Job description

Seed Savers Exchange is looking for a dynamic, detail-oriented, cultural history and garden buff to fill a grant funded temporary, fixed term position as Assistant Seed Historian for up to 1 year.  The Assistant Seed Historian will aid the Seed Historian with the Collections Origin Research Effort (CORE) Project by conducting research on heritage crop varieties, consolidating historical documents, writing historical narratives, conducting interviews, and maintaining database records.

For more information on the CORE project, see seedsavers.org/Preservation/Collection-Origins-Research-Effort/. View an example of a CORE seed story at blog.seedsavers.org/core-collier-cucumber/

Summary: The Assistant Seed Historian will use their skills in historical research and documentation to aid the Seed Historian with improving documentation of SSE accessions and standardizing plant database records.  

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Use diverse resources to research historic and commercial varieties within the Collection as assigned by the Seed Historian.
2. Navigate database records to find relevant details about accession origins.
3. Organize, copy, file, and document artifacts/resources such as personal letters, news articles, images, or other forms of reference materials in a Microsoft Access database.
4. Consolidate existing information with newly acquired information about accessions.
5. Write history summaries based on collected information.
6. Contact donors, family members of donors, experts, or other individuals to collect oral histories relevant to SSE accessions.
7. Report on progress to Seed Historian.
8. Perform additional duties as assigned by the Seed Historian.            

Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in Horticulture, History, Ethnobotany, Museum Sciences, or a related field. Demonstrable record of successfully working independently and as part of a team through previous experiences in academic and/or professional settings. Exceptional communication, interpersonal, and time-management skills. Excellent attention to detail and strong organizational skills. Horticultural background and familiarity with Microsoft Access is preferred.  

Salary for this position is expected to be $12/hour. Benefits and housing are available.

Compensation

this position is:

Application instructions

Deadline

December 27, 2013