Archives & Research Manager, Honey Pot Performance

Part-time, 24 hours per week, 2 year project (3 days a week with two days onsite preferred and one day remote)

Salary: $32,000-35,000 dependent on experience, paid monthly for two years (with possibility of future extension. (Health stipend and professional development stipends will be active after 3 months of employment.)

Job Description:

Honey Pot Performance(HPP)/Chicago Black Social Culture Map(CBSCM) Team is seeking an experienced archivist who will be solely responsible for the Chicago Black Social Culture Map Archive program. Honey Pot Performance is a creative collaborative chronicling Afro-feminist and Black diasporic subjectives amidst the pressures of contemporary global life.

The archive has been in development but needs keen attention to the work of appraisal, acquisition, description, preservation, and access.

The key objectives for this role are to prioritize archival theory to establish the intellectual, physical, and digital framework to support the infrastructure for the CBSCM Archive. Ideally this person will possess a strong background in archival management with specific focus on archives development to lead in the ongoing growth of the CBSCM Archive and potentially the broader HPP Archive, which includes digital and physical archival resources and materials.

The ideal candidate will possess knowledge of Chicago’s rich historical and cultural landscape including general knowledge of the music, art and culture, and history of the city and its neighborhoods with particular focus from the 1940s - present.

Responsibilities:

• Develop a digital asset management system and workflow to streamline processes and organize metadata schema that supports all aspects of CBSCM electronic asset needs.
• Create a work plan for ingesting and cataloging existing CBSCM Archive assets.
• Identify and develop a process to Beta test system with a selected group of internal stakeholders.
• Create DAMS policies and procedures and develop a plan for onboarding relevant CBSCM Archive staff members, interns, and or/volunteers.
• Participate in ongoing public programs and be front-facing to the HPP/CBSCM community to engage patrons, researchers, and others to provide access to the archive both in-person and virtually.

Qualifications & Requirements:

• Masters Degree (MLIS) in archival science preferred or certifications in arrangement and description, digital asset management and other directly related fields.
• Possesses 1-3 years experience in conceptualizing and completing major projects related to both community archives and digital archives, which can include the combination of gained experience through graduate school training, research and scholarship.
• Must have knowledge of and experience with building and maintaining digital platforms, e.g. Omeka classic platform.
• Demonstrated skill in digital preservation standards, theories, and concepts, and competency in selecting and implementing project management methods.
• Well versed in data ethics, digital sovereignty, and other fields concerning archives and collections pertaining to BIPOC communities.
• Knowledgeable of historic Black music genres, Chicago music, and ethnomusicology. The ideal candidate will have knowledge of and familiarity with Chicago history and neighborhoods.
• Strong writing skills to develop documentation for the CBSCM manual, project proposals, and grants.
• Experience with coordinating, facilitating and activating programs to engage the public in community based archives through workshops, trainings, and demonstrations.
• Must be able to sit, stoop, or stand for extended periods of time, lift heavy containers (20-30 lbs) and handle fragile items.

For more information and to apply, contact hpp@honeypotperformance.org

Deadline for application: November 3, 2025

Location: 425 S Central Ave, Chicago, IL 60644