Executive Director, Henry B. Plant Museum

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Position Details

The Henry B. Plant Museum at The University of Tampa seeks an accomplished Executive Director with primary responsibility for overseeing the museum’s management and financial operations, including responsibility for exhibitions, acquisitions; care and preservation of the museum collection; friend-and-fund raising; educational programming and community engagement; and serving as primary liaison for carrying out the administration of the museum in accordance with the Agreement between The University of Tampa and the City of Tampa.
 

The 1891 Tampa Bay Hotel, now a National Historic Landmark, is home to The University of Tampa and the Henry B. Plant Museum. During the 1880s, Henry Bradley Plant built an empire of railroads, steamships and hotels. He wanted that empire to have a palace and that palace was the Tampa Bay Hotel – now referred to as Florida’s “first Magic Kingdom.”
 

The Henry B. Plant Museum, located in the south wing of the original Tampa Bay Hotel, features original opulent furnishings and artifacts from the hotel collected by Mr. and Mrs. Plant on several buying trips to Europe and Asia. The museum transports the visitor through educational exhibits and events to the late Victorian period, the beginning of Florida’s tourist industry, and the early years of the city of Tampa. It hosts a robust schedule of exhibitions, events, and educational programs throughout the year.
 

The Museum is jointly sponsored by The University of Tampa and the City of Tampa, but primary responsibility for its operations rests with The University of Tampa. Recently, the museum was realigned within the University and is now administratively housed in the College of Social Sciences, Mathematics and Education (CSSME), which contains the Department of History, Geography and Legal Studies. To more closely align the museum with the University and College’s educational and community outreach missions, the Executive Director will also have an academic appointment in CSSME. Faculty rank will be commensurate with the successful candidate’s experience and highest degree earned.
 

Specific duties include, but are not limited to:
 

Outreach and Development

•    Collaborate with the liaison of the City of Tampa, The University of Tampa, the Museum Board, the public and Museum support groups. 
•    Lead fundraising related to sponsorship of exhibitions and other Museum activities, as well as coordinate with members of the Board of Directors and others in these activities.  Supervise grant-writing activities.
•    Direct cultivation and solicitation of, and stewardship for, all donors.
•    Outreach to and participate in all relevant stakeholder groups and the general community.
•    Work with the University’s Office of Communications and Public Affairs and directly with the media to secure appropriate publicity for the programs and exhibitions of the Museum.
•    Supervise the development and implementation of a communication plan that includes the Museum website and social media.

Programming, Education, and Community Engagement
•    Plan, organize and develop programs affecting the collection, exhibitions, restorations, preservation, and history of the Museum.
•    Identify, obtain, and develop appropriate exhibitions.
•    Supervise and collaborate with the Curator of Education to develop appropriate educational programs and expand existing programs. Collaborate with CSSME and other colleges and departments across campus to leverage the University’s expertise in service of the museum’s educational and community mission.
•    Teach the equivalent of four credit hours per year in discipline of candidate’s expertise and collaborate with CSSME and the Department of History, Geography, and Legal Studies to develop internships, independent study projects, and other opportunities for undergraduate students to engage with the museum and while supporting its work. 
•    Work with the University’s Office of Communications and Public Affairs and directly with the media to secure appropriate publicity for the programs and exhibitions of the Museum.
 

Museum Operations and Management
•    Maintain inventories and archives.
•    Supervise the operation of the Museum Store.
•    Perform any related duties necessary to sustain, promote and enhance the Museum.
•    Attend all meetings of the Board and its committees.
•    Establish and maintain a