Editor and Publications Manager

** As a condition of employment, the museum requires employees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, which includes an mRNA booster vaccine (Pfizer or Moderna).

Job Title: Editor and Publications Manager
Reports To: Eliza Kozlowski, Senior Director, Marketing and Engagement
Working Hours: Varied
Status/Salary: Full-time/Exempt. Salary range $42,000 - $50,000
Posting Date: October 26 2022 until filled

Overview:

Manage the creation and development of and production process for all museum publications (as used throughout, excluding books). Manage the editorial and production process for exhibition text. Review and revise copy to ensure alignment with institutional and interpretive goals, appropriate and consistent voice and tone, and adherence to institutional style, as well as to correct grammatical, typographical, or compositional errors.

Jod Duties:

1. Coordinate content development, project management, scheduling, budgeting, and editing for museum publications.
2. Create, maintain, administer, and enforce the schedule for museum print publications and select content development. Negotiate deadlines and workflow with authors and other contributors.
3. Advise and collaborate with staff across departments to find resolutions to challenges in successfully completing projects on time.
4. Maintain knowledge of, and implement as relevant, established and evolving best practices for creating accessible and inclusive content for diverse audiences and for fostering inclusion. Make recommendations for revising themes, narratives, and text to create interpretative materials that focus on the relevant audience, foster educational goals, align with and respect curatorial vision and intent, and advance the museum’s mission.
5. For each exhibition, participate with other members of the exhibition planning team in the development of an appropriate schedule for all deliverables associated with all of the aspects of the exhibition.
6. Work collaboratively with design department to establish look and structure of print and digital publications to meet project and institutional goals and align with museum branding.
7. Copyedit draft texts and mark proofs and comps for accuracy, grammar, style, clarity, consistency, and appropriateness. Identify and correct errors in arrangement, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and typesetting. Make recommendations for improving quality of copy, maintaining consistent voice, and supporting institutional and interpretive goals. Ensure appropriate reading level and language usage for a variety of audiences.
8. Route edited materials back to contributors for review or correction. Collaborate with authors to refine texts, balancing curatorial/authorial voice and institutional voice with interpretive goals and audience needs. Consolidate comments at various stages of production and resolve conflicting comments as necessary. Coordinate these responsibilities with other department staff when workload requires.
9. Research and consult reference resources (primarily the Chicago Manual of Style) as necessary to verify guidelines for style, grammar, and composition.
10. Serve as managing editor for the museum’s bulletin. Create storyboards, assign story authorship, and lead any meeting to discuss the storyboards or other aspects of the bulletin.
11. Edit, substantively edit, rewrite, and proofread texts as required for the bulletin, other publications, exhibitions, marketing materials, development materials, the museum website, and other applications. Advise on image selection to support meaning and message of text, working with Production Designer.
12. Work with development and membership team to coordinate mailing schedule for publications, develop and maintain logs, and schedule postage. [Assignment of these tasks to be reviewed semi-annually.]
13. Work with Director of Publishing, Exhibitions & Design and with Designer & Production Coordinator in a digital internal (and where possible, external) workflow, including making revisions in InDesign and assisting with layout where appropriate.
14. Create, maintain, and update as required museum-wide institutional style guidelines. Create style sheets for specific projects, such as printed and digital book projects, as necessary.
15. Track proper use of captions, lender credits, and donor/sponsorship credits on all museum publications/signage.
16. Coordinate with external writers, copyeditors, and proofreaders as required in the context of the scope of responsibilities above.
17. Provide advice on editorial issues related to print and digital books.
18. Work with Manager of Digital Learning and Engagement to edit and rewrite, as appropriate, website content and audio/mobile tour scripts and, as needed, video scripts.
19. Provide editorial direction and support for special projects such as Triennial Highlights, the Nitrate Picture Show catalogue, and digital projects such as digitized films and the Silver Voices project.
20. Edit, lay out, and proofread the museum’s annual report, with information gathering assistance from the Executive Assistant to the Museum Director and other employees (at your request).
21. Work with Communications Manager to edit press releases and press captions.
22. As requested, review and edit substantive signage at the museum.
23. Collaborate with Designer &; Production Coordinator in building museum inventory of current and past publications, and distributing, logging, and filing publications.
24. Perform other duties/projects as assigned by the Senior Director, Engagement & Marketing.

Minimum Qualifications and Requirements:

1. Bachelor’s degree in Communications, English, or related field or equivalent experience.
2. Experience as a copy editor/proofreader in a fast-paced production environment.
3. Experience in acting as the managing editor for publications.
4. Prior experience working at a museum preferred.
5. Expert knowledge of Desktop/Laptop Computer, Word Processing Software (Microsoft Word), InDesign, Email (Outlook, Gmail, etc.).  Working knowledge of Spreadsheets (Excel), Photoshop, Social Media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook), TMS (The Museum System) Collection management software, and Drupal and web CMS.
6. Expert and up-to-date knowledge of the Chicago Manual of Style.

To be considered for this position, please email a cover letter and a current CV or resume to Eliza Kozlowski, Senior Director, Engagement and Marketing to [email protected]