Assistant or Associate Curator of North American Anthropology and Archaeology

The Field Museum is a not-for-profit organization located on the Museum Campus of Chicago. Since the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, we have conducted research across all seven continents and accumulated a collection of over 40 million specimens and artifacts.

The Field Museum is seeking an Assistant or Associate Curator of North American Anthropology and Archaeology with an anticipated start date as early as January 2023. Applicants should have a proven and ongoing record of collections- and field-based research that is implemented in collaboration with descendant communities and a strong commitment to shared governance and co-curation with them of the outstanding heritage collections at the Museum. The regional focus and subfield specialization are both open.

The successful applicant will be the academic leader of a North American Curatorial Team that includes experienced colleagues in collections management, objects conservation, registration, repatriation, and community engagement.

The Museum recently opened a permanent North American exhibition that will require ongoing guidance and facilitation by the curator and the curatorial team, who will work collaboratively with different Indigenous communities and a Native American advisory committee, which guides selection of new content. The new exhibition, titled “Native Truths: Our Voices, Our Stories,” presents an unprecedented opportunity to build relationships with Native American communities, create a pipeline of Native American anthropologists and museum professionals (in conjunction with the University of Illinois Chicago), and invite innovative research programs with the collections. The creation of the exhibition has led to the institutionalization of a collaborative process that is supported by an endowment for the exhibition. Further opportunities are presented by a significant grant from the Mellon Foundation to support increased access to the collections for Native American communities and training opportunities in conservation and collections management.

The successful candidate will be expected to maintain an externally funded field research program, contribute to building and using the North American collections, and participate in the museum exhibition, public outreach and education, and other programmatic and public learning initiatives. We seek an experienced individual with strong research and communication skills and ties to Indigenous communities to care for and interpret an ethnographic and archaeological collection of Indigenous cultural material from North America. The curator will promote access to collections, particularly by Indigenous communities, and incorporates their viewpoints in interpretation, through collaborative research, curation of exhibits, and contributions to programming (lectures, workshops, conferences). This individual will help further develop the current institutional goals of ethical stewardship, including fostering relationship building, collaborative dialogue, and diverse perspectives within museum spaces.

This position will be a joint position with the Department of Anthropology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. A Ph.D. in Anthropology or a relevant discipline must be held by the start of employment. Review of applications will begin on November 1, 2022.

Applications Must Include

• A Curriculum Vitae
• A statement of research interests and career objectives
• A statement about the applicant’s commitment and contributions to promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion
• Copies of up to 5 relevant publications

Please send application materials to [email protected].

Important Note: In order to protect the health and safety of our employees, guests and their families, the Field Museum is requiring all employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Requests for exemptions from the vaccine will not be considered as given the nature of this position, we are unable to provide an accommodation for anyone who has not been vaccinated.

The Field Museum is an equal opportunity workplace and employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, Veteran status, or any other protected class. We strive to create a working environment that is free of all forms of discrimination and one that promotes human dignity and mutual respect among all staff. We believe every member of our organization enriches our diversity by exposing us to a broad range of ways to understand and engage with the world, to identify challenges, and to discover, design, and deliver solutions.

The Field Museum strives to ensure that our career website and recruiting process are accessible to all. If you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our online application, or if you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to [email protected].
The Field Museum