Employment Opportunities at the Chemical Heritage Foundation

CHF offers competitive retirement, medical, dental, and vision benefits. Compensation is based on qualifications. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply. CHF is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer.

Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry
Associate Director

CHF Special Collections
Project Archivist (Temporary Position)

Chemical Heritage Magazine
Editorial Internships

Associate Director of the Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry

CHF’s Arnold and Mabel Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry hosts a community of visiting fellows. These fellows conduct their own independent historical research, interact with staff, publish academic and popular works, and establish CHF as a leading research center in the history of chemistry and related sciences, technologies, and industries. The Beckman Center also hosts conferences, symposia, and workshops on a variety of topics relating to the history of chemistry. In 2009 the Beckman Center awarded 15 fellowships including seven full-academic year postdoctoral and dissertation fellowships and hosted the annual Gordon Cain Conference (this year the topic was “Technology Transfer and Diffusion in Comparative Perspective”), a conference on “Composition to Commerce: Chemistry, History, and the Wider World,” and the 2009 Summer Symposium of the International Society for the Philosophy of Chemistry.

Further information about the Chemical Heritage Foundation and the Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry may be found at www.chemheritage.org.

The Associate Director of the Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry reports to the Director of the Othmer Library. Key responsibilities include

• Managing the Visiting Scholar Program including promoting it to the academic community, assisting with the fellows’ peer-review selection process, and overseeing the diverse community of fellows in residence at CHF. 
• Being an active and well-regarded member in the history of science and technology communities, including researching, writing, and publishing scholarly works and presenting papers at academic meetings.
• Assisting in the development, organization, promotion, and execution of academic meetings at CHF and other programming of the Beckman Center.

Requirements for the position include

• A Ph.D. with experience in an area of history of chemistry and related sciences, technologies, or industries (construed broadly).
• An ability to connect and work with multiple communities of historians, scientists, engineers, and other academics.
• A broad knowledge of wider scholarship relevant to CHF’s intellectual interests.
• Fluency in both written and spoken English.
• Having excellent interpersonal skills.

Review of applications begins on 15 February 2010 and will continue until the position is filled.

To be considered for this position, email a cover letter, curriculum vitae, writing sample, and contact information for up to three references to ADBCHOC@chemheritage.org. If necessary, mail or fax these materials to Ronald Brashear, Director of the Othmer Library, Chemical Heritage Foundation, 315 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia PA 19106-2702, +1 215 629 5284 (fax). CHF is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Project Archivist (Temporary Position)
CHF Special Collections seeks an archivist to prepare and create a preliminary processing plan for the archival papers of a 20th century Nobel Prize winning chemist. The project archivist will appraise each box in the collection and perform the following tasks: re-house material into archival boxes, cull unwanted and duplicate material, and create a box list, preliminary order of arrangement, and processing plan.  

Essential Tasks:

• Conducts initial assessment and appraisal of the collection according to professional standards and “weeds” unwanted material.
• Creates a box list of the entire collection and recommends a processing plan and organizational scheme.
• Recognizes and responds to immediate conservation needs discovered during the appraisal process.
• Consolidates and re-houses collection with aim of reducing total volume of the collection.

Perimeter of Authority: 
Project archivist works under the supervision of the senior archivist.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in history, archival studies, museum studies, or library science.
• Archival certification is preferred.
• At least three years experience processing archival collections is required.
• Experience with collections of a scientific nature preferred.
• Demonstrated knowledge of archival principles, concepts, methodologies, techniques, and procedures. 
• Computer literacy and strong communication skills (oral and written).
• Ability to work in hot, humid, moldy, or dusty conditions
• Ability to lift, carry and move cartons weighing up to 50 lbs.

To Apply: Send resume and cover letter to:

Patrick H. Shea, Senior Archivist
Chemical Heritage Foundation
315 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Chemical Heritage Magazine Editorial Internship
Chemical Heritage magazine seeks an energetic, organized, and highly motivated student intern to work with its editorial and production staff. The intern will work on long and short term projects resulting in the timely publication of a four-color, quarterly history of science magazine with a circulation of 21,000.

Duties:

• Perform image research for routine and feature articles; obtain pictures and permissions for image use; draft captions.
• Help maintain, check, and update files (paper and electronic).
• Perform research and fact-checking.
• Read magazine proofs for errors and typos.
• Assist in mailing complimentary copies of the magazine to authors, publishers, image providers.
• Update the magazine’s indexes.
• Write brief articles for the magazine as assigned.
• Complete and mail magazine copyright forms and other routine forms.
• Draft and mail routine correspondence.
• Compile and draft magazine’s table of contents and calendar.
• Give input and suggestions at magazine weekly meetings.
• Assist with other editorial and production tasks.
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Pursuit of degree in related field (e.g. Journalism, English, Communications, History, History of Science, Chemistry).
• Computer skills: knowledge of Microsoft Office, Web browsers. Knowledge of Dreamweaver is a plus.
• Ability to work both independently and with others; good written and oral communication skills and research skills; organizational ability; attention to detail; adaptability.
• Some knowledge of or interest in chemistry and/or the history of science preferred.
• Ability to prioritize and follow up in order to meet deadlines and work on several projects at once.

Expected hours: 10–15 hours per week

Duration: Spring or fall semester

Location: Chemical Heritage Foundation, 315 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106

To apply: send resume, cover letter, and writing sample to editor@chemheritage.org. Include the word "internship" in the subject line, and indicate which semester you would like to apply for. No phone calls please.

Application Deadlines:

• Spring semester: November 21
• Fall Semester: April 15
  

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