Public Programs and Visitor Experience Coordinator

The Public Programs and Visitor Experience Coordinator welcomes, connects, and engages visitors in a wide range of opportunities with the Spencer Museum of Art. In collaboration with museum colleagues, KU and regional community partners, the person in this position co-creates and assists with public and member programming for adult and intergenerational audiences. Overseeing visitor experience activities, this position provides exceptional customer service to visitors, serves as front-line support at the Welcome Desk one weekend day per week and Thursday evenings, as well as additional support as needed. The coordinator supervises the Visitor Experience team members, including student staff and volunteers. Key to this position is connecting visitors with Museum resources, deepening relationships with current audiences, and cultivating new audiences. This position is part of the Public Practice team and reports to the Deputy Director for Public Practice and Curatorial.

Events & Public Programs (50%)

• Develop, coordinate, implement, and evaluate public programs in a variety of formats to engage college student, adult, and intergenerational audiences in collaboration with Museum colleagues as well as campus and community partners.
• Collaborate with Advancement colleagues to develop and implement signature programs and experiences for Friends of the Art Museum members and prospects.
• Manage on-the-ground logistics and overall support for public programs and events, including welcoming and thanking attendees upon arrival and departure.
• Oversee and assist with set up and striking equipment for public programs and events.
• Manage vendors for programs and events, including catering orders, rentals, and other hospitality-related services.
• Create, update, and track records, including attendance and other statistics, for programs and events in the Museum's collection database, MuseumPlus, Outlook shared events calendar, and other community calendars.
• Coordinate with Creative Services and Communications colleagues on promotional and related materials for programs.
• Ensure accessibility and assist with accommodations for programs and gallery experiences to support the inclusion of all visitors and participants.
• Conduct and assist with gallery visits as needed.

Visitor Experience/Welcome Desk (30%)

• Oversee all Welcome Desk operations, including creating and maintaining an inclusive, accessible, open environment for visitors and staff.
• Manage onsite operations at the Museum's Welcome Desk during Thursday evening public hours, Saturday public hours, and other weekday/weekend hours as needed.
• Serve as one of the first points of contact with visitors, communicating knowledgeably and enthusiastically about the Museum, its activities, and resources.
• Capture visitor motivations, interests, affiliations, and feedback and create detailed weekend visitor reports to share with key staff.
• Perform opening and closing procedures and oversee front-of-house public areas, including maintaining cleanliness, organization, and safety.
• Monitor visitors in galleries, answer questions, gather feedback, and help develop and conduct visitor surveys.
• Conduct daily check-ins with Public Safety staff regarding visitor experiences.
• Answer Museum mainline telephone calls and assist callers with general information.
• Maintain open lines of communication with Public Safety Officers regarding visitor experiences.
• Provide feedback and recommendations regarding visitor experience issues.

Supervision and Administration (10%)

• Supervise, schedule, recruit, hire, train, and motivate Visitor Experience student staff and Visitor Experience volunteers.
• Develop and manage budgets for public programs and visitor experience needs.
• Assist in answering main line telephone calls and assist callers with general information.

Retail and Membership (5%)

• Oversee merchandising and signage of Museum Shop.
• Oversee and conduct transactions for on-site sales.
• Submit daily batch reports from Museum Shop sales to accounting staff.
• Maintain book room organization and restocking of Museum Shop merchandise.
• Facilitate and process membership transactions and donations and communicate transactions to Advancement colleagues.
• Collaborate with Advancement colleagues to promote on-site membership sales and encourage free-will admission contributions.

Other Duties as Assigned (5%)

• Participate in museum- and campus-wide initiatives and trainings, including those related to diversity, equity, accessibility, inclusion, and belonging.
• Attend all staff meetings.
• Assist and participate in other initiatives as they arise and in concert with supervisor.

In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this position:

• Cover letter describing how you meet the required and preferred qualifications.
• Resume
• List of three (3) professional references

Only complete applications will be considered.

Application review begins 1/22/2025, and will continue until a qualified applicant has been selected.

Celka Straughn,
straughn@ku.edu,
785-864-0136

45,000-50,000

TWF-8,R-10, Sat-6

Wednesday January 22, 2025

Sunday February 16, 2025