Director of Education #00003

Title: Director of Education #00003

State Role Title: Education Administrator II

Hiring Range: up to $107,000

Pay Band: 6

Agency: Gunston Hall

Location: Fairfax, Virginia

Agency Website: www.gunstonhall.org

Recruitment Type: Agency Employee Only - A

Job Duties

Gunston Hall is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity for a passionate and action-oriented leader to transform the guest experience at Gunston Hall, a historic site on scenic Mason Neck in Fairfax County, Virginia. Having experienced strategic growth in the past few years and looking ahead to much of the same in the coming years, Gunston Hall is now seeking an innovative and entrepreneurial leader with the vision, energy, and ability to inspire, create, and achieve the implementation of diverse, accessible, audience-oriented, and impactful educational experiences both on-site at Gunston Hall and beyond.

Description of Duties

The Director of Education is a member of the Executive Leadership Team, which is responsible for developing the overarching strategy of the institution, in collaboration with the Board of Regents of Gunston Hall. Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Education will be a spokesperson for the value of educational programming at the museum, collaborating cross-departmentally to define and implement a programmatic vision aimed at reaching and cultivating new audiences with learning and civic engagement at the forefront. In collaboration with other museum departments (Curatorial, Marketing, Guest Services, etc.), the Director of Education will integrate Gunston Hall’s strategic goals into public, interpretation, and Docent Guide programming, and introduce innovative, inclusive programs to foster new audiences and community connections.

The Director will lead the department of Education with 6 full-time and 4 part-time educators and a sizeable cadre of volunteer Docents. They will collaborate extensively with other senior leaders that manage the organization’s marketing and communications, advancement, and finance functions; with board members, volunteer docents, and other volunteers; and with groups and communities external to Gunston Hall.

The Director of Education will foster an inclusive culture in the Education department and be a champion for identifying ways for Gunston Hall to engage new visitors, students, educators, and families. The Director will contribute to the strategic discussion around the development of the museum’s learning initiatives, with input and support from senior management, staff, community partners, and other constituents. It is important for the Director to seek a deep understanding of the characteristics and needs of Gunston Hall’s local, regional, and national communities.

Roles and Responsibilities

Organizational Collaboration and Departmental Leadership

• Provide strategic leadership for all areas of the department’s operations.
• Establish productive working relationships with staff, colleagues, board members and community partners; sustain and strengthen a culture of trust, communication, entrepreneurship, teamwork, and integrity.
• Provide supervision and support to managers for teacher professional development, K-12 school and college programs, teen programs, distance learning, digital programming and the intern program.
• Develop programming and learning experiences that foster a culture of belonging and engage visitors of all ages and backgrounds, in collaboration with colleagues in other departments, i.e., curatorial, marketing, etc.
• Work with the Finance Department to develop and manage the Education Department’s operating budget with long-term planning and revenue generation opportunities in mind.
• Cultivate and retain a diverse Education staff such that Gunston Hall’s audiences see themselves reflected in the programs.
• Support professional development needs and leadership opportunities for the Education staff to further establish the presence in the region and in the broader museum and cultural learning arenas.

Program and Engagement

• Design a strategy of programming that engages diverse audiences both locally and nationally, while developing curriculum to support learning experiences for all ages and backgrounds.
• Establish and maintain policies and procedures for integrating outcome-based evaluation and learning research into all department initiatives and programs related to the collections, exhibitions, events, performances and demonstrations, educational publications, docent-guided tours, and schools.
• Develop an in-depth understanding of Gunston Hall’s interpretive philosophy and take a leadership role in both guiding the interpretive development activity for exhibition projects.
• Re-imagine and oversee the Docent Program and internship program.


Strategic Vision and Leadership
• Prepare regular status reports for Leadership Team and Board of Regents regarding programming, with particular emphasis on metrics of impact and visitor satisfaction; participate in discussions related to Gunston Hall’s overall operating strategy.
• Actively participate in the national and international museum learning field and adopt current models and best practices.

What is Gunston Hall?

Owned by the Commonwealth of Virginia and operated by the Gunston Hall Board of Regents, Gunston Hall’s mission is to stimulate the exploration and understanding of the principles expressed by George Mason in the 1776 Virginia Declaration of Rights. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and a National Historic Landmark, Gunston Hall was built from 1755-1759. The almost 6000-acre plantation was the home of George and Ann Mason, their children, and hundreds of enslaved people, indentured servants, wageworkers, and tenant farmers. Today, the site strives to tell the stories of these diverse people and demonstrate how their stories contribute to our greater American narrative.

The physical plant includes the house called Gunston Hall; five reconstructed outbuildings; a visitor center, museum, event facility, and museum shop; an on-going restoration of the 18th-century garden, and 550 acres of diverse landscape situated along the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia. For more information, please visit www.gunstonhall.org.

Gunston Hall is an equal opportunity employer.

Minimum Qualifications

• Demonstrated and successful leadership in a diverse and vibrant setting.
• Demonstrated and successful experience designing, implementing, and evaluating impactful educational experiences for a diverse audience.
• Exemplary communication skills and a commitment to effective communication in a team environment.
• Proven ability developing and achieving goals as well as planning and managing projects, implementing budgets and business plans, and meeting targeted deadlines.
• Exceptional organizational skills.
• Must be available to work weekends, holidays and/or evenings as needed.
• Must be able to travel out of town as needed.

Additional Considerations

• A Master’s Degree in history, museum studies, public history, education or comparable field is preferred.
• Considerable progressive, relevant experience and demonstrated success in creating and implementing impactful educational experiences or a comparable combination of education and experience is preferred.

Special Instructions

You will be provided a confirmation of receipt when your application and/or résumé is submitted successfully. Please refer to “Your Application” in your account to check the status of your application for this position.

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Contact Information

Name: Debbie Wyatt-Smith

Phone: 804-292-6414

Email: Debbie.wyattsmith@dhrm.virginia.gov

In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their AHP Letter (formerly COD) provided by the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Service-Connected Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their AHP Letter. Requesting an AHP Letter can be found at AHP Letter or by calling DARS at 800-552-5019.

Note: Applicants who received a Certificate of Disability from DARS or DBVI dated between April 1, 2022- February 29, 2024, can still use that COD as applicable documentation for the Alternative Hiring Process.