Applications should be submitted by Monday, March 30, 2026 by 12:00 pm ET via the following form:https://tally.so/r/NpAL90Applications that are received through idealist and not via the online form will not be considered.

TheLeventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Libraryseeks to hire aCurator or Associate Curator of Maps & Geography.This position will play a leading role in advancing the Centers broad public agenda around the study of maps, space and place, and historical geography, and will hold key responsibilities for the stewardship, growth, and interpretation of the Centers collections.

Position Overview

This position builds on the Centers long-standing strengths in geographic collections and discovery, while marking a strategic shift toward multi-disciplinary public research through the emergingCenter for the Study of Maps & Geography: a hub for research, convening, fellowships, and collaborative inquiry that situates maps and geographic thinking at the center of humanities and social science scholarship embedded within a public institution.

The Curator/Associate Curator will sit on the Leventhal Centers leadership team, and will work to develop resources and programs oriented towards researchers, scholars, specialists, policymakers, and partners to advance the Centers key mission of fostering critical public-facing dialogue on geography, history, social studies, and civic inquiry topics. The position reports to the President & Curator-at-Large.

The Curator/Associate Curator will take a lead role in collections development, research, and interpretation, with a broad remit encompassing historical geography across periods, regions, and thematic approaches. The role emphasizes original research, collaboration with scholars and community members, and the creative activation of collections through publications, exhibitions, programs, and partnerships.

While the position does not require advanced technical specialization in GIS or software development, the ideal candidate will have a strong working familiarity with digital humanities methods and projects as they relate to geography and geohumanities methodologiessuch as digitization, georeferencing, spatial interpretation, metadata, and digital publicationand will collaborate closely with colleagues, partners, and contractors to oversee the Centers extensive portfolio of digital tools.

Key Responsibilities

Center for the Study of Maps & Geography

• Play a formative role in shaping the vision, scope, and activities of the Center for the Study of Maps & Geography.
• Develop research initiatives, working groups, fellowships, symposia, and partnerships that support sustained scholarly engagement with maps and geography.
• Collaborate with senior staff to articulate the Centers research identity to academic, civic-sector, and public audiences.
• Plan and implement cross-cutting initiatives that connect the Center for the Study of Maps & Geography to the two other emerging constituent centers: the Center for Learning and the Center for Civic Discovery.

Collections & Research

• Lead and support the development of the Leventhal Centers geographic collections and align the Centers collection work with partners at the Boston Public Library.
• Conduct and publish original scholarly and interpretive research grounded in the Centers collections, with an emphasis on accessible, dynamic work that reaches a broad audience and reinterprets maps and geography beyond a narrow focus on library collections.
• Identify, cultivate, and manage research projects that position maps as central evidence for historical, social, and spatial inquiry.
• Support and develop fellowship programs and research support for specialists.
• Oversee acquisitions and collections development, in collaboration with the Curator-at-Large and curatorial staff at the Boston Public Library.

Digital Humanities

• Lead digital humanities projects that involve cartographic collections, including digital exhibitions, research portals, civic geospatial data infrastructure, and geographically-integrated digital publications.
• Scope and manage the necessary technical resources for maintaining and augmenting the Centers existing portfolio of digital t…