Position Announcement: Executive Director Laurel Historical Society
The Laurel Historical Society, a community history organization in Laurel, Maryland, seeks an energetic, creative, and goal-oriented leader to serve as Executive Director.
About the Laurel Historical Society
Founded in 1975, The Laurel Historical Society (LHS) operates the Laurel Museum in an 1840s mill workers building which is owned and maintained by the City of Laurel. The LHS works to preserve and promote the cultural and historical heritage of Laurel and the immediate surrounding area. Its holdings include a substantial collection of artifacts, photographs, documents, and ephemera related to the history of Laurel. The Laurel Museum has an exhibit which changes each year, a research library, and a museum shop. It offers free admission and research assistance to the public. The LHS is active in the community and offers free summer camps, webinars, children and adult educational activities, walking tours, garden and holiday house tours and an annual fundraising gala. In addition, the LHS participates at events throughout the city and partners with many civic, community and business organizations. The organization is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025. The Laurel Historical Society recently completed strategic planning and has recently updated the mission statement and added vision and value statements. A copy of these can be viewed here. It also recently revised its bylaws.
Job Description:
The primary responsibilities of the Executive Director are the management of the Laurel Historical Society, which includes operation of the Laurel Museum, exhibits, collections, resource management, planning, programming, and development.
Qualifications:
The successful candidate will be a dynamic and thoughtful leader, committed to diverse and equitable practices within the museum community and will have demonstrated success and enthusiasm for working collaboratively with paid staff and volunteers. The successful candidate will have a relevant bachelor's degree and three to five years of progressively responsible leadership within a museum, arts, historical, or non-profit organizationwork in a related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience,. A master’s degree in a humanities field is preferred, as is previous supervision and financial responsibilities. The successful candidate will be able to meet the physical demands of working in a multi-storied historic building and transporting materials off-site. Familiarity with a PC environment and knowledge of standard professional computer applications is required. A knowledge of PastPerfect is desirable as is familiarity with a variety of Social Media platforms.
Executive Director Responsibilities
Leadership and Operations
· Identify, assign, and supervise paid and volunteer staff. Foster open communications, collaboration, and transparency among volunteers, staff, and board.
· Promote the mission, vision, and values of the organization.
· Develop and implement planning, programming, and long and short-term direction and goals.
· Maintain overall responsibility for financial management of the organization, including budgeting, payroll, grants, donations and expenses.
Exhibit and Collections Management
· Oversee collections management activities, including curation, in collaboration with the collections committee.
· Ensure public accessibility to in-house collection research tools and information.
· Work with the exhibit committee and consultants to develop, curate, mount, and promote thoughtful, engaging, and timely exhibits.
Membership, Development & Grants
· Develop, retain, and increase membership.
· Coordinate and define development and fundraising strategies working collaboratively with the Board and special event committees.
· Identify grant opportunities and work to develop and oversee government, non-profit, and foundation grants.
Museum Operations and Facilities Management.
· Ensure that the Laurel Museum is open, operational, and staffed on designated days and times.
· Administer the operation of the online and onsite museum shop.
· Partner with the City of Laurel to ensure proper maintenance of the building, grounds and equipment.
Outreach and Community Engagement
· Become an active and relevant presence in the community.
· Develop and foster relationships with staff, board, volunteers, donors, and community, civic, business and political stakeholders.
· Develop programs, community activities, and online and in-person activities.
· Leverage the website, social media, and marketing to promote the LHS and museum.
Salary:
The salary range is $65-68,000. This is a full-time exempt position. The work environment is flexible and remote work is an option, however, regular attendance on-site is required. Some weekend and evening hours to support meetings, museum visitor open hours, programs and events are required.
More About The LHS
LHS has an annual operating budget of approximately $250,000. There is a 21-person board and seven person Executive Committee. The Executive Director reports to the President of the LHS and directly supervises the Education/Outreach Coordinator, Museum Administrator, and Visitor Services Associate, in addition to interns and the volunteer corps of 20-50 volunteers.
The Community
Laurel, Maryland, is a dynamic and diverse community. The Mayor and City Council govern the municipality and the Laurel Museum is located within the city limits and the historic district of Laurel. The greater Laurel area is located in four different counties and boasts cultural, historical, and geographic diversity. Located almost exactly between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., Laurel enjoys easy access to commuter options and the cultural opportunities of both. Laurel is situated along the Patuxent River and located along the I-95, I-295, and Route 1 corridors, and is the location of a train station on the MARC Camden line.
Closing date: February 22, 2025
To Apply: Please submit cover letter and resume to resumes@laurelhistoricalsociety.org with Executive Director in the subject line. No phone inquiries please.