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NY HELP No

Agency Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation, Office of

Title Special Assistant (Director of Olana State Historic Site)

Occupational Category Administrative or General Management

Salary Grade NS

Bargaining Unit M/C - Managerial/Confidential (Unrepresented)

Salary Range From $103870 to $131298 Annually

Employment Type Full-Time

Appointment Type Permanent

Jurisdictional Class Exempt Class

Travel Percentage 0%

Workweek Variable

Hours Per Week 40

Workday

From 12 AM

To 12 AM

Flextime allowed? No

Mandatory overtime? No

Compressed workweek allowed? No

Telecommuting allowed? No

County Columbia

Street Address Olana State Historic Site

5720 Route 9-G

City Hudson

State NY

Zip Code 12534

Duties Description The Organization:The Taconic Region of the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is one of 11 Park Regions in New York State operating 180 State Parks and 37 Historic Sites. The Taconic Region covers four counties: Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, and Columbia. Facilities consist of 13 parks, 6 Historic sites, 2 golf courses, 5 swimming facilities and an environmental educational center and includes more than 40,000 acres of land. Each facility is host to numerous seasonal and annual programs, events and holiday tours. https://parks.ny.gov/regions/taconic/default.aspx Olana State Historic SiteOlana was the 19th century home, studio, and designed landscape of Hudson River School artist Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), his wife Isabel and their four children. The 250-acre historic estate features a Persian-inspired mansion filled with original sketches, studies, and paintings by one of the mid-19th century's most famous artists. The diverse decorative arts collection includes objects from around the world. Visitors to Olana enjoy guided house and landscape tours; view changing exhibits; enjoy outdoor activities in the picturesque landscape; and take part in programs and special events for all ages. A Visitor’s Center offers an introductory film, exhibits, and a museum shop. Family and group activities are available regularly at the Wagon House Education Center. Guided walking and vehicle tours, as well as self-guided audio tours of the landscape, lead visitors to the Church's first home on the property, the family's farm, a lake created from swampland, the site of Church's first studio at Olana, and several planned views.House and landscape tours are provided by The Olana Partnership, a private not-for-profit partner, that facilitates programming for the site through a cooperative agreement and in coordination with the site director. The Frederic Church Center for Art and Landscape will open in the Fall of 2024 as a new reception area for the site. Olana is the home to an extensive and valuable New York State Historic Collection.Duties:The selected candidate will be the highest-ranking State Official at the Olana State Historic Site and is responsible for all aspects of Olana's cultural, historic and natural resources including the overall administration and management of the facility and collections, security, and maintenance. Duties include, but are not limited to:• Coordinating with partner entities, such as The Olana Partnership, that operate under agreement with the state to provide programming, tours, lectures, museum shop operation, fundraising and visitor services.• Ensuring all activities at the site meet New York State standards for interpretation, operations, and care of an historic collection.• Managing the overall administration of the site, collections and maintenance of the historic house and grounds.• Recruiting, training, scheduling, supervising, and evaluating state staff; working with volunteer groups.• Inspecting and evaluating facilities to determine the need for routine or emergency maintenance and major capital improvements, overseeing maintenance and repair projects in collaboration with the maintenance manager and region.• Working with regional and agency staff on historic site development plans.• Acting as a consultant on projects, including coordinating and chairing meetings, and serving as a resource and advisor to the public, local governments, federal and state agencies, and other interested parties.• Overseeing the scheduling and use of historic site facilities.• Reviewing and approving expenditures and preparing and administering state-funded allocations for operation of the site.• Preparing a variety of administrative and financial reports.• Collaborating with The Olana Partnership in planning exhibit development and participating in selecting appropriate objects for inclusion in exhibits in historic buildings. Ensuring that The Olana Partnership meets the Agency’s requirement that all activities at the site are accessible to diverse audiences and is consistent with ‘Our Whole History’ initiative.• Developing, implementing, and coordinating emergency preparedness and response procedures for patrons and employees and documenting all emergencies and expenditures consistent with state finance law.• Maintaining responsibility for overall site security and the security of the historic collections.• Ensuring safety of patrons and employees.

Minimum Qualifications Bachelor’s degree** and five years of relevant experience.**Substitutions: four years of specialized experience or associate’s degree and two years of specialized experience may substitute for bachelor’s degree; J.D. or master’s degree may substitute or one year of specialized experience; Ph.D. may substitute for two years of specialized experience.**Your degree must have been awarded by a college or university accredited by a regional, national, or specialized agency recognized as an accrediting agency by the U.S. Department of Education/U.S. Secretary of Education (https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home). If your degree was awarded by an educational institution outside the United States or its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. This information can be found at http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/degrees.cfm. Candidates are responsible for the evaluation fee.*Relevant experience includes but is not limited to: work with historic programming and interpretation, collections care and management, coordination with volunteers and friends groups, museum or historic site operations, and research related to historic events and locations.A well-qualified candidate will have: • At least two (2) years of experience at the supervisory level. • Excellent communication skills and experience working collaboratively with a variety of constituents and organizations. • Experience developing and presenting information and ideas to a diverse audience. • Experience coordinating teams at multiple levels within a company/agency to complete an overall mission.

Additional Comments Salary within the posted range will be commensurate with experience. This is an appointment to a position in the exempt jurisdictional class. All exempt appointments require completion of a background check prior to appointment, and completion of an annual Financial Disclosure Statement. Incumbents serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority, and the employment relationship can be altered at any time by either party.Operational Needs:• Must possess and maintain a valid driver’s license that allows the candidate to operate a vehicle in New York State as a term and condition of employment.• Must be able to work daytime, evenings, weekends, and holidays as operationally necessary. Housing:• Onsite for-rent housing may be available and may be discussed at the time of interview.Benefits: The NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation offers a generous benefits package that includes but is not limited to:Paid Time Off:• 39 days - 13 Vacation days, 8 Sick days, and 5 Personal Leave days, 13 Holidays.• Eligible for unlimited days of professional leave to participate in professional development, but at the supervisor’s discretion.Health Care Benefits:• Eligible employees and dependents can pick from a variety of affordable health insurance programs.• Family dental and vision benefits at no additional cost.Additional Benefits:• New York State Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) Membership• NYS Deferred Compensation• Access to NY 529 and NY ABLE College Savings Programs, as well as U.S. Savings Bonds• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)• Paid Parental / Family LeaveTo learn more about our benefits, visit: https://parks.ny.gov/employment/benefits.aspx. Additional location pay is available for the following counties: Bronx, Kings, Nassau, NYC-Manhattan, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester, Dutchess, Orange, and Putnam.This position may require a background check and/or medical exam prior to appointment.

Some positions may require additional credentials or a background check to verify your identity.

Name Carina Alfeo

Telephone

Fax

Email Address [email protected]

Address

Street NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

625 Broadway

City Albany

State NY

Zip Code 12238

Notes on Applying All candidates must submit a written resume and cover letter which clearly demonstrates how they meet the minimum qualifications for the position. Please submit your resume and cover letter as a Word or PDF attachment. We are unable to open documents from Google Docs, Google Drive, OneDrive, Apple Pages, and/or “the cloud.”Your application must be received by December 4, 2025 and submitted via email to [email protected]. You must include “Vacancy ID 203074 – Special Assistant (Director of Olana State Historic Site) - Taconic Region” in the subject line of your email. Failure to do so may result in not being considered for the position. It is the responsibility of each applicant to accurately describe their experience and demonstrate that they meet the minimum qualifications. Failure to demonstrate that you meet the minimum qualifications, and operating needs may result in your resume not being considered for this position.Candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. The NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer committed to ensuring equal opportunity for persons with disabilities and workplace diversity. New York State (NYS) is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. NYS Law prohibits discrimination because of age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, marital status, domestic violence victim status, carrier status, gender identity or prior conviction records, or prior arrests, youthful offender adjudications or sealed records unless based on a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.Executive Order 31 commits New York State government to becoming a model employer for people with disabilities, increasing the participation of people with disabilities in state service and ensuring equal access to opportunities. OPRHP encourages people with disabilities to apply. If an employee or job applicant believes that they need a reasonable accommodation, they should contact the Equal Opportunity Unit at [email protected] or (518) 486-7754.