Employment
The Yiddish Book Center offers meaningful and challenging positions, a warm, friendly atmosphere, competitive salaries, and excellent benefits. We are seeking applicants for the following positions (see details below):
- Education Program Assistant
- Volunteer Field Trip Docent
- Internships in Jewish Oral History
- Volunteer Docent
The Yiddish Book Center seeks an energetic, experienced, full-time Education Program Assistant to provide administrative support for its expanding educational opportunities for youth and adults.
Position Description:
The Education Program Assistant provides essential support to staff and faculty for a full calendar of dynamic educational programs throughout the year. Periodic weekend/evening work required. Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
- Coordinating program admissions and registration
- Assisting with program marketing and publicity
- Arranging travel and lodging for students and faculty
- Responding to inquiries about educational programs
- Handling program related logistics
- Assisting with program marketing and publicity
- Maintaining participant databases and files
- Scheduling interviews and meetings
- Coordinating events and calendars
- Other tasks as assigned
Competitive salary and benefits.
Qualifications:
Required:
- BA degree
- Excellent written and oral communication and organizational skills
- Attention to detail
- Commitment to program mission
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and electronic communications
- Flexibility and sense of humor
- Valid driver’s license and safe driving record
Preferred:
- Knowledge of educational programs and environment
- Familiarity with local academic institutions and Jewish community
- Familiarity with modern Jewish history and culture
To apply: Send cover letter, resume and contact information for two references to Gretchen Fiordalice at [email protected]
The Yiddish Book Center is seeking volunteer docents to provide support to our Field Trip Program staff. Volunteers will assist in leading student groups on visits of the Center and will facilitate interactive activities and tours.
Requirements:
- Excellent oral communication skills
- Strong organizational skills
- Able to work independently
- Sense of humor and flexibility
- Ability to engage with students and subject matter
- Comfortable working with middle and high school students
- Energetic and enthusiastic
- Jewish studies background (familiarity with modern Jewish history and Yiddish language and culture)
- Ability to work weekdays
Availability: Field trip visits are typically scheduled Monday through Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Occasional availability on Sundays is also desired but not required. Field trips typically run for two to four hours and are scheduled upon request during the school year.
Training will be provided.
Interested candidates should email resume and cover letter to Gretchen Fiordalice at [email protected]
About the Yiddish Book Center’s Field Trip Program:
On a field trip to the Yiddish Book Center—the world’s first Yiddish museum—students explore universal themes such as immigration and cultural preservation through one group’s unique story.
Dynamic, interactive activities engage students in the rich history of Yiddish culture and the ways that culture has been preserved and remains relevant to people’s lives.
Internships in Jewish Oral History
The Yiddish Book Center’s Wexler Oral History Project is seeking three paid interns for the academic year to help process more than 200 video oral history interviews. Interns will work at the Book Center, located on the Hampshire College campus, between ten and fifteen hours per week.
The internship has two tracks: interns will work primarily on either the technical aspects of the project (editing and uploading video footage of interviews) or on the cultural content (time-coding full-length interviews, identifying interesting clips, and curating video material to make it more accessible to viewers in our online archive). Applicants with a strong background in both film editing and Jewish history and culture will be able to work on both aspects of the project. Interns will work closely with the Project Director, an oral history Fellow, and other volunteers involved in the project.
Technical Intern
Job Description:
Editing, preparing, exporting, and uploading full interviews and excerpts using Final Cut Pro (professional video editing program)
Requirements:
- Video-editing experience, preferably on Final Cut Pro 7
- Comfort with technology
- Interest in learning new software/applications
- Interest in oral history/ethnography/Jewish culture
- Attention to detail
- Excellent listening skills
- Ability to work independently, with low-level supervision
Cultural Intern
Job Description:
- Identifying great stories and excerpts of interviews for use in web, print, and other outlets using Final Cut Pro (professional video editing program)
- Tracking interviews and post-interview processing in the project’s customized FileMaker Pro database
Requirements:
- Jewish studies background (or familiarity with modern Jewish and Yiddish culture and history)
- Interest in oral history/ethnography
- Comfort with technology and interest in learning new software/applications (cultural interns will receive basic training Final Cut Pro video editing software)
- Attention to detail
- Excellent listening skills
- Ability to update and maintain integrated tracking system for a complex workflow and expansive project
- Ability to work independently, with low-level supervision
Hours: Interns must work a minimum of ten hours per week. Schedule negotiable during weekday daytime hours.
Work study students preferred. Possibility of continued employment through summer.
To apply, send cover letter and resume to Project Director Christa Whitney at [email protected]yiddishbookcenter.org as soon as possible. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis.
The Yiddish Book Center is seeking volunteer docents to greet and orient visitors, answer questions about events and membership, provide support to our staff, and process donations. Volunteers should be comfortable working with groups, speaking with visitors, using a cash register, and should have an interest in Yiddish culture. Training provided. Docents typically work one three-hour day per week. No prior knowledge of Yiddish is necessary. If interested, please email Sarah Bleichfeld at [email protected] or call 413-256-4900, ext. 124.
The Yiddish Book Center is an equal opportunity employer.