Virginia Humanities Seeks State Folklorist

Virginia Humanities is seeking applicants for its state folklorist and Director of Virginia Folklife position to lead the state’s efforts to document, amplify, and preserve the many diverse cultures found in Virginia.

This position serves as Virginia’s State Folklorist and directs the Virginia Folklife Program at Virginia Humanities. The Virginia Folklife Program is located the state humanities council, which is based at the University of Virginia and an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The director supports communities and bearers of traditional arts across the state through field work documenting and sustaining those traditions and educating the public about them. The director also connects communities, artists, and projects with other programs at Virginia Humanities, including its grants program, to provide resources to help folklife to flourish in the state.

The director must have knowledge of American folklife and folklore including current scholarship in these areas.

The ideal person for this position will have a broad range and combination of experiences and education. The minimum requirement is a master’s degree and seven years of related experience. Preference will be given to candidates with an advanced degree in folklore, or related degree (like ethnomusicology or cultural anthropology).

Related experience can include more than just work experience. Internships, externships, shadowing, volunteering, student work, cooperative education, field study, undergraduate research, summer jobs, involvement in relevant student groups can all count towards your related experience.

The position requires statewide travel. Virginia Humanities offers a dynamic work environment and a wide array of statewide programming ripe for collaborative opportunities. The organization supports a flexible work schedule, but fully remote work is not possible. For more information on Virginia Folklife Program, please visit VirginiaFolklife.org. For more information on the position, including the official position description, see the post on the UVA HR website.