School Programs Fellowship
Interested in museum education, curriculum design, and working with children?
Join the Palo Alto Art Center team for an fellowship dedicated to our school programs, Project Look and Cultural Kaleidoscope. Project Look offers tours of exhibitions to K-5th grade students from local schools. Volunteers and staff lead interactive tours of the Art Center galleries and support the instruction of hands-on art activities. Cultural Kaleidoscope is a unique artists-in-the-schools program that links the neighboring and diverse communities of Palo Alto, East Palo Alto and Menlo Park, building bridges through the arts. By partnering K-5 classrooms from the Palo Alto Unified School District and Ravenswood City School District, Cultural Kaleidoscope fosters connections between students from diverse backgrounds.
The School Programs Fellow will support the Project Look program by leading tours and assisting with hands-on art making. The intern will receive training in developing practical and engaging teaching and tour facilitation strategies. For many of the children participating in the program, Project Look is their first museum experience; you are helping children cultivate a love for museums and the arts. The Fellow will participate in classroom observation, conduct research, and assist with developing standard curriculum plans for the Cultural Kaleidoscope program.
In this role, you will…
- Set up, clean up, prepare and organize supplies in the Project Look studio
- Lead inquiry-based tours for school groups of varying ages
- Greet school groups and review museum gallery behavior practices
- Lead hands-on art making for the Project Look program
- Work with docent volunteers
- Contribute to tour and project development
- Conduct research focused on Common Core standards and art program curriculum
- Observe and participate in Cultural Kaleidoscope in-class art instruction
- Document activities with photographs and written observations
- Participate in training and professional development activities
- Receive mentorship from Art Center education staff
You are a great fit for this role if you are…
- Enthusiastic about working with children in a museum setting
- Experience in arts education, curriculum development, and art engagement strategies preferred
- Skilled in time management, prioritization, and organization
- Flexible, able to self-start, and have a passion for the arts and/or creative endeavors
- Excellent organizational, written communication, and computer skills
- Comfortable interacting with the public
- Willing to submit to fingerprinting
- Passionate about working in a museum setting
- Graduate-level coursework in museum studies, education or other relevant field of study preferred
When you will work…
This position is approximately 10 hours per week with a flexible schedule. Must be able to work Tuesday-Friday for Project Look program, Thursday and Friday availability preferred. Hours must cover tour times, 8:30 a.m. to 2:10 p.m. Intern will be able to work partially remotely. Start and end dates are flexible depending on the candidate’s schedule.
Ready to join the team? Here’s what to do…
Please submit a cover letter, resume, and contact information for two professional references. In the cover letter, please address the following questions:
- Why do you feel you would be a good fit for this fellowship?
- How does this fellowship support your professional goals?
Send all materials to Grace Pegan Abusharkh, Director of Volunteer Engagement, at grace.abusharkh@cityofpaloalto.org. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis.
Working Together Commitment: The Palo Alto Art Center and the Junior Museum and Zoo are committed to fostering the next generation of arts and science professionals through teen engagement, internships, and fellowships. We value diversity of cultures, races and ethnicities, countries of origin, ability levels, ages, religions, and gender expressions. We encourage individuals who are traditionally underrepresented in the museum field to apply.