The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) is seeking a Collection Manager of Vascular Plants at the University of Michigan Herbarium (https://lsa.umich.edu/herbarium), located at the new Research Museums Center (RMC) in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Herbarium develops and maintains collections explicitly for use in research and education, benefiting science, society, and the university at large. The scientific role of the Herbarium is to train students and engage in systematic biology and biodiversity studies. These broad and overlapping fields entail the discovery and study of the diversity of organisms, their evolutionary relationships, and the processes that generate biodiversity. EEB has an outstanding, diverse and collaborative group of researchers in evolutionary biology, ecology, and biodiversity science.
The U-M Herbarium is worldwide in its geographic scope and is the second largest public university collection in North America, comprising about 1.75 million specimens. The collection is particularly strong in Michigan and the Great Lakes region, Mexico, and southeast Asia (esp. Sumatra, Philippines) and includes major holdings from all major plant and fungal groups; see also https://lsa.umich.edu/herbarium/collections.html.
We seek candidates with a strong commitment to a vision of the Herbarium Collection as a key resource for research and education within the University and to the botanical community nationally and internationally. The position offers exciting opportunities for mentoring, and career development, including limited research within the context of the Herbarium curatorial priorities.
Responsibilities
• Diversification, Conservation, and Digitization of the vascular plant collections, including dried specimens, genetic resources, and ancillary collections such as paper archives, field notes, and digital assets such as data records and photographs. Additional activities may include coordinating and contributing directly to digitization efforts, writing collection-based grants to support the Herbarium, and participating in regional or national botanical initiatives.
• Working with faculty curators to develop and implement policies, standards, and procedures. This involves, as necessary, developing/revising standard operating procedures for acquisition, accessioning, databasing, archiving, and use of new or emerging genomic, digital resources and other ancillary collections. Reviewing, updating, and enhancing the Herbarium collections management plan.
• Accessioning and cataloguing of new specimens, tissues and ancillary collections into the collection and the electronic database. This activity includes coordinating curatorial priorities with faculty curators, permit requirements with the Registrar, and the daily management of staff workers, workstudy students, graduate curatorial assistants and other personnel.
• Support of and coordination with faculty curators, student researchers and visiting collaborating researchers to plan and develop research projects utilizing the research collections and/or enhance collection resources.
• Training and supervision of volunteers, student assistants, and graduate curatorial assistants in all aspects of plant specimen preparation and conservation practices, data entry, geo-referencing and digital imaging of specimens and routine collections maintenance tasks.
• Coordinate and process inter-departmental and inter-institutional loans and exchanges. Activities include answering inquiries from researchers, maintaining transaction records, packing and unpacking of specimens, and working with the Registrar in complying with state, federal and international permit requirements when appropriate, as well as the electronic exchange of digitized information.
• Routine maintenance and updating of records in the Specify collection database and coordinating the Herbarium presence on regional, national, and international data portals.
• Development of plant genomic resources in the Liquid Nitrogen Facility. This activity involves the accessioning of new samples, database cross-referencing to voucher specimens, as well as development and maintenance of database records on genomic resources in the Herbarium.
• Maintenance of the collection areas and equipment to make them suitable for collection preservation, research, outreach, and use by visitors, either on site or remotely through online communication.
• Coordination of research visits and educational tours of the collections, including developing visitor and usage policies; participation in departmental, museum outreach, and professional community activities.
Required Qualifications
An advanced degree (master’s or doctoral) in biology, plant systematics, or related fields with 3-5 years of herbarium curatorial experience and knowledge of herbarium procedures is required. Experience with database construction, use, and management. High level of organization and excellent interpersonal skills.
Ability to train and supervise a team of volunteers or students. Familiarity with research collections is required, as is knowledge of plant diversity; expertise in flora of the Great Lakes region is highly desirable.
For complete details and to apply
https://careers.umich.edu/job_detail/223925/res-museum-collection-manager