Senior Director of the Integrated Museums of Art, Archaeology, and Anthropology

About the role

The University of Missouri (Mizzou), College of Arts and Science seeks a Senior Director to lead the planned integration of the Museums of Art, Archaeology, and Anthropology. This role centers on preserving and celebrating the arts, archaeology, and anthropology while advancing the museums' vision and mission.

Responsibilities

• Leadership of the Museum of Art & Archaeology and Museum of Anthropology merger, focusing on developing a shared vision, aligning the new organization’s structure, systems, and communication strategies to support MU’s R1 land grant mission and co-location within Ellis Library.

• Developing and implementing a multi-year strategic plan that includes an effective organizational structure, a unified approach across core areas such as collections, exhibitions, education, access and outreach, and a comprehensive communication plan to foster a culture of adaptability, ensuring transparency, and building trust.

• Shaping and leading a consolidated team of more than a dozen dedicated professionals, including all personnel and administrative responsibilities, and cultivating an environment characterized by cooperation, mutual respect, and ongoing professional growth.

• Building on the museum's recent reaccreditation and strengthening governance, ethics, and policy practices to maintain accreditation standards and public trust, collaborating with internal and external partners to ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations, including NAGPRA.

• Overseeing the operations of the Ellis Library-based galleries, managing off-campus storage areas, and advocating for facility modernization, space optimization, and capacity augmentation.

• Spearheading the development of a shared collections management policy, providing executive oversight of collections stewardship across art, archaeology, and anthropology, and managing the planning and scheduling of exhibitions.

• Integrating museum resources with a wide variety of faculty research, undergraduate and graduate student learning, internships, and community engagement, utilizing the museums' collections and programming to support scholarly activity and educational initiatives within an R1 research university context.

• Representing the museums at local, regional, national, and international events, elevating visibility, institutional partnerships, loan networks, and resource development, partnering with college advancement and museum associates on donor strategy, site visits, and stewardship, and advancing and pursuing grant funding opportunities on local, state, and national scales.

Requirements

The ideal candidate should bring extensive museum leadership experience in a complex environment, a proven track record in strategic planning, and a deep appreciation for a wide variety of stories and viewpoints in arts and culture. Candidates should possess a strong educational background, preferably at the graduate level, and experience in related fields such as art, archaeology, anthropology, history, or education.