Summer 2013 Curation internship at the BLM Anasazi Heritage Center The BLM Anasazi Heritage Center is offering one Curation internship during the summer of 2013. The announcement and process for applying can be found at the web site of the National Center for Preservation Education (NCPE), http://preservenet.cornell.edu/employ/ncpe.php.  The BLM-AHC internship listing number is #2363. The Curation internship lasts for 12 weeks, 40 hours per week. Housing is provided, as well as a $12 per hour stipend. This position offers a broad exposure to the curatorial operations of a Federal curation repository. The curation intern serves as a general curatorial assistant involved in a variety of curatorial tasks at the AHC. Duties include cataloging southwest archaeological artifacts using the AHC cataloging system, as well as assisting with various repackaging, reorganizing, and inventory projects of existing collections at the AHC. Assisting with public tours of the curation facility as well as developing specific curation tour content will be part of the summer's assignments. Please contact Tracy Murphy at t2murphy@blm.gov for more specific information. In addition to the above internship, numerous other internships in the Department of the Interior are also available through the NCPE program.

The Anasazi Heritage Center (AHC) periodically offers student internships in

• Collections Management
• Exhibits and Interpretive Media
• Visitor Services  

Also check out Volunteer opportunities at the Anasazi Heritage Center or in Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.

See Volunteer.gov for access to all federal volunteer opportunities.

INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS (Non-U.S. Citizens): The Bureau of Land Management is a federal agency, and is not permitted to directly engage the services of foreign nationals as volunteers or interns. Prospective applicants should contact a third-party non-governmental service organization such as the Council on International Exchange  and Volunteers for Peace to arrange for an internship or volunteer position. 

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The Anasazi Heritage Center includes a main archaeology gallery with artifact exhibits, a  replica pit house, touchable and hands-on exhibits, computer-based explorations, a gallery for temporary exhibitions, a movie theater, a room for special educational programs, and a 100-seat theater.

On the museum grounds are two 12th century archaeological sites (the Dominguez and Escalante Pueblos) and nature walk through pinon-juniper woodland to a 360° view of the surrounding region (Mesa Verde, La Plata Mountains, Dolores River Valley, and Sleeping Ute Mountain).

The AHC staff also manages a library, a conservation laboratory, and more than three million artifacts, samples, and original documents.

The availability of internship opportunities depends on AHC logistical requirements, available funding, and current project needs.  Internship start and end dates are flexible and last for eight to 12 consecutive weeks. Direct questions to:

Tracy Murphy, Acting Museum Curator and Internship Coordinator

BLM - Anasazi Heritage Center
27501 Highway 184
Dolores, Colorado 81323

Phone: (970) 882-5643

E-mail:t2murphy@blm.gov 

 

 

Preliminary inquiries on availability may be made to the Internship Coordinator by phone or by e-mail.

INTERNSHIP in COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT 
 

SUPERVISOR:  Tracy Murphy (Assistant Curator).

LOCATION: Bureau of Land Management, Anasazi Heritage Center, Dolores, Colorado.

DATES: 8-12 consecutive weeks. Specific reporting and departure dates are negotiable.

REIMBURSEMENT: $200 per week stipend paid twice monthly. Housing in a shared 3 bedroom house located on 6 acres adjacent to the Anasazi Heritage Center. No travel reimbursement is available.

UNIVERSITY CREDIT: College or university credit may be arranged depending upon policy of university involved. AHC professional staff will supervise credit procedures established by the intern and school.

QUALIFICATIONS: Open to individuals with an interest in curation and collections management. Familiarity with southwest archaeology, Native American culture, and database software is desirable.

JOB DESCRIPTION: The internship is designed to provide introduction to a wide variety of curatorial activities. The intern will participate in the museum's Integrated Pest Management program, conduct exhibit maintenance and installation, assist in collections inventory, artifact repackaging and rehousing, perform digital documentation, learn artifact and archival cataloging methods, enter data in the museum's collection management database, assist AHC Curation staff with researcher access, process incoming and outgoing loans, as well as other curation duties as required. This internship offers broad exposure to the operation of a federal archaeological repository.

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INTERNSHIP in EXHIBITS and INTERPRETIVE MEDIA
 

SUPERVISOR:  Michael Williams (Exhibit Specialist).

LOCATION: Bureau of Land Management, Anasazi Heritage Center, Dolores, Colorado.

DATES: 8-12 consecutive weeks. Specific reporting and departure dates are negotiable.

REIMBURSEMENT: $200 per week stipend paid twice monthly. Housing at a communal, 3 bedroom house located on 6 acres adjacent to the Anasazi Heritage Center. No travel reimbursement is available.

UNIVERSITY CREDIT: College or university credit may be arranged depending upon policy of university involved. AHC professional staff will supervise credit procedures established by the intern and school.

QUALIFICATIONS: Open to individuals with an interest in interpretive writing and/or exhibit design. Experience with graphic design and related software is a plus. Familiarity with southwest archaeology and Native American culture is desirable.

JOB DESCRIPTION: Opportunities depend on changing interpretive needs at the museum.

• Interns may work on continuing improvements to the "permanent" exhibits in the Main Exhibits Gallery, which are mainly  based on materials available from AHC collections. The museum has a special interest in (but is not limited to) interactive and hands-on exhibit formats. 
   
• The AHC hosts temporary exhibitions in its Special Exhibit Gallery. Such exhibitions are usually borrowed from other institutions, but they may be produced in-house or draw from a combination of resources. Interns contribute to the planning, installation, or enhancement of these exhibitions depending on circumstances and need.
   
• One periodically available opportunity focuses on the Chappell Collection, a private collection that includes nearly 1000 ceramic vessels, plus organic and ornamental objects representing the Ancestral Puebloan occupation (AD 750-1280) of this region. The Chappell Intern plans and produces a large, single-case exhibit in coordination with the Curator and the Exhibit Specialist.

• The AHC is headquarters for Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, so other opportunities may involve creation of outdoor installations or interpretive literature for hikers and other non-museum recreational users.

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 INTERNSHIP IN VISITOR SERVICES
 

SUPERVISOR: David Kill, Visitor Services Coordinator

LOCATION: Bureau of Land Management, Anasazi Heritage Center, Dolores, Colorado.

DATES: 8-12 consecutive weeks, usually between March and September, but may run in the winter. Specific reporting and departure dates are negotiable. This position may include working weekends and some holidays.

REIMBURSEMENT: $200 per week stipend paid twice monthly. Housing at a communal, 3 bedroom house located on 6 acres adjacent to the Anasazi Heritage Center. No travel reimbursement is available..

QUALIFICATIONS: Applicants with a prior background in archaeology, anthropology, or museum studies will be given preference. Ability to communicate with a wide audience, interest in cultural and natural history is helpful, effective oral communication is a must.

UNIVERSITY CREDIT: College or university credit may be arranged depending upon policy of university involved. AHC professional staff will supervise credit procedures established by the intern and school.

JOB DESCRIPTION: Job responsibilities include

Job responsibilities include daily operations of the museum. This consists of opening and closing the museum's public areas, working with front desk volunteers, providing visitor information about the area and specifically about Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, re-stocking and keeping interpretive materials and information pamphlets up-to-date, maintaining hands-on exhibits in the Main Gallery, and providing assistance with children's self-guided educational activities (the Junior Explorer Program). Duties include providing 10-15 minute introductory talks to adult tour groups upon their arrival at the Center, and other duties as assigned.

This position also requires collecting entrance fees and staffing the front desk when volunteers are absent, and assisting with cash register sales operations in the museum shop.

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