[Taxacom] University of Alaska Museum Director Job Announcement

[Derek Sikes]

Title: Director, Museum
Salary: D.O.E.
Opening Date: 22 December 2008
Closing Date: 22 February 2009, or until filled

Responsibilities
The Director of the University of Alaska Museum of the
North will be responsible for its leadership and will have
primary responsibility and authority for organizing,
managing, and facilitating multidisciplinary research;
fundraising; budget planning and management; and
personnel and public relations. The Director is
spokesperson and advocate for the Museum within and
outside the University, is hierarchically equivalent to deans
and directors of other units within the University, and
reports directly to the Provost.

Application
Applications should include a Curriculum Vitae, a letter of
interest in the position, a vision statement, and the names,
addresses, and phone numbers of five references. Apply at:
www.uakjobs.com/applicants/Central?quickFind=65632

The review process will begin 22 February and will continue
until the position is filled. The position is expected to be
filled no later than 1 May 2009. Candidacy will be held in
confidence until finalists are selected.

Minimum Qualifications
1. An advanced degree in a discipline appropriate to be
the Museum Director.
2. A substantial record of accomplishment in research,
creative activity, publication, exhibition or education that
is consistent with tenure in a UAF academic
department.
3. Administrative experience in progressively responsible
museum positions or equivalent levels of experience in
University administration.

The successful candidate will show evidence of
commitment to developing the Museum’s stature and its
prominent, independent role within the University of Alaska.
Finalists will demonstrate an understanding and support of
the Museum’s tripartite mission of research, teaching, and
public service and will show evidence of interest and
capability to manage programs with strong interdisciplinary
and international components.

DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA MUSEUM OF THE NORTH

The University of Alaska Fairbanks is searching for a Director of the  
University of Alaska Museum of
the North. The Museum, an AAM-accredited museum of natural and  
cultural history, is a center for
the collection and preservation of objects from and related to Alaska  
and for research and education
pertaining to the North. The Museum is the largest natural history  
museum in Alaska, and it is unique
in maintaining research collections in: Life Sciences (botany,  
entomology, ichthyology, mammalogy,
and ornithology), Earth Sciences (geology and paleontology),  
Anthropology (archeology and
ethnology), Fine Arts, History, and the Alaska Center for Documentary  
Film. There are over 2 million
objects and specimens in the Museum, including collections from the  
circumpolar north and Pacific
Rim. The Museum also serves as the official state repository for  
scientific specimens collected on
State, Native, and Federal lands.

The Museum's collections provide key information critical to questions  
of past and present
biodiversity and include key indicators of local and global  
environmental and cultural change and
sustainability.  Through its collections-based research, teaching, and  
public learning programs, the
museum shares its collections and knowledge with local, national, and  
international audiences of all
ages and backgrounds.  The Museum staff and collections comprise an  
integral part of instruction at
the University. The collections support undergraduate and graduate  
courses and provide material for
undergraduate projects, graduate theses, and professional research  
projects in many disciplines and
for interdisciplinary studies.  Objects in the collections are also  
used for traveling and in-house
exhibitions. The permanent exhibit galleries and the changing exhibits  
are viewed by over 100,000
visitors annually. The Museum Store is a popular component of the  
Museum with visitors and the
community. Museum public programs include the docent and volunteer  
programs and special
lectures and events. The Museum enjoys widespread support from the  
community.

The Museum holds a prominently visible location on the West Ridge of  
the University of Alaska
Fairbanks campus and has a spectacular view of the Tanana Valley and  
the Alaska Range. The
award-winning recently expanded Museum is a distinct, modern, climate- 
controlled, high-security
building totaling 84,611 sq. ft. on three levels.  The Museum employs  
37 permanent staff and 60-70
student assistants.  In addition, there are 64 Museum Associates or  
Affiliates (40 Ph.D. and 24
M.A.), 20 docents and several volunteers. The Museum receives  
approximately $1.4 million from the
State Legislature for its annual operating budget, which represents  
~22% of its annual operating
budget. About 52% of the annual operating budget comes from gifts,  
grants, and contracts.  The
Museum’s popularity as a tourist attraction is reflected in its  
ability to generate annually earned
revenues of approximately $1.4 million from the Museum Store and  
admissions.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks is a Land, Sea, and Space Grant  
Institution with the main
campus in Fairbanks and branch campuses in five rural locations, with  
six additional community
centers throughout much of the state. UAF offers a full complement of  
undergraduate courses and
degrees as well as 51 Master's and 16 Ph.D. programs. UAF is the  
state’s major research center
and the only Ph.D.-granting institution in Alaska. The Director is  
hierarchically equivalent to deans
and directors in other units and reports directly to the Provost.

Fairbanks is located in Alaska’s Interior, with ready access to  
incredible outdoor opportunities. Being
the second largest population center in the State, it has important  
cultural, artistic, and recreational
opportunities not often available in a community of its size.  
Fairbanks’ geographic location provides
its citizens with opportunities to participate in many international  
ventures.

Apply online at www.uakjobs.com/applicants/Central?quickFind=65632

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Derek S. Sikes, Curator of Insects
Assistant Professor of Entomology
University of Alaska Museum
907 Yukon Drive
Fairbanks, AK   99775-6960

dsikes at alaska.edu
http://users.iab.uaf.edu/~derek_sikes/sikes_lab.htm

phone: 907-474-6278
FAX: 907-474-5469


"Remember that Truth alone is the matter you are in Search after; and  
if you have been mistaken, let no Vanity reduce you to persist in your  
mistake." Henry Baker, London, 1785

University of Alaska Museum of the North -
http://www.uaf.edu/museum/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++