Draper Natural History Museum Herbarium Collections Intern Job Description

Category: Natural Science / Database Management Department: Draper Natural History Museum Project: Rocky Mountain Herbarium and Erwin F. Evert Herbarium Internship Title: Herbarium Cataloger and Database Manager (2020)

Overview: The Draper Natural History Museum (Draper) seeks an intern to assist with the digitization of two Herbarium collections totaling >6,000 specimens. Currently, one Draper staff member and 0–3 volunteers (depending on the day) spend ½ day on Tuesday mornings digitizing and cataloging herbarium records. On average, staff and volunteers complete ~15 records per session (once a week). Since March we’ve catalogued more than 300 specimens. At this rate, however, it will take us 2.5 years to complete a digital catalogue of the two herbarium collections.

Benefits to the Center/Draper: An intern specifically dedicated to this project would make substantial progress digitizing and cataloging herbarium records and would allow current staff to focus on additional collections management items (location updates, shelf reorganization, specimen processing, etc). This would also enable Draper staff to launch another initiative with staff, volunteers, and interns: Ecology Journal Club (EJC). The goal of EJC is to review, dissect, and understand scientific literature. This will be a weekly event coinciding with our laboratory sessions and will encourage dialogue and communication among staff, volunteers, and interns.

Benefits to the intern: The intern will learn about different plant taxa as well as gain extensive experience in specimen curation techniques, including collections management; database archiving and management; and specimen cataloging and documentation. The intern will also be invited to participate in the Ecology Journal Club, which will help promote critical thinking skills and improve the intern’s capacity to digest scientific literature, a necessary requirement for the ‘studious at heart’! It will also help provide a strong foundation in understanding scientific literature for those individuals interested in pursuing a career in biology, collections management, natural history museums, etc.

Additional Opportunity: Depending on time availability and interest, the intern will be provided with an opportunity to accompany Draper staff for educational programs internally with the Center’s Interpretive Education Division as well as externally with Science Kids Cody. Additionally, the intern will be invited to join Draper staff for ongoing research activities inside and outside the museum as the programs and activities align with the interests of the intern.

Supervisor: Reports directly to Corey Anco, Assistant Curator, Draper Natural History Museum

Specific Duties and Responsibilities: • Digitize herbarium records using the Center’s internal catalog system, ARGUS • Photograph herbarium specimens • Update record locations in ARGUS • Assist with education/outreach, opportunities depending on time availability and interest of intern • Assist with field research, depending on time availability and interest of intern

Qualifications: • No prior experience digitizing records is necessary; all training provided • Must have strong interest in botany and natural science • This job requires an acute attention to detail and accuracy in copying data from printed records into digital formats • Must be at least 18 years of age • Must be able to stand or sit for long periods of time • Must have strong work ethic and be dependable