Community Learning and Experience Specialist

The Community Learning and Experience Specialist develops and coordinates complex arts-based community engagement and educational programs within Urban Arts Space (UAS) that assist in addressing the needs of the university, community, and surrounding areas. As a fully experienced professional, this position serves as an informal resource for less experienced colleagues and applies thorough understanding of arts administration, community engagement, and educational programming concepts to perform complex projects of large scope. Working under general guidance from the UAS Director, the Community Learning and Experience Specialist creates and plans sophisticated programs to engage and support the university, community, students, and employees within defined parameters, while serving as the organization's primary liaison with community partners in promoting educational engagement aligned with UAS's mission.

As part of program development, research, implementation and coordination, the Community Learning and Experience Specialist will, in partnership with and at the direction of the Director, research and implement community engaged learning programs that align with institutional priorities; develop and coordinate complex public programming that cultivates learning and deepens the activities and mission of UAS; create and plan sophisticated educational experiences to engage a wide variety of audiences including online and in-person gallery learning sessions, artist talks, tours, studio experiences, K-12 programming, Community-Artist-in-Residence programs, community outreach initiatives, and community partnerships that integrate with UAS exhibitions and programs; facilitate collaboration between resident artists and UAS Director, senior staff, interns, and community partners to build consensus among a wide variety of stakeholders; create residency programming schedules and manages residency logistics and coordination to support resident artists and residency goals and objectives; develop and maintain positive relationships with internal and external programmatic partners and local schools, serve as UAS’s primary community liaison to independently maintain community partnerships, promote and provide information about UAS programs and mission to community partners, coordinate partnership activities, and utilize industry knowledge to enhance relationships to build consensus on sensitive topics with stakeholders; track, document, and assess program indicators and attendance data; research trends in arts engagement programming and best practices to inform program development decisions; collaborate and coordinate with the Director and Marketing and Communications Associate to evaluate and assess programming engagement using survey data; and serve as an informal resource for colleagues on programmatic best practices.

The Community Learning and Experience Specialist will also support the overall visitor experience at the Urban Arts Space by coordinating the programming and scheduling of tours and guided programs at Urban Arts Space and the Hopkins Hall Gallery; planning and implementing visitor engagement strategies to deepen visitor interaction with displayed works and presented programs utilizing industry knowledge to enhance the visitor experience; and will work to develop initiatives for family visitors, early learners, and accessibility accommodations. The Community Learning and Experience Specialist will operationally support the visitor experience by collaborating with the Director and Administrative Assistant to create and maintain program registration and evaluation, developing and implementing program evaluation guidelines to ensure that programs are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) OSU Youth Activities & Programs Policy; and planning and implementing other visitor experience improvements as directed by the UAS Director.

In addition, the Community Learning and Experience Specialist will develop leadership strategies, in collaboration with community partners and the UAS Internship Coordinator, for the UAS internship program and will serve as a resource for colleagues; lead and evaluate engagement opportunities for the internship program including training and lesson plan coordination; assist in the management and inventorying of materials and visual art supplies; collaborate with the UAS Director and Administrative Assistant to track internship program expenses and identify potential issues; and coordinate resource allocation and purchasing activities as directed by the UAS Director.

Minimum Required Education and Experience:

Bachelor’s degree in arts administration, arts education, arts policy, museum studies, or related field and four (4) years of experience with gallery, museum, or cultural institution programming; demonstrated organizational, communication, and project management experience at a complex and large scope while working with a wide range of stakeholders to build consensus.

Additional Desired Education and Experience:

Master's degree in arts administration, arts education, arts policy, museum studies, or related field and six (6) years of progressive experience in arts programming, community engagement, or educational programming with demonstrated leadership responsibilities; experience working with wide range of communities and age groups, including sensitive community relations and consensus building; knowledge of accessibility best practices, safety protocols, and legal compliance in an educational setting; proficiency with Canvas, Qualtrics, and Adobe Suite; a background in K-12 educational program development and curriculum design; previous experience with internship coordination, student supervision, or mentoring colleagues; familiarity with Ohio State administrative policies and procedures; and a deep knowledge of Columbus arts and cultural community networks with established professional relationships