Museum Support Technician – Yosemite National Park

The Great Basin Institute (GBI) seeks to hire one Museum Support Technician to work cooperatively with Yosemite National Park (YOSE) staff to support the park’s museum program. The museum holdings include a large number of natural history materials from the Yosemite region as well as other historic materials. Specific activities associated with the management of the natural history collection at the Yosemite Museum include: 

• Museum work including cataloging of museum objects, maintaining museum records;
• Storage upgrades including creating mounts, organizing objects;
• Museum conservation work, including using approved specimen-cleaning techniques, and assisting the conservator;
• Preventive maintenance including housekeeping, integrated pest management and environmental monitoring;
• The work is partially sedentary with prolonged standing, walking, and bending often required, and lifting and moving of heavy items weighing 50 pounds or more.

The GBI Museum Support Technician will gain experience in complex museum and archives conservation issues and projects through involvement in accessing the Interior Collection Management System cataloging database, storing collections to meet NPS museum standards, exhibit installation, and performing other preventive conservation activities, such as Integrated Pest Management and environmental monitoring.

Specifically, these young adults will be upgrading storage and housing for over 15,000 natural history specimens to meet NPS museum standards, gaining experience with the Interior Collection Management System cataloging database, exhibit installation and performing other preventive conservation activities such as Integrated Pest Management and environmental monitoring.

Contract Timeline:

78-week appointment beginning in July/August 2024, or upon availability and successful completion of a Department of Interior (DOI) Background Investigation (BI)
* Full-time, 40 hours per week
* $25 per week housing stipend

Location:

Yosemite National Park – Not just a great valley, but a shrine to human foresight, the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, the persistence of life, and the tranquility of the High Sierra. First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, a vast wilderness area, and much more… (source: https://www.nps.gov/yose/index.htm).

Compensation and Benefits:

• Wage: $22.00/hour
• Benefits: Paid personal leave and federal holidays; fully paid medical insurance premiums (health, dental, vision, prescription)
• Eligible to enroll in company 401K plan with matching contributions

Job Qualifications:

• Educational experience with a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree focused on museum studies or a closely related field; applicants with advanced degrees are highly encouraged to apply;
• Experience in collections management to include registration, cataloging, research, preservation, restoration, housing, and conservation of collections of diverse types of prehistoric and historic period museum material;
• Experience with supervision and training  of interns and/or volunteers;
• Ability to work with minimal direct supervision;
• Self-motivated and detail-oriented, possessing strong organizational skills to effectively plan and complete assigned workload within defined timelines; 
• Ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing with a diverse audience including co-workers, members of the public, and agency personnel; 
• Intermediate or higher skill using Microsoft Word, Access, and Excel, with ability to manually enter, manage, manipulate, and graphically display data; 
• Flexibility to handle competing and changing priorities with a positive attitude;
• Ability to work productively, consistently, and cooperatively independently or as part of a team to accomplish mutual goals; 
• Possess a clean, valid, state-issued driver’s license;
• Ability to complete activities including prolonged periods of deskwork, lifting and moving of heavy items weighing 50 pounds or more, regularly walk and drive between curation and other facilities; and
• Willingness and ability to consistently enact high performance standards and a strong work and team ethic in support of the mission of GBI and the goals of NPS.

Successful applicant(s) must complete a Department of Interior (DOI) Background Investigation (BI) or submit paperwork to NPS human resources indicating an active and fully adjudicated BI has already been completed prior to beginning position. If you already have a fully adjudicated BI, please let us know in your application.