Reflections of Manatee, Inc. Museum Studies in a Digital World (PAID Spring 2022 CEO Funded Internship)
Reflections of Manatee, Inc.
Spring 2022 Museum Studies in a Digital World
PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND THOROUGHLY: This paid internship position is a part of the Spring 2022 Sarasota-Manatee Arts & Humanities (SMAH) Internship Program, funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant and private donors to New College of Florida. Thus, this internship has certain expectations per the funding and program requirements.
- The CEO-funded internships are for CURRENT New College students and will be expected to be completed for academic credit. The student selected for this internship must find a faculty sponsor and create/add a full-term tutorial (select "internship" as the objective) to their Spring 2022 academic contract. Go to the internship website for step-by-step instructions: https://www.ncf.edu/ceo/internships/
- Students selected for CEO-funded internships must review and complete a Student Intern Agreement Form, which details program expectations. Spring 2022 interns will receive an updated electronic fillable agreement form once they have been offered an internship. Please review the attachment as a past example, so that you are aware of the expectations.
Mission:
To inspire people to gain knowledge from the past to build a better future for our community.
In furtherance of our mission, Reflections of Manatee:
-Preserves the landscape and structures of the early Manatee settlement.
-Advances research on the maroon settlement of Angola.
-Educates the public about Florida’s early history including European exploration, indigenous peoples, freedom seekers and the Underground Railroad, American pioneers, Seminole Wars, and the settlement and growth of Manatee.
Internship Description:
The intern working at Reflections of Manatee’s historic complex will gain a wide range of instruction in management and administration of a cultural history museum, its collections, and exhibits. The intern will work at the direction of Reflections’ Executive Director to facilitate exhibits, activities, and events, as well as focus on how the traditional history museum can further its mission and benefit through the use of digital technologies.
The use of digital technology confers several keys benefits to the museum.
--Digitizing records frees up space for collections and conservation activities.
--Digital databases and outreach can facilitate communication with members and stakeholders.
--Virtual exhibits can widen the reach of the museum’s audience, including underserved audiences and high school classrooms.
The work activities will allow the intern to utilize their interest or knowledge of theory in archaeology, anthropology, and history and apply it to the real-world complexities of operating a small museum complex/historic house museum in a way that is relevant to the community and stakeholders it represents. The intern is expected to accomplish (not necessarily in this order):
Work Activity #1: Development of strategies to advance the mission of the museum by considering the museum’s place in the community and staging opportunities to engage the general public to learn of the diverse history that took place here including events during the period of 1750-1925, including Angola’s Maroon Community and the Underground Railroad in Florida, Spanish history, Native American history, Seminole War history, Settlement Era history, and Black Union and/or Confederate histories. Reflections is currently developing lectures and outreach materials that make plain the threads linking Angola, the enslaved in the village of Manatee, Jim Crow, local lynchings, the 20th Century Civil Rights movement, and the ongoing need for Social Justice.
Internships Projects:
Spring 2022: The Intern will assist Reflections’ staff developing visitor activities that expand upon the exhibits at Reflections. At least one of these activities will specifically be anti-racist in its theme and intended effect.
Deliverable #1: Intern will create an activity to engage a high school age audience. The activity may be on-site or virtual (or both).
Work Activity #2: Digitizing of paper records to enable current storage space to be converted into a space for conservation activities. Space is at a premium in Reflections small museum complex. Digitizing old records will free up an area for conservation activities such mending ceramics or photographing new accessions.
Spring 2022: The Intern will organize and scan documents under the supervision of Reflections staff. Depending on the type of document, this may include working with a printer, scanner, or digital camera.
Deliverable #2: Intern will create a digital archive of financial files.
Work Activity #3: Developing flyers as well as online strategies to promote exhibits and events. Marketing is a key skill needed by any small museum and most marketing materials and social media posts are developed in-house.
Spring 2022: The Intern will assist Reflections’ staff developing an advertising campaign including printer flyers and scheduled social media posts.
Deliverable #3: Intern will create an advertising flyer for Reflections’ Anniversary Event.
Work Activity #4: Museum Management will be part of the duties interns will explore, from the docent’s role in interpreting the site’s history accurately when meeting the general public, to exhibit planning and installation, as well as maintenance of exhibits, curation of artifact and furniture collections, and donation and loan recording.
Deliverable #4: Intern will demonstrate knowledge of the interpretive exhibits at Reflections and how to communicate effectively with the visiting public.
Learning Outcomes:
Interns working for Reflections of Manatee will gain first-hand experience with museum management considerations such as interpretive exhibit design, curation, and public outreach activities, and the knowledge of administrative duties necessary to run and manage a non-profit museum.
Interns will gain some understanding of the tensions present when interpreting a complex and sometimes painful past as well as the complexities of outreach to disparate groups of stakeholders.
Additionally, interns will gain skills and a record of work experience that will benefit them when applying for future positions in this field, an often necessary requirement.
Qualifications:
The intern is expected to be comfortable learning and using technology such as printers, scanners, digital cameras, video cameras; and programs such as PowerPoint, Google Drive, and YouTube. We would expect the intern to have an interest in cultural history and in interpretation of the past for the general public.
--Ability to draft an event flyer idea in either PowerPoint, Publisher, Word, or Pages (or good sketching skills).
Internship Location:
Onsite at location