Archivist

Description

The Cambridge Historical Commission is the city’s historic preservation agency, protecting more than 3,100 buildings in six regulated districts. The Commission also maintains a dynamic public archive focusing on the architectural, social, and economic history of Cambridge. The department seeks an energetic, meticulous, and motivated individual with a demonstrated ability to collaborate with others to maximize the value of the archive to the general public.                      

The Commission seeks a full-time Archivist to organize and maintain its public archive and create in-person and online programming that promotes the archive and highlights Cambridge history. The archive is founded on an architectural inventory containing survey forms, photographs, and documentation on all 13,000± buildings in the city that is currently being digitized. Other collections include both historic and contemporary materials, such as atlases, papers and manuscripts, books, objects, and ephemera. The photograph collection is estimated to contain more than 60,000 images in all forms. These unique resources are used daily by staff, residents, researchers, and building professionals. The Archivist will oversee the Digital Projects Archivist, who also coordinates the Commission’s social media presence, and supervise relevant interns and volunteers.

Specific responsibilities include but are not limited to the following:

• draft and execute a collection policy, disaster response plan, and policies and procedures for the archive;

• plan and lead outreach activities;

• process new donations and existing collections and write DACS-compliant finding aids;

• oversee the intellectual organization of processed collections, including identifying collections for off-site storage;

• maintain and update the archives database and research library catalogue;

• select and implement metadata standards and create finding aids; and  

• recruit, supervise, and mentor part-time archives assistants, interns, and volunteers.

  The Archivist will also:

• contribute to the Commission’s social media platforms;

• assist researchers and other members of the public in-person and virtually;

• advise other city departments and community organizations on archive management and conservation practices as directed;

• assist with planning city-wide archives-centered events such as Cambridge Open Archives;

• work collaboratively with relevant groups and repositories to promote awareness of local history collections and develop mutually beneficial policies and promotional materials; and

• undertake other duties as assigned by the Executive Director.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

• An ALA accredited Master’s degree with course work or concentration in archival procedures, management, and preservation strongly preferred.

• Familiarity with current metadata description standards and structural formats, through coursework or practical experience, including DACS, Dublin Core, and controlled vocabularies.

• A minimum of two to four years of work experience in archival services, including digitization processes.

• Strong writing, communication, and organizational skills.

• Strong technical and computer skills.

• Familiarity with architectural history and Cambridge history is welcome, but not required.

• The City of Cambridge’s workforce, like the community it serves, is diverse. Applicants must have the ability to work and interact effectively with individuals and groups with a variety of identities, cultures, backgrounds, and ideologies.

$50,866-$64,663 plus excellent benefits

Submit both your resume and cover letter via email to: employment@cambridgema.gov or to Personnel Dept., Room 309, City Hall, 795 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge MA  02139. Fax 617-349-4312. Resume and cover letter requested by 11/01/21.  Position will remain open until filled. We are an AA/EEO Employer.