Museum-Domestic Farm Interpreter

Horry County•Conway, SC

41d•Onsite

About The Position

The Horry County Museum is a general history museum focusing on the history, prehistory, and natural history of Horry County, South Carolina. The L.W. Paul Living History Farm is a living history museum that interprets the life of farm families in Horry County in the first half of the twentieth century, with a focus on the 1930s and 1940s, through demonstrations and interpretation of agriculture, domestic skills, and trades. The L.W. Paul Living History Farm Domestic Interpreter is responsible for ensuring the fulfillment of daily domestic interpretive programs at the Farm, including children’s specialty programs, seasonal events, monthly events, and adult education programs. This role involves maintaining the gardens, farm yard, and house interior spaces, training and monitoring domestic skills of staff and volunteers, and planning daily historic foodways and other domestic activities. The interpreter will also be cross-trained for basic program competency in Farm Agricultural interpretation.

Requirements

College degree in history, education, Museum Science, American studies or related field OR equivalent combination of education, experience and training.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills required.
Strong supervisory, management, and program planning skills.
Must be able to master historical information and techniques with ability to train others.
Must possess enthusiasm for working with the general public (especially children), including superior customer service skills.
Must excel in working with groups of children.
Ability to perform physical tasks needed to authentically re-create the activities of a working farm required.
Must be willing to work a flexible schedule, including weekend days.
Must be able to pass the required pre-employment physical and background check.
Must possess valid driver’s license.

Nice To Haves

Previous living history museum experience preferred.
2-3 years’ experience in domestic programming, preferred.
Experience working with volunteers, preferred.

Responsibilities

Provides excellent customer service to museum visitors, especially children.
Manages, demonstrates, and interprets the daily domestic interpretive program at the Farm for museum visitors.
Develops and conducts demonstrations, hands-on activities, and special events for museum guests in areas of foodways, gardening, textiles, livestock, family and social culture, and household material culture.
Leads seasonal education programming at assigned sites for adults and children, including enrichments, adult education classes, day camp, tour groups, and other programs.
Develops skill in demonstrating processes and equipment related to early 20th-century foodways, domestic housekeeping, textiles, gardening, and livestock handling.
Becomes trained to safely handle Farm livestock, including leading cattle and sheep and milking cows.
Maintains and monitors strict safety guidelines for equipment, activities, and programs, ensuring safe practices by all site interpreters.
Manages use of on-site artifacts according to museum guidelines, conducts assigned site inventories, and notifies Curator when repairs are needed.
Reads and understands historical and agricultural source material.
Conducts historical and agricultural research when assigned.
Dresses in period costuming when interpreting to the public.
Maintains approved food and materials handling, keeping safety records and program plans.
Purchases approved supplies and materials for demonstrations, activities, and classes within the parameters of the site/program budget.
Conducts routine site upkeep and maintenance including household interiors and equipment, gardening, livestock care, and site cleaning.
Alerts the Curator when further repairs beyond site staff skill/equipment usage abilities are needed.
Becomes comfortable performing routine agricultural site tasks and livestock chores, including working with poultry, pigs, mules, and cattle, and completing written daily chore report sheets.
Trains to safely operate kitchen and maintenance equipment.
Plans and executes research and behind-the-scenes preparations for domestic foodways and household project plans.
Maintains supply areas and stock for programs.
Trains volunteers and staff in proper foodways, domestic skills, and small livestock handling.
Monitors and evaluates domestic skill levels in staff and volunteers.
Collaborates with other team members to ensure Domestic/Agricultural programs are conducted under museum best practices, budget parameters, and the museum’s agriculture master plan.