Curator for the Cushing Center, Medical Library

Overview

The Curator for the Cushing Center, Medical Library develops and leads the interpretation of the Center and its larger history. Responsibilities include providing tours and developing a docent program, teaching, collection development and stewardship, research support, and community outreach and programming. Reporting to the Head of the Medical Historical Library, the Curator will be primarily responsible for developing and implementing compelling exhibitions and a public engagement strategy for wide audiences. The Curator, working with the Head of the Medical Historical Library and relevant staff, will create and implement long-term maintenance and preservation plans for the collection materials.

The Cushing Center, home of the Cushing Tumor Registry, is a museum space and collection with over 10,000 glass plate negatives and other types of photography, approximately 750 wet brain and tumor specimens, and other objects. Renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Harvey Cushing began building the Tumor Registry in 1902 as a research and teaching collection of patient brain and tumor specimens he assembled throughout his career. Housed in the Historical Library of the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library, the Center, founded in 2010, provides a welcoming space for visitors to interact with the collection from many perspectives. The Center continues the original intent for the Registry through education and teaching, a critical part of Yale’s mission.

Teaching and Research

The curator will foster the use of the collection by Yale faculty, students, as well as local, national, and international researchers. In collaboration with Head of the Medical Historical Library, the curator will take the lead on multiple classes each semester. The curator will prepare and lead instruction sessions for faculty, including evaluating and selecting and setting up materials, developing lesson plans, collaborating with instructors on assignments and learning objectives, assessing the success of instruction strategies and approaches, and drawing on other library staff as co-instructors as appropriate. The role will work with faculty and other campus partners to identify areas where the Cushing Center can support course instruction, strengthen instructional collaborations across the university, and integrate collections and resources into new and existing classes and programs. The curator will also present materials to other groups who visit the library, and collaborate with colleagues to respond to general reference and instruction requests.

Activate and Interpret the Collections

The curator is responsible for interpreting the holdings of the collection for both the medical community and the broader public. The curator may conceive and organize exhibitions; collaborate with faculty, students, and external scholars to organize conferences, symposia, and lectures; and write and edit various publications about the collection. The curator may be called upon to issue news releases, grant interviews, and make presentations. The curator is encouraged to maintain an active research agenda.

Collection Development and Stewardship

The curator‘s collection development responsibilities encompass active research and selection of materials across a broad range of formats, including manuscripts, archives, visual materials, and digital media, as well as all formats of print materials from books to ephemera; and keeping abreast of evolving legal and ethical considerations for provenance, intellectual property rights, privacy, and respectful stewardship of the Center’s collections. To develop and steward the collection, the curator will broaden their areas of expertise to meet evolving collecting, teaching, and research priorities. The curator collaborates with colleagues in other units of the Library as well as with colleagues across Yale’s cultural heritage institutions to ensure that the collections are discoverable, accurately and appropriately described, and well preserved.

Collaboration and Collegiality

The curator is expected to function in a collegial fashion as part of a larger team of curators and librarians to sustain a broad program of collection development, scholarly and educational outreach, description, digitization, preservation, and research in the humanities. Demonstrated consensus-building and problem-solving skills, experience coordinating multiple projects, and the ability to bring projects to fruition are vital to the success of this position.

Service to the Department, University, and Profession

In addition to activities relating directly to the Cushing Center, the curator participates in library projects, committees, policy decisions and strategic planning and may be assigned special projects relating to the overall needs of the library. The curator is also expected to participate actively in professional organizations as appropriate.

Required Skills and Abilities

1. The candidate should possess an understanding of the history of medicine or related fields.
2. Superb analytical, creative, and communication skills in both writing and public speaking. This may be demonstrated through teaching, publications, exhibitions, public programming, or collaborative projects.
3. A commitment to higher education and community outreach, including the ability to engage with diverse audiences (age, gender, nationality, race/ethnicity, profession, sexual orientation, etc.).
4. Excellent organizational, interpersonal and team collaboration skills

Preferred Skills and Abilities

1. Ph.D, with some understanding of neurosurgery or related field of medicine.
2. Experience with exhibition planning and implementation; and awareness of legal and ethical issues surrounding cultural heritage materials.
3. Experience with collections in archives, library, museum, or related. Proficiency using library or museum discovery & documentation systems.
4. Reading knowledge of at least one language beyond English

Physical Requirements

Ability to lift materials up to 40 lbs and push heavy book trucks.

Principal Responsibilities

1. Support Teaching and Research: The curator will foster the use of the collection by Yale faculty, students, as well as local, national, and international researchers. The curator is expected to forge strong associations with Yale faculty to encourage the use of the collections in Yale-related teaching and research. The curator will also present materials to classes and to other groups who visit the library, collaborate with colleagues to respond to general reference and instruction requests, and participate in the library’s fellowship selection committee.
2. Activate and Interpret the Collections: The curator is responsible for interpreting the holdings of the collection for both the medical community and the broader public. The curator will help lead the Library’s exhibition program; conceive and organize exhibitions; collaborate with faculty, students, and external scholars to organize programming; and write and edit various publications about the collection. The curator may be called upon to issue news releases, grant interviews, conduct tours, and make presentations.
3. Collection Development: collection development responsibilities encompass active research and selection of materials across a broad range of visual formats, including prints, posters, drawings, photographs, and digital media; dealer and donor relations, including establishing fair price and market value, understanding the total cost of acquisition, drafting deeds of gift and purchase agreements, and keeping abreast of evolving legal and ethical considerations for provenance, international export guidelines, intellectual property rights, privacy, and respectful stewardship of cultural heritage materials.
4. Ongoing Collection Stewardship: The curator collaborates with colleagues in other units of the Library as well as with colleagues Yale’s cultural heritage institutions to ensure that the collections are discoverable, accurately and appropriately described, and well preserved.
5. Collaboration and Collegiality: The curator is expected to function in a collegial fashion as part of a larger team of curators and librarians sustaining a broad program of collection development, scholarly and educational outreach, description, digitization, preservation, and research in the humanities. 
6. Service to the Department, University, and Profession: In addition to activities relating directly to Medical Historical Library, the curator participates in library projects, committees, policy decisions and strategic planning and may be assigned special projects relating to the overall needs of the library. The curator is also expected to participate actively in professional associations, foundations, and government agencies as appropriate.

Required Education and Experience

A masters degree and course of study in history, art history, or equivalent, and a commitment to ongoing intellectual and professional growth beyond the area of initial specialization. At least 2 years of professional experience in a related field, including but not limited to higher education, museums, foundations, or libraries.