ACE EPIC NPS NC: Intern Photograph Digitization Archives Technician – Blue Ridge Parkway
Summary: American Conservation Experience (ACE), a nonprofit conservation corps, in partnership with the National Park Service (NPS), is seeking ONE Archives Technician interested in dedicating 20 weeks to digitizing a collection historic photographic images and making them accessible to the public.
This excellent opportunity is ideal for an enthusiastic young professional who is deeply committed to the preservation of our national parks!
Start Date: October 28, 2019 (some flexibility for the right candidate)
End Date: March 14, 2020 (or 20 weeks from start date)
* A 20-week commitment is required *
Location: Blue Ridge Parkway Park Headquarters in Asheville, NC. The ACE Intern will be working at the Museum Collection Storage Facility in Asheville and at the Park Headquarters.
Blue Ridge Parkway Background: The Blue Ridge National Parkway is more than just a road, this varied habitat, traveling 469 miles through the southern Appalachian region, ranging from 649 feet at James River in Virginia to 6,047 feet at Richland Balsam in North Carolina, offers protection to an enormous diversity of plants and animals, as well as a wealth of cultural resources and history. Stretching from Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Parkway contains a diverse range of cultural resources, including 91 buildings, 2 sites, and 133 other structures that contribute to the Parkway's eligibility for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places. It is a park steeped in tradition and recognized worldwide as a crossroads of natural and cultural richness. The Parkway serves to tie together a diverse landscape and lifestyle- connecting the past with the present and preserving the region's heritage for the future.
Project Website: To learn more about the Blue Ridge Parkway National Park, please visit the NPS website at: http://www.nps.gov/blri/index.htm. For more information regarding the ACE Internship Program, please visit: www.usaconservation.org.
Compensation: The ACE Intern will serve for 40 hours/week and receive a living allowance of $595/week for food, housing and incidentals. Housing is not provided and will be the responsibility of the Intern. Local applicants are encouraged to apply.
Position Description: The ACE Intern will work independently to locate, identify, inventory, and digitize BLRI historic photographic images and make the images accessible to the public online. The historic photographs are the most used part of the BLRI museum collections and copies are frequently requested by the public and the media. This project will allow BLRI to increase public access to and preserve a portion of cataloged archival collections.
The intern will be trained and mentored by the Curator in the management of National Park Service museum collections and how the NPS provides historic materials to the public. The intern will gain valuable knowledge about NPS archival records and about the stewardship of our museum collections.
Duties will include:
- Photograph identification and inventory. Some photographs are not digitized. Digitized images are not organized and there are duplicates.
- Prepare photographs for digitization (preservation, access review and screening, locating, pulling, and refiling).
- Prepare basic descriptive and metadata sufficient to allow retrieval and management of the digital copies.
- Digital conversion of the located photographs.
- Make digital copies available online.
- Develop instructions for park staff to ensure capture of images and metadata in future digital projects.
Qualifications: Applicants with a degree (or pursuing towards a degree) in archives, cultural/historic preservation, history, archeology or a related discipline are encouraged to apply. A combination of relevant education and appropriate experience is also acceptable.
Required:
- Must be a US Citizen or Permanent Resident
- Must be 18 to 35 years old
- Must have a valid driver's license; insurable driving record, and ability to provide documentation
- Ability and willingness to undergo a federal criminal background check is required
- Must be able to communicate clearly and concisely with resource professionals within NPS
- Ability to complete tasks independently
Preferred:
- Experience working with historical images/documents
- Experience handling and digitizing historical resources
- Experience and/or knowledge in the mission of the NPS and other federal land management agencies.
The Intern must be willing to represent ACE and the partner organization in a professional, positive, and enthusiastic manner. Drug users should not consider applying, as ACE reserves the right to require drug testing.
EOE: American Conservation Experience provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, American Conservation Experience complies with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities.
To Apply: Please submit a thoughtful resume and cover letter along with three professional references using the APPLY NOW section located on the upper right hand corner of the position listing on our website, located using the external application link on Handshake.
NOTE: Early consideration will be given as applications are received. This position may close at any time. If you have any questions regarding this position, please feel free to contact ACE EPIC NPS Recruitment Specialist, Madison Douthitt 828-329-4793 or at mdouthitt@usaconservation.org.