Advisory Archivist, Mass Humanities Contract Position, Armenians of Whitinsville, Whitinsville Massachusetts

Posted September 7, 2023

Advisory Archivist:
The Armenians of Whitinsville (www.armeniansofwhitinsville.org) has an opportunity for an Advisory
Archivist to develop and implement guidelines that will support the growth of the project’s content and
expand its usefulness to researchers and website visitors. This is a part-time contract position operating
remotely with flexible hours.
The Armenians of Whitinsville project was founded in 2021 by a core group of volunteers seeking to
develop a website that would commemorate and honor the families, businesses and social/religious
activities of this early diasporan Armenian community in Massachusetts. The project takes its
inspiration from the Armenian houshamadyan memory books written by Armenian Genocide survivors
to remember the communities they lost during the conflicts and massacres stretching from the end of
the 19 th century to the 1915 Genocide and its aftermath. The website is currently organized into two
primary sets of collections – one for families and the other for community memories, with additional
space dedicated to recordings and recipes. The Advisory Archivist will be instrumental in helping the
project team leverage Omeka’s ability to cross-reference and link content across these collections.
The Advisory Archivist will develop guidelines on how the website’s content will be catalogued and
tagged to support research across the website, including developing the documentation that will guide
the work of volunteers who put together and upload website content. This work will require analysis of
complex needs presented by the project team members, website visitors, and potential non-profit
partners. The strategies and guidelines developed by this consultant will contribute to the expansion of
the website visitor experience through maximizing how Omeka and Omeka plug-in software can be
adapted to meet the project’s current and future content needs, including ensuring the content’s long-
term digital storage and back-up needs are met.
Qualified candidates will have strong experience with websites and their supporting digital repositories,
with preference given to those who know the Omeka database environment, including plug-ins. The
project is looking for someone with exceptional analytical ability, with proven ability to establish
priorities, manage projects, including developing project plans and communicating changes and
progress. Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English is required. Familiarity with
Armenian communities is preferred but not required.

Job Type: Contract part-time position, remote, flexible

Start Date: Fall 2023, 3 month contract, renewable based on needs
Application Deadline: September 30, 2023

Education/Experience: 4 year degree required; master’s preferred; with some project experience similar
to that required of this assignment.

Compensation: At least $25/hour, depends on experience
Interested candidates may forward their resumes, relevant work experience, and any work examples to
[email protected]