Museum Curator (Hybrid) in Cornholme

Currently in its development phase, The Museum of Black Women Innovators (MOBWI) is a groundbreaking cultural institution set to open in Portsmouth, Virginia. MOBWI will be the first museum in the United States solely dedicated to uncovering, preserving, and celebrating the extraordinary achievements of Black women across industries, from invention and innovation to arts, advocacy, and entrepreneurship. MOBWI exists to inspire, empower, and educate all people by celebrating the groundbreaking achievements of Black women innovators. Through immersive experiences and powerful storytelling, we honour their legacies, foster understanding, and ignite the drive for future generations to break barriers and lead with purpose. As we move toward our public launch, we are building a founding team passionate about shaping a bold and lasting institution.

Job Summary

The Museum Curator for Black History & Culture is responsible for researching, preserving, interpreting, and presenting exhibitions and collections that centre the Black experience, with particular emphasis on Virginia’s local, regional, and national significance. This role blends scholarship, storytelling, and community engagement to ensure that Black history is preserved with integrity, accuracy, and cultural respect while remaining accessible and compelling to diverse audiences.

Key Responsibilities

• Collections & Research: Curate, acquire, document, and steward artifacts, archival materials, oral histories, and digital assets related to Black history and culture. Conduct original and collaborative research on African American history. Ensure ethical stewardship of collections, including provenance research, conservation standards, and compliance with professional and legal best practices.
• Exhibitions & Interpretation: Lead the development of permanent and temporary exhibitions that present authentic, inclusive, and compelling narratives. Research, write, and review interpretive content including exhibit labels, catalogs, educational materials, and digital storytelling assets. Collaborate with designers, educators, and multimedia partners to create immersive, accessible, and engaging visitor experiences.
• Program Design & Management: Design, plan, and manage public programs that activate exhibitions and collections, including lectures, workshops, performances, community dialogues, and special events. Develop program goals, timelines, budgets, and evaluation metrics to ensure alignment with the museum’s mission and strategic priorities. Coordinate with internal teams and external partners to deliver high-quality programs that are inclusive, well-attended, and operationally sound. Assess program outcomes and incorporate feedback to continuously refine offerings and expand audience engagement.
• Community Engagement & Partnerships: Build and sustain trusted relationships with local communities, elders, scholars, churches, artists, and cultural organizations. Engage descendants, donors, and community historians in collaborative curation and storytelling initiatives, when appropriate. Serve as a public representative of the museum at programs, conferences, convenings, and community events.
• Education & Programming: Support and advise on educational programming for K–12 students, higher education institutions, and the general public. Contribute to lectures, panel discussions, workshops, and public history initiatives. Ensure educational content is culturally responsive, historically accurate, and aligned with contemporary scholarship.
• Museum Operations: Support day-to-day museum operations related to exhibitions, programs, collections access, and visitor experience. Collaborate with operations, facilities, and security teams to ensure safe, welcoming, and well-functioning public and staff spaces. Assist in developing and implementing policies, procedures, and workflows that support efficient museum operations and compliance. Contribute to strategic planning and long-term visioning for collections growth, interpretive priorities, and community impact. Maintain ongoing awareness of best practices in museum ethics and public history methodologies.

Required Qualifications

• A minimum of five (5) years of professional experience in curatorial practice, collections management, public history, program development, or a related cultural heritage field.
• Master’s degree in museum studies, History, African American Studies, Public History, Cultural Studies, or a related field.
• Demonstrated expertise in Black history, particularly African American history in Virginia or the Mid-Atlantic region.
• Experience curating exhibitions and/or managing historical collections.
• Strong research, writing, and public-speaking skills.
• Commitment to ethical storytelling, cultural sensitivity, and community-centered practices.

Preferred Qualifications

• PhD or advanced research experience.
• Experience with oral history projects, digital humanities, or archival digitization.
• Grant writing or fundraising experience.
• Familiarity with state and federal museum standards and accreditation processes.

Core Competencies

• Cultural competence and historical integrity.
• Collaborative leadership and community trust-building.
• Strategic thinking and attention to detail.
• Storytelling with scholarly rigor and emotional intelligence.

This role may include work in galleries, archives, community settings, and off-site locations across Virginia. Occasional evenings or weekends may be required for programs or special events.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Museum of Black Women Innovators (MOBWI) is committed to creating an inclusive environment and strongly encourages candidates from historically underrepresented backgrounds to apply.