Museum Curator - Supervising

Placer County is comprised of over 1,400 square miles of beautiful and diverse geography, ranging from the residential and commercial areas of South Placer, through the historic foothill areas of Auburn, Foresthill, and Colfax, and to the County's jewel of the North Lake Tahoe basin. Placer is a great place to live, work, play, and learn! For more information about Placer County, please visit www.placer.ca.gov.

Placer County is currently recruiting for one permanent full time Supervising Museum Curator. The Museums division is a part of the Department of General Services. The division manages eight individual museums throughout Placer County and operates the Placer County Archive and Research Center.  The division provides archival reference services, exhibits, educational programs such as living history, and special events for Placer County residents and visitors. Staff and volunteers process and preserve historic artifacts and documents, produce exhibitions, provide tours, and manage an extensive calendar of student programs. For more information about the Museums Division, please click here. 

With an office in the Historic Courthouse in Auburn, California, the Supervising Curator plays an important role in the Museums division. They will be responsible for supervising up to five professional museum curators, overseeing the division’s volunteer program, and participating in all preservation and historic interpretation activities. The ideal candidate will have excellent leadership and organizational skills supplemented with experience in research, historic interpretation, museum curation, exhibit development, volunteer management, and educational programs with significant knowledge of accepted historic preservation and museum standards, regulations, guidelines, and best practices.

This position works Monday to Friday, 8am-4:30pm and with occasional weekend or evening events as needed throughout the year.

The eligible list created by this recruitment may be used to fill future County-wide vacancies for permanent positions.

Placer County offers a comprehensive benefits package to employees. The following information represents benefits currently available to permanent Placer County employees and may be subject to change. Applicants should inquire as to the most current benefit package during hiring interviews or by contacting the Human Resources Department.

Click here to view Placer Public Employees Organization (PPEO) benefits.

For more information regarding the benefits Placer County has to offer, please visit Placer County's Human Resources website.

Duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Plan, prioritize, assign, supervise, monitor, and review the work of assigned professional, technical, and clerical staff and volunteers consistent with the Museum Division’s work plan. 
• Participate in the selection of staff; provide or coordinate staff training; conduct performance evaluations; recommend discipline; implement discipline procedures as directed. 
• Participate in the development, planning, and implementation of Museum Division’s goals and objectives; recommend and administer policies and procedures as necessary and upon request; conduct research and provide input regarding administrative needs and existing systems/processes. 
• Participate in the planning, coordinating, and monitoring of a variety of Museum Division’s programs such as volunteers, publicity, exhibits, and education. 
• Evaluate operations and activities of assigned responsibilities; recommend improvements and modifications; prepare various reports on operations and activities. 
• Conduct research and prepare correspondence, reports, studies, and other documentation as necessary and upon request. 
• Answer questions and provide information to the public; investigate complaints and recommend corrective action as necessary. 
• Build and maintain positive working relationships with co-workers, other County employees and the public using principles of good customer service. 
• Maintain awareness of and participation in external professional environment and resources to ensure the highest level professional standards are applied to service delivery within the Museum Division. 
• Receive after-hours alarm calls and respond accordingly, including notifying proper authorities and management. 
• Represent the Museum Division to the public as well as other County employees and managers in a positive and productive manner. 
• Serve as a positive and motivational team leader as well as a positive and effective team member. 
• Perform related duties as assigned.

It is the responsibility of applicants to identify in their application materials how they meet the minimum qualifications listed below.

Experience and Training:
Any combination of experience and training that would provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying.  A typical way to obtain the required knowledge and abilities would be:

Experience: Three (3) years of increasingly responsible experience in archives, collections, education, cultural resources, or general museum duties, including one (1) year of functional and technical lead and/or supervisory responsibility.

Training: Equivalent to a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with major course work in museum studies, history, art, anthropology, the humanities, or related field. A master’s degree in museum studies or related field is desirable.

Required License or Certificate:
May need to possess a valid driver’s license as required by the position. Proof of adequate insurance and medical clearance may also be required.

NOTE: Relevant, equivalent experience (performing the same or similar job requiring similar knowledge, skills, and abilities) may be substituted for the required education as determined by the Human Resources Department.

NOTE: Applicants receiving their degree outside the United States must submit proof of accreditation by a recognized evaluation agency.

Knowledge of:

• Principles and practices of public administration and principles of organization, supervision, and staffing.
• Principles and practices of professional museum work as it applies to archives, collections, education, and/or cultural resources..
• Computer software, including word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, and database applications.
• English usage, spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
• Pertinent local, state, and federal laws, guidelines, and regulations.
• Basic principles and practices of County-wide operations as well as the County's administration and organizational structure.
• Computer systems and applications.
• Principles and practices of supervision, training, and performance evaluation.
• Basic office practices, procedures, and equipment.
• Museum exhibit design, interpretation, and installation.

Ability to:

• On a continuous basis, know and understand all aspects of the job; interpret and evaluate staff reports; understand, identify, interpret, recall, explain, and apply laws, regulations, codes, rules and department policies; complete tasks with frequent interruptions; analyze problems, identify alternative solutions, and project consequences of proposed actions.
• On a continuous basis, sit at desk and in meetings for long periods of time; intermittently walk, stand, reach, push, pull, bend, squat, crouch, climb, stoop, kneel or twist to reach equipment surrounding desk and while cataloging, conducting tours, assisting with exhibit installation, or working in the field; perform simple grasping and fine manipulation; use telephone and write or use a keyboard to communicate through written means; see with sufficient acuity to read characters and decipher colors on a computer screen and in museum exhibits; lift moderate weight.
• Organize, coordinate, and supervise the work of staff and volunteers in the development and implementation of museum educational programs.
• Administer policies, guidelines, and procedures.
• Use a computer, calculator, telephone, facsimile machine, and photocopy machine.
• Read, analyze, evaluate, and summarize written materials and statistical data.
• Apply the principles and practices of motivation, team building and conflict resolution.
• Perform basic and fundamental mathematical and statistical calculations accurately.
• Gain cooperation through discussion and persuasion.
• Supervise, train, and evaluate staff and volunteers.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.
• Work with various cultural and ethnic groups in a tactful and effective manner.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the performance of required duties.

Training & Experience Rating (100%)

Based upon responses to the supplemental questionnaire, the applicant’s education, training, and experience will be evaluated using a pre-determined formula. Scores from this evaluation will determine applicant ranking and placement on the eligible list.

Prior to the date of hire, applicants must undergo a fingerprint test by the Department of Justice, pass a medical examination (which may include a drug screening and possibly a psychological evaluation), sign a constitutional oath, and submit proof of U.S. citizenship or legal right to remain and work in the U.S.  For some positions, applicants may also be required to submit proof of age, undergo a background investigation (which may include a credit check, voice stress analysis, and/or a polygraph), and/or be bonded. Additionally, positions in law enforcement classifications and those supporting law enforcement functions will be required to complete a conviction history questionnaire prior to or during the interview process. Applicants for positions with access to Medi-Cal billing software or who are licensed providers must clear the Federal Exclusion List, credentialing, and social security verification. Failure to clear these requirements may result in an employment offer being withdrawn.

The eligible list resulting from this recruitment may be certified as a substitute list for a substantially similar classification. For this purpose, a substantially similar classification is one at a lower level in the same classification (example: entry level vs. journey level) and/or a similar classification (similar work performed, similar training and experience qualifications required). If you are contacted for an interview by a County department, you will be informed of the classification and other relevant information. If you choose not to interview for a substantially similar classification, you will remain on the eligible list for which you originally applied.

Placer County offers an expedited process for qualifying certain applicants for interviews. Candidates currently employed, or employed within the last year, by a public agency operating under a personnel civil service or merit system may be eligible to be placed on a Public Agency Eligible List and certified as eligible for appointment to a similar job assignment without going through the examination process. For more information on the Public Agency Eligible List, to download forms, or to apply, please click here.

Placer County is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to an active nondiscrimination program. It is the stated policy of Placer County that unlawful harassment, discrimination, and retaliation are prohibited and that all employees, applicants, agents, contractors, and interns/volunteers shall receive equal consideration and treatment. All terms and conditions of employment, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, transfer, and promotion will be based on the qualifications of the individual for the positions being filled regardless of the following characteristics: gender (including gender identity and expression), sexual orientation, race (including traits associated with race, which include, but are not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists), color, ancestry, religion (including creed and belief), national origin, citizenship, primary language, immigration status, physical disability (Including HIV and AIDS), mental disability, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics/information), age (40 or over),  marital status, military and/or veteran status, sex (including parental status, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions), reproductive health decision making, the person’s use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace, political orientation, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law or any combination of two or more characteristics stated herein. Please contact the Human Resources Department at least 5 working days before a scheduled examination if you require accommodation in the examination process. Medical disability verification may be required prior to accommodation.