Director, Art Bridges Fellows Program

Job Description

Art Bridges is looking for an experienced and enterprising individual to join Art Bridges as the Art Bridges Fellows Program Director. You will work to help envision, design, structure, and implement a program that places fellows in Art Bridges partner museums where they will collaborate and work with museum staff to execute and advance Art Bridges projects and initiatives.

About the Position
This position requires an imaginative, resourceful, and collaborative professional who can take initiative and work alongside Art Bridges CEO and Director of Curatorial Affairs and other Art Bridges staff to help shape, build and launch, and then oversee the Art Bridges Fellows Program. In addition the program director will oversee the Art Bridges internship program.

About the Art Bridges Fellows Program
The Art Bridges Fellows Program will advance Art Bridges mission by supporting early career museum professionals placed in partner institutions to develop collection projects that get art out of storage, create access for others, foster community engagement, and inspire experimentation.

The fellows program will:
• Provide capacity and support for partner museums with deep collections to lend works of art to other partner museums.
• Train future museum professionals with practical and varied professional experiences
• Contribute to a continuum of career training, filling some existing gaps for early career training
• Create opportunities that especially attract early career individuals of color and from diverse backgrounds
• Create collegial cohorts that can last over whole careers
• Create mentoring opportunities that extend beyond Art Bridges Fellows Program

About the Art Bridges Internship Program
Art Bridges currently maintains two internship programs: a 7-10 week summer internship program and an academic semester-long program. The summer program includes approximately 8 interns from around the country with a focus on diversity and students of color. Interns are teamed with various Art Bridges departments and assigned tasks and duties by department heads. The academic semester program has included 2-3 students from the University of Arkansas.

In addition to projects and work assignments, the internship programs include a wide variety of lectures, meetings, seminars, and in-person visits (where possible) with professionals from the art market, academic, museum, and arts foundation communities.

During the pandemic both programs have been virtual; future programs will likely be a combination of virtual and in-person experiences at Art Bridges offices.

What you will do
By collaborating with Art Bridges and museum partner colleagues you will be responsible for developing and implementing a practical training and career program for the next generation of museum professionals through varied professional experiences at Art Bridges and at partner museums all the while instilling in the fellows an Art Bridges mindset.

Responsibilities:
• Participate in envisioning and imagining the Art Bridges Fellows Program, and its possibilities, goals, and objectives
• Develop a framework and timeline to build and launch the program
• Coordinate with Art Bridges staff and partner museums to determine partners’ need for a fellow(s) and outline the scope of the work fellows will be responsible for
• Actively recruit a diverse group of fellows for the program
• Develop and maintain a national network of museum professionals in support of the program’s goals
• Create and implement annual budget, track and analyze all relevant metrics, respond to requests for information from CEO and other Art Bridges staff
• Communicate with, support, and encourage the fellows on a regular basis to foster a collegial environment for professional development within the museum field
• Leverage professional experience in the arts to connect with the fellows and the museum community and to develop the program’s reputation and national profile
• Develop and manage a plan which will include coordinating with partner museums to hire, supervise, conduct performance evaluations, and develop and coach fellows
• Plan and implement strategic goals & operating plans for continued growth
• Utilize excellent organizational, verbal, and written communication skills to collaborate with colleagues at partner museums and to monitor fellows’ work and engagement with those partner museums
• Oversee daily activities and responsibilities for the fellows program
• Interact regularly with graduate advisors, professors, and graduate students about the fellows program and application requirements

Who we are looking for
You’re a professional with an eye for detail. You believe in the power of connection, and the strength of relationships. You tackle obstacles with creativity and collaboration. You know the importance of mentorship and are committed to help others achieve success. You love to help bring ideas to fruition.

Qualifications Required for your success
• Bachelor’s Degree Required. Masters Degree in museum studies, education, a visual arts-related discipline, arts administration, or related field (or equivalent experience) preferred
• 5-10+ years’ experience with museum practice; experience with fellowship programs in an arts-related institution is highly desirable
• Passion and interest in American art, museum education, and community engagement
• Demonstrated knowledge of organizational practices and field-wide trends in museums
• Superior written and verbal communication skills; excellent analytical, critical thinking, and organizational skills with precise attention to detail
• Ability to work with minimal direct supervision and take initiative to envision and implement the fellows program in a fast-paced environment on agreed-upon deadlines
• Flexibility, adaptability, and an eagerness to launch and grow the program
• Demonstrated capacity to work as part of a team, as well as independently
• Commitment to professional development and mentoring for early career individuals
• Commitment to social justice and cultural equity
• A high degree of competency in the MS Office suite, particularly Excel, PowerPoint, and Word
• Ability to travel regionally and/or nationally from time-to-time
• Ability to understand and maintain the highest levels of confidentiality

Personal attributes that support your success
• A commitment and passion for the power of art to transform lives
• Enthusiasm about joining an organization that’s new, evolving, and poised to have major impact on the art museum field
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Ability to “self-start” and exhibit a high degree of initiative
• Ability to multi-task and think critically in a busy work environment
• Able to creatively and effectively problem solve

Physical demands
Occasionally, while performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to travel independently regionally and in communities served. In the work environment described below, position requires working at a desk and utilizing a computer and a telephone for prolonged periods of time and good eye/hand coordination, bending and stretching for filing, and physical stamina to lift a minimum of 25 pounds to a height of at least three feet for art materials storage and preparation and as appropriate for the demands of the division office. Visual acuity to review written materials is required for this job.

Work environment
Work will be performed in an office environment, museum spaces, and in communities served. Occasional evening and weekend hours may be required. The noise level in the Museum work environment is usually low to moderate.

About Art Bridges
Art Bridges is the vision of philanthropist and arts patron Alice Walton. Since 2018 Art Bridges has been creating and supporting programs that expand access to American art around the country by partnering with institutions of all sizes and in all regions on projects that deeply engage communities.

Art Bridges provides support for partner institutions to deepen their connection with local audiences, engage communities through multi-disciplinary learning opportunities, inspire museums with extensive collections to open their vaults and share works of art, connect museums of varying sizes around the country, and foster professional development among museum staff.

The projects supported by Art Bridges are engaging, content-rich, and include in-depth educational and interpretive materials. They range from single-object loans to fully developed thematic exhibitions, long-term loan sharing initiatives, and include support for programming, community outreach, audience engagement, and meaningful evaluation.

Art Bridges is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to building and maintaining a culturally diverse workplace that is free of discrimination and harassment of any kind. We encourage women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and veterans to apply. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, veteran status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree Required. Masters Degree in museum studies, education, a visual arts-related discipline, arts administration, or related field (or equivalent experience) preferred
• 5-10+ years’ experience with museum practice; experience with fellowship programs in an arts-related institution is highly desirable
• Passion and interest in American art, museum education, and community engagement
• Demonstrated knowledge of organizational practices and field-wide trends in museums
• Superior written and verbal communication skills; excellent analytical, critical thinking, and organizational skills with precise attention to detail
• Ability to work with minimal direct supervision and take initiative to envision and implement the fellows program in a fast-paced environment on agreed-upon deadlines
• Flexibility, adaptability, and an eagerness to launch and grow the program
• Demonstrated capacity to work as part of a team, as well as independently
• Commitment to professional development and mentoring for early career individuals
• Commitment to social justice and cultural equity
• A high degree of competency in the MS Office suite, particularly Excel, PowerPoint, and Word
• Ability to travel regionally and/or nationally from time-to-time
• Ability to understand and maintain the highest levels of confidentiality