Behind the Scenes
Over the past 35 years, we have worked hard to make sure that our employees are learning and gaining skills that relate to their field of study and their future career. We hire students from a wide variety of programs, not just history. We give every team member the opportunity to gain experience with every aspect of working in a museum: everyday computer tasks, assisting visitors, managing social media accounts, preparing exhibits, and more. These museum experiences ensure that every employee is confident and ready for their future careers.
Administration and Collections Management
Computer skills are essential for today's workplaces and classrooms. Staff at the museum gain experience in a wide range of programs, from Google suite to video and sound editing software. We also teach students to perform administrative tasks such as scanning, photocopying, and printing documents and photos.
The everyday skills that students learn include more specialized tasks like caring for and maintaining the collections in our museum and our archives. Collection management and maintenance is a skill that is used not only in museums, but also in places like libraries, art galleries, science centres, antique stores, and many more.
Exhibit Design
Over the years, our staff have designed and constructed exhibits covering a wide range of local topics. These include our local veterans, the lives of farmers, the history and achievements of the Lion’s Club, and more. Creating an exhibit requires a wide variety of tasks, including research, interviewing, writing, graphic design, and physical fabrication. We also have virtual exhibitions (like this one) that require staff to learn how to work with exhibit software. Experience in exhibit creation is a great asset for students of museum studies, journalism, design, or even engineering.
Museum Tours
Our staff engage with visitors by offering tours, answering questions, and giving presentations. These activities give our staff increased confidence in their public speaking skills, which they carry with them to meetings, interviews, and presentations in the future.
Social Media and Marketing
We engage with the public outside of the museum by posting to our website and our social media pages. We also regularly write articles for local newspapers and newsletters. These activities help students develop their writing and graphic design skills. They also gain experience in planning, scheduling, and adhering to deadlines.
Children’s Programming
Our kids’ programs feature crafts, games, and lots of learning activities. Running childrens’ programs teaches our team members how to plan events and communicate effectively with children and adults. Programs for kids have to be both fun and safe, challenging our staff to think creatively.
Gardening and Maintenance
To keep the museum looking beautiful, our staff and volunteers perform basic maintenance inside and outside our building. Our gardens are a source of pride, so we make sure that our flowers are properly watered and deadheaded, and that weeds are removed. A well-groomed garden makes our museum more presentable for visitors. Inside the museum, maintenance includes cleaning the exhibits, vacuuming, sweeping, dusting, and mopping. It’s hard work, but it goes a long way in making our museum the best it can be.