Visitor Programs & Services Manager

Description

Position Description

The Louisa County Historical Society (LCHS) seeks an energetic and outgoing part-time Visitor Programs & Services Manager to manage the Museum public programs. The position involves a multifaceted approach to engagement through community outreach, public programming, and digital content and social media creation. The Visitor Programs & Services Manager is responsible for planning, marketing, and implementing educational programs and community events for the Society to highlight the rich history of Louisa County. The position involves front-line service to members and visitors as well as coordination of volunteers.  Hours will typically fall within our public hours of Monday – Friday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, but will involve the occasional weekend and evening hours (1-2 times per month).

To Apply

Submit a cover letter, resume, and a list of three professional references to director@louisahistory.org. Please list the title of the position in the email subject line and attach required documents as pdfs. Review of applications will begin on a rolling basis starting November 1, 2023 and will continue until the position is filled. Anticipated start date is December 1, 2023.

Job Duties

Duties and Responsibilities

• Programs and Events: Plans, implements, and markets educational programs and events. Maintains programs and events calendar and coordinates group tours and field trips. Collects program data including audience attendance, evaluations, and volunteer input and compiles recommendations to the Executive Director.
• Community Outreach/Visitor Services: Ensures that members and visitors receive quality customer service in person at the museum and visitor center or through phone calls, emails, and correspondence. Oversees the tracking and analysis of visitor data. Works to promote community engagement throughout the County.
• Marketing: Develops content for and manages social media for programs, events, and updates. Assists with the input of program and event information to online community calendars and submission of the program and event information to local media to include Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube. Creates and distributes print and digital media for advertising.
• Publications: Researches and writes, or assists with coordinating, contributions for each quarterly LCHS newsletter and each annual magazine related to public programming.
• Other Museum Roles: May help recruit, train, and supervise volunteers, especially those assisting with genealogical research, oral histories, and public programs. May assist with research requests and genealogical workshops for, including but not limited to, genealogy, historic properties,  descendants of enslaved Louisans.

Skills Required

Preferred Qualifications

Minimum two years of cumulative work experience for a nonprofit organization and/or a public history institution. Knowledge of public history practices/methods and professional skills or abilities related to one or more of the following is preferred: museums, archives, libraries, historic preservation, K-12 education, digital history, and/or oral history. Bachelor’s in History, Public History, Museum Studies, or a closely related field is preferred, but not required.

Requirements

Must have strong customer service skills and the ability to manage multiple projects at the same time with attention to detail. Proficiency with Microsoft and Google suites. Experience with social media, website management, and database management systems is a plus.

Work Schedule

This is a part-time position of approximately 15-20 hours a week. Hours will typically fall within our public hours of Monday – Friday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, but will involve the occasional weekend and evening hours (1-2 times per month).

Additional Info

Organization Description

Founded in 1966, the Louisa County Historical Society (LCHS) is a 501©3 non-profit organization with a mission to bring to light, preserve, and share the history of Louisa County. Our vision is to enlighten the present by illuminating the past in order to inspire the future. We share the stories of past Louisans through our museum exhibitions, educational programs, publications, research assistance, digital resources, and care of our growing collection of buildings, documents, and artifacts.

LCHS operates the Sargeant Museum of Louisa County History and the Heritage Farm Living History Site located in Louisa, Virginia. LCHS holds over 20,000 records and over 1,000 artifacts in its collections as well as a growing number of oral histories. The Purcell Research Library located in the Sargeant Museum contains numerous resources on local history and genealogy. LCHS hosts many educational programs and special events throughout the year and participates in community events and other outreach initiatives. During the pandemic, LCHS has pivoted to virtual offerings. Each year, LCHS also works on grant-funded special projects. This year, LCHS is partnering with a majority-POC community advisory council to steer the historical society’s efforts to tell a truer and more inclusive historical narrative. Current projects include a remembrance project about the partial integration of Louisa County High School under the Freedom of Choice plan in 1965, an oral history project, and a school outreach project aimed at getting more local African American history into our local classrooms.

The Sargeant Museum’s permanent exhibits include Native American history, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, early transportation, education, and government, and an exhibit created with funding from the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation telling the story of the journey of women and African Americans toward equal rights in Louisa County. The current temporary exhibit is “Many Voices, One Decade: 1950s Louisa County,” which highlights major themes that emerged from our recent oral history project on Louisa County during the 1950s.

The Heritage Farm is a growing living history site located behind the Sargeant Museum of Louisa County History. The structures on the property help us achieve our goal to bring the history of Louisa County to life! We use them for special programming such as our open-hearth cooking workshops, herb guild, and free family days. The Michie House and Smoke House were relocated to our property and restored in 2013. The Trevilians Schoolhouse was relocated to our property and restored in 2017.

During a typical year, we welcome around a thousand museum visitors, many of whom are visitors from outside Louisa County. We reach hundreds more through our programs, events, and outreach activities. Additionally, thousands of online users visit our websites to look for historical information on Louisa County.

LCHS is governed by a Board of Directors and staffed by a full-time director and part-time volunteer and program manager, and numerous volunteers. Grant-funded projects, such as our current African-American history program and upcoming collection digitization program, are staffed by temporary part-time staff and interns.

The Louisa County Historical Society is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, national origin, veteran status or any other basis covered by appropriate law.