The Strong owns and cares for the world’s most comprehensive collection of toys, dolls, board games, video games, puzzles, game show materials, books, documents, and other historical materials related to play. The Collections Assistant supports that process with the cataloging and storage of new additions to more than 300,000 objects in the museum’s collection, as well as participating in tasks related to on-going collections, conservation, and exhibits projects.

This position requires an energetic, detail-oriented, and focused individual with experience cataloging and managing artifacts in a museum setting. A can-do, flexible mindset is important as the work involved in this position will vary depending on the needs of the Collections team. The collections assistant is required to expend such personal efforts as may be needed to keep up with advances in subject matter information related to this position. The employee must learn the constraints, with consideration of the budget, within which this job must be performed and work within those parameters.

All museum staff are expected to cooperate with one another in furthering the museum’s general objectives and in completing museum projects. Similarly, all staff consistently maintain a positive and enthusiastic attitude, act with integrity and in accordance with the highest ethical standards, and demonstrate loyalty to the museum in all public contacts. Guests and colleagues deserve our best efforts every day.

Essential Duties

The specifications described here are representative of those that must be met by the employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Perform work in accordance with best practices and standards, particularly AAM’s Code of Ethics for Museums.
Catalog (or assist curators with cataloging) incoming acquisitions (both physical artifacts and digital items, such as video games and photos) in the collections management database and relocate objects for storage.
Together with the curators and the conservator, examine objects to determine conservation needs, establish priorities, and arrange for necessary conservation work.
Support other aspects of the collections workflow, including assisting with the photography of objects and management of collections as necessary.
Provide administrative and practical support for projects related to collections and exhibitions, as directed.
Write regularly for the museum’s blog.
Attend collections team and general staff meetings, and others, as requested.
Research collections and keep abreast of current developments in the museum field and specific subject areas.

Additional Responsibilities

Train and supervise curatorial interns or volunteers, as needed.
Participate in museum committees, project teams, or process teams, as assigned.
Communicate with donors about donation inquiries.
Assist with collections pick-up, including travel if necessary.
Other duties as assigned.

Pre-Employment Requirements

Must consent to and pass a drug screen and criminal background check as conditions of employment.

Equal Opportunity Statement

The Strong is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of The Strong to provide equal employment opportunity to all persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, military or veteran status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, genetic information, criminal history, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws. This policy of nondiscrimination applies to all aspects of the employment relationship, including but not limited to recruitment, selection, advancement, compensation, benefits, layoff, recall, transfer, and termination.

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