Resources Dept.
    Minnesota Historical Society
    345 Kellogg Blvd. W.
    St. Paul, MN  55102-1906

Also see <URL:http://www.mnhs.org>

Application deadline: July 31, 1998.  EEO/AA.

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 11:94
                   Distributed: Tuesday, May 19, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-11-94-023
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