Job Description

The Museum Assistant is responsible for day-to-day operations of Historic Newton including visitor services, administrative duties, and data management. This position has three essential functions: operating the museum at Jackson Homestead, assisting the Director, and providing support to the Director of Development.

The Successful candidate will have a strong customer service ethic; a team-orientated work style; and well-developed interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills. The ability to work independently to organize and prioritize multiple assignments is critical to this position as is thoroughness and attention to detail.

Evening and weekend hours occasionally required.

Responsibilities:

• Museum operations includes admissions and visitor orientation, gift shop sales, fielding phone calls and in-person requests, requisitioning supplies, keeping the general calendar, and tracking attendance data.
• Director’s assistant duties include board communication and meeting minutes, simple bookkeeping (purchase orders and bill payment for Jackson Homestead through the City of Newton), scheduling meetings, and performing other administrative functions on behalf of the Director.
• This position also supports donor and membership administration. Duties include managing the donor and contacts database, processing museum donations and membership correspondence, assisting in planning and administration of fundraising activities, including events, and generating reports.
• Process City Accounts Payables for the Jackson Homestead.
• Act as department timekeeper for municipal employees, including entering weekly payroll, reviewing and filing employee time sheets, and maintaining a high degree of confidentiality and attention to detail.
• Conduct weekly batch processing and reconciliation of cash register transactions and Conduct regular reconciliation of accounts with Business Manager, ensuring the accuracy of financial records between nonprofit and municipal platforms.
• Assist the Executive Director in Board communication, schedule Board and Committee meetings, Attend Joint Board and Committee meetings, create and distribute meeting minutes, and Assist Director in monitoring and addressing facilities and grounds maintenance needs, communicate with appropriate departments, and follow up on incomplete tasks.

Qualifications:

• College degree or equivalent combination of education and experience. Proficiency in MS Office and database applications. Experience with PastPerfect or donor relations software is preferred, but fluency in general database management is required.

Company Description

• To prospective applicants, please note the City of Newton has implemented a Vaccine Policy which requires, as a condition of employment, that all employees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, or have an approved medical or religious exemption on file with the Human Resources Department. Please be prepared at the time of employment to either indicate your vaccination status or intent to request an exemption. You may review the City’s policy by visiting this link.

THE CITY:

The City of Newton is a wonderful place to live and work. Newton has safe and attractive neighborhoods, an excellent public school system, an active community life, multiple transportation systems, proximity to Boston and a well-managed and financially strong City government. The City of Newton has a population of approximately 88,900, with 32,600 housing units and occupies a land area of 18.3 square miles. Newton is principally suburban-residential in character. Unlike many other communities that are established around a single Main Street or downtown, Newton is comprised of thirteen distinctive villages. Newton has a diversified economic base with approximately 4,700 establishments employing approximately 79,500 people. Newton is special in many ways. It is home to a variety of private secondary and post-secondary schools including a portion of Boston College, Lasell University, William James College, Hebrew College, and the UMass Amherst – Mount Ida Campus. The longest stretch of the Boston Marathon runs through the City, including the well-known Heartbreak Hill. Newton-Wellesley Hospital, part of the Mass General Brigham health care system, serves as an important partner to the City. In September 2018, Newton was again ranked #1 in Massachusetts as the best place to live and #12 in the U.S.

OUR GOVERNMENT:

Newton has what is known as a “strong Mayor” form of government with the Mayor having the executive and administrative powers of the City. The legislative branch is comprised of 24 City Councilors. Mayor Ruthanne Fuller was sworn in on January 1, 2018 after serving on the City Council. She ran on a platform of providing Newton’s children with a top-notch education in an inclusive environment where empty nesters, seniors, young families, and people of diverse incomes can live together in vibrant villages and neighborhoods. Mayor Fuller is committed to keeping Newton safe, improving the city’s infrastructure, addressing climate change, providing excellent and responsive city services, and fostering art, culture and community life. The first female Mayor of Newton, she is a tireless advocate for all the city’s residents and is committed to making sure the city is welcoming, inclusive and diverse. The City of Newton was evaluated by Moody’s Investors Services in February 2020 and assigned its highest rating of AAA. Newton was thus well-positioned to weather the pandemic and economic downturn.

AS AN EMPLOYER:

The City of Newton believes that its employees are its greatest asset. To that end, we are committed to supporting our employees by providing competitive wages and growth, a comprehensive benefits package which includes a defined municipal pension plan, quality health and dental insurance plans, generous paid leave benefits, paid holidays, and access to supplemental benefits such as deferred compensation, short term disability plans, flexible spending accounts, and other employee benefits. We also provide access to an Employee Assistance Program and access to employee training and professional development opportunities. We continuously work to review and expand upon our benefit offerings. We encourage you to visit our Human Resources Department website to learn more about our organization and benefits which are available to our employees. And as always, you are encouraged to reach out to our dynamic HR Team by emailing hr@newtonma.gov.

Human Resources Diversity Statement

We recognize our workforce is a source of strength that is vital to our ability to effectively serve the City of Newton’s diverse community. We will:

• Actively recruit, develop, and retain a diverse and talented workforce.
• Proactively address discrimination through education and in partnership with other departments and leaders.
• Serve as a role model to celebrate and nurture diversity.
• Foster inclusion by staying curious and clarifying assumptions.
• Evaluate and develop policies and practices that reflect the diverse nature of our workforce.
• Build and strengthen accountability at all levels to support diversity efforts.

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• 457 Deferred Compensation plans
• Metro Credit Union
• Verizon Wireless discount
• Employee Assistance Program
• Generous paid leave time benefits and paid holidays.
• City Retirement (Mandatory)
• Direct Deposit
• Opportunity to serve the public and join a dynamic team of dedicated employees