Job Opportunity-Youth & Family Educator - Frist

Youth and Family Educator (Full-time, Exempt)


Date Effective: October 9, 2009

Supervised by: Director of Education and Outreach

The Environment: The Frist Center for the Visual Arts is a major art exhibition center that opened April 2001 in Nashville’s historic downtown post office building. The development of the Frist Center is the result of unprecedented community involvement and cooperation from the public and private sectors which developed this institution that now serves as a hub of Nashville’s flourishing arts community. The Center does not have a permanent art collection. Rather, the Center is committed to bringing top-quality exhibitions to the region, to community outreach, and to education programs and activities.

The Board of Trustees of the Frist Center is firmly committed to the Center. The Board is broadly diverse, comprising of corporate leaders of national renown, public school educators, working artists, community activists, and collectors.

The city of Nashville is steadfast in its commitment to the arts, as evidenced by the explosion of new galleries, important art exhibitions at the city’s existing institutions, and the formation of new visual and performing arts organizations. This growth is raising awareness of the arts to new and exciting levels in the city.

Job Summary: The Youth and Family Educator is responsible for the development and successful implementation of all programs related to youth and family learning at the Frist Center including the Martin ArtQuest, Kids Club, Family Days and Summer Art Camp. The Martin ArtQuest Gallery, the Frist Center’s interactive education gallery, is an integral component of the Frist Center visitor experience and has highly public visibility. Working with the Director of Education and Outreach, the Youth and Family educator sets the educational and philosophical approach to Youth and Family art education, supervises and directs daily operations, assessment, and renewal of the Martin ArtQuest Gallery. S/he is also responsible for developing content for other youth and family programs, budgeting, evaluation, and some grant writing, The Youth and Family Educator supervises and schedules the Assistant Educators for ArtQuest, teaching assistants, interns, volunteers, and any on-call educators or contract artists involved with these programs.

Essential Job Functions:

· Develop the art activities and learning concepts for individual stations in ArtQuest using appropriate art education principals, curriculum, or theories. These may be in support of art education principles or in support of specific exhibitions themes and concepts

· Responsible for the successful operations of ArtQuest including ordering of supplies, contracting appropriate vendors, management of technology and interactive components, and installation of temporary exhibitions and original works of art in ArtQuest.

· Plan, implement, and monitor the annual and long-range budget for ArtQuest and collaborate with development staff to seek foundational and grant support.

· Supervises ArtQuest staff and volunteers, including Teaching Assistants, interns, and on-call educators.

· Work in ArtQuest periodically to ensure direct knowledge of the daily operations and to develop appropriate assessment tools.

· Write and supervise production of all written support materials and installation texts and graphics using a variety of teaching strategies and approaches to address various learning styles, implement valid and reliable learning assessment strategies to evaluate ArtQuest.

· Develop youth and family programs in support of specific exhibitions or general art education principles using appropriate and current art education curriculum or theories.

· Manage and implement special educational events and festivals including Family Day and other related youth and family activities and events.

· Develop and manage art camps for youth – which includes identifying and managing camp personnel, overseeing content development and studio management, developing publicity materials, ordering supplies, supervising reservations, payment, and day-to-day operations of camp.

· Ensures programs are offered in a safe learning environment for visitors of all ages.

· Works collaborative with the Director of Education and Outreach, educators and curators, and has the leadership ability to ensure the successful implementation and execution of projects and to supervise a diverse staff.

· Develop and maintain positive relations with a wide range of people and organizations both inside the Frist Center and outside the Center, including visitors, volunteers, vendors, interns, contract artists and cultural organizations.

· Some evening and weekends required.

· Accept projects as assigned by supervisor.

Education: Requires a Master’s degree or above in art education, museum education, art history or related discipline, and teaching experience as visual art educator.

Work Experience: Must have 3-5 years of experience in a museum or school environment.

Skills and Abilities:

· Knowledge of current object-based pedagogy, curriculum, and teaching strategies for art education, art history, and museum education;
· Knowledge of interactive galleries in art museums;
· Knowledge and experience in current hardware, software, and museum resources;
· Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work directly with casual museum visitors, teachers, and students;
· Supervisory experience;
· Ability to contribute creatively in a team-oriented workplace;
· Strong organizational skills and ability to organize and inspire organization in the work of others;
· Ability to work effectively with public and staff on a personal level, with tact and diplomacy;
· Well-versed and at ease in computer all current applications;

Physical Requirements for Essential Functions:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Demands may include:

· Lifting materials up to 25 pounds.
· Stooping, bending, kneeling
· Standing for long periods of time.
· Working at computer for long periods of time.

Interested candidates should send their resume, references and salary requirements to:

Frist Center for the Visual Arts
919 Broadway
Nashville, Tennessee 37203
Fax: (615) 244-3339
Attention: Sheri Horn, Human Resources Manager

Or E-mail shorn@fristcenter.org

The Frist Center for the Visual Arts is an Equal Opportunity Employer