The University of Texas at Austin · 3 weeks ago
Associate Director for Preservation and Conservation, The Harry Ransom Center
Austin, TX
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff, Director/Executive
10+ years expThe University of Texas at Austin is home to the Harry Ransom Center, a renowned humanities research library and museum. They are seeking an energetic and experienced leader to manage the Preservation and Conservation Division, overseeing preservation initiatives and staff while fostering a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
Corporate TrainingEducationHigher EducationUniversities
Responsibilities
Manage the Ransom Center Preservation and Conservation Division of approximately nine staff comprised of conservators and preservation technicians, strategically plan for and oversee division activities, and manage the departmental budgets and grant administration
Serve on the Ransom Center senior leadership team and other institutional committees as appropriate
Consult with the Ransom Center curators, librarians, and archivists to establish preventive and conservation treatment priorities, balancing institutional priorities with the needs of the active exhibition and loan program of the Center
Consult with Library Technical & Digital Services on a program of digital reformatting of sound and moving image recordings and long-term preservation of born digital content
Cultivate a culture of innovation and continuous improvement and foster the ongoing growth and professional development of the Center’s highly skilled conservators and preservation technicians through supervision, coaching, and mentoring
Maintain an effective disaster recovery plan and conduct periodic training and drills to ensure preparedness for a variety of threats to the collections of the Center
Train and educate the staff of the Center on proper handling of collection materials
Investigate new strategies and technologies to address challenges to long-term preservation and access
Working closely with the Center’s Director and Chief Development Officer, conceive of and develop funding proposals to advance and sustain the Center’s preservation and conservation program, including project-based initiatives that further the collection care goals of the Center
Liaise with UT campus libraries, archives, and museums on various joint initiatives; lead and cultivate the Campus Conservation Initiative and chair the initiative’s Steering Committee
Advise the Ransom Center Director and the Facilities Management Librarian on maintaining an optimum preservation environment for materials stewarded by the Center
Represent conservation priorities in long-range space planning and capital improvement projects
Act as back-up facilities manager when Facilities Management Librarian is away from the office
Qualification
Required
Master's degree/certificate from a recognized conservation education program or a Master's in Library and Information Science with a certificate in conservation
Minimum of 10-12 years post-graduate experience at progressively advanced levels of responsibility
Minimum of 5 years of experience supervising conservators
Minimum of 5 years managing a conservation lab
Knowledge of the preservation needs of wide-ranging collection material types
Ability to engage professionally with a wide range of individuals including colleagues, allied professionals, university administrators, and donors
Demonstrated leadership and project management skills
Demonstrated use of logic and reasoning to determine appropriate courses of action, or alternative solutions for a variety of preservation/conservation problems
Knowledge of conservation treatment and housing approaches for a variety of cultural materials held in libraries, archives and museums
Familiarity with state-of-the-art preservation and conservation principles and methodology
Demonstrated history of professional engagement in the field of conservation
Benefits
Retirement Plan Eligibility: The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.
Company
The University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is one of the largest public universities in the United States.
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
The University of Texas at Austin has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
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Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (282)
2024 (210)
2023 (175)
2022 (186)
2021 (187)
2020 (190)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
unknownKey Investors
Republic Capital Group
2022-09-14Series Unknown
Leadership Team
Will Whiting
Chief Development Officer
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