Primary Role

Advances and promotes the visual arts through the management, care, preservation, exhibition, and acquisition of works for the museum’s permanent art and archival collection. Researches, negotiates, and designs exhibitions and educational programs for the public.

Typical Duties and Responsibilities

  • Serves as liaison between the College and the Museum.
  • Supervises museum staff.
  • General correspondence.
  • Oversees the financial and budgetary requirements for the museum.
  • Hire/Supervise Summer museum guards.
  • Curates and maintains an installation of the permanent collection.
  • Oversees all exhibitions within the Museum—traveling shows from outside venues, contemporary artists, specialized shows drawn from the permanent collection.
  • Seeks out contemporary, particularly central PA, artists for temporary exhibitions.
  • Conception of original themed exhibitions, consisting of permanent collection works and works borrowed from other institutions.
  • Researches and publishes exhibition catalogs and books based on the collection.
  • Exhibition design and installation: primary responsibility for permanent collection; in conjunction with Curator who will have primary responsibility for temporary exhibitions.
  • Exhibition planning/booking.
  • Oversees Curator and practicum students, or contracts for, object preparation.
    • mounting, matting, framing.
  • Gallery preparation.
    • Oversee wall painting.
    • Lighting design.
  • Preparation/writing of wall text, didactic panels, and brochure essays for Permanent Collection installation and Director-curated shows
  • Photograph and document exhibitions for Director-curated shows
  • Packing and shipping of exhibitions for Director-curated shows
  • Direct Friends of the Museum Program.
  • Grant writing.
  • Researches grant opportunities and writes grants as part of expansion of Outreach programming, and exhibition development.
  • Responsible for continuing relationships with Patrons, and Patron development.
    • Administers deeds of gifts to Museum.
    • Continues or initiates financial appraisals of Museum gifts as necessary.
    • Correspondence, travel, cultivating Patrons.
  • Public and internal access.
  • Coordinate financial appraisals.
  • Provides for the archival preservation and conservation of the permanent collection.
  • Serve as museum Registrar, or oversee student or other Registrarial position.
    • Create and maintain collection database.
    • Photography of collection.
    • Incoming and outgoing loan documentation and agreements
  • Design publications: brochures, exhibition invitations, and promotional material.
  • Coordinate advertising.
  • Coordinate mailings.
  • Maintain mailing lists.
  • Coordinates with College Assistant Vice President for Marketing in defining and implementing marketing strategies in support of the museum’s goals and increases public visibility.
  • Oversee Outreach programming, including gallery education programming for children and adults, and community outreach, with direct, hands on involvement as appropriate and in coordination with Curator.

Supervision Required/Given

The Director will teach a course each semester in an appropriate field and will work with the Curator to develop and supervise museum studies students in their coursework including internships.  The Director reports to the Provost of Juniata College. 

Position Qualifications

  • Outstanding leadership, organizational, planning, and communication skills.
  • Entrepreneurial approach to the arts.
  • Ability to work effectively in an academic environment. 
  • Master’s degree in art history, museum studies, or a related field, or a master’s of fine arts degree, and a minimum of five years of administrative experience at an art museum or comparable institution.