Job Opportunities at Densho

Densho is expanding in Seattle to create and promote its next-generation websites. The goal is to upgrade Densho's award winning educational website into world-class online resources, references, and learning centers that reach millions of people a year. We are looking for special people who can contribute, grow, and thrive while taking ideas to reality. Densho is a place for creative thinkers who are good at completing projects with big impact. If this sounds like a place for you, please read the job descriptions below and consider applying.

Opportunities in 2010 to Join the Densho Team

We've identified roles that are needed in the coming year. Because of budget constraints and the size of projects, each of the roles defined below are part-time (15-25 hours per week.) Qualified candidates are encouraged to apply for two positions if they seek full-time employment. Health, dental, and vision benefits are available for full-time employees. Up to three positions will be filled immediately, and up to four additional positions will be brought on in late spring or the summer. To apply for the job openings listed below, please send your resume (Word, PDF, or Plain text) and a cover letter describing your interest to jobs@densho.org by Monday, February 1. Please put the title of the position or positions to which you are applying in the Subject field. All applications will be held in confidence. All submissions and questions should be sent via email - please no phone inquiries.

Job Openings

IT- Systems Administrator
We are seeking a systems administrator or contractor who can streamline, upgrade and maintain Densho's hardware, software, and network infrastructure. This individual will implement Densho's transition to a virtual server architecture, upgrade office and production workstations, and help transition more of Densho's processes to web applications, e.g., salesforce.com, Google apps, etc. This individual will maintain and manage all hardware, software and networks in an environment that uses Windows, Linux, and VMWare.

Information Manager
Densho is a content-intensive organization with a growing collection of tens of thousands of digital objects made available over the web. We are seeking an information specialist who understands content and can build information systems that encourage learning and inspire change. This individual will lead a team to design and build Densho's next-generation online archive. This web resource will improve how users organize, retrieve, and interact with video-recorded oral histories as well as historical photos, newspapers, and documents. The ideal candidate will have a background in information science, web technology, and database development.

Web Development Manager
We are seeking a technology-savvy project manager to lead a team that will specify, design, and implement the next-generation of Densho websites. This individual will lead a team of marketing specialists, subject matter experts, information scientists, educators, software developers, and graphic designers to create content rich, highly interactive websites that attract a million visitors a month. The ideal candidate will be an excellent listener, a forward thinker, and a disciplined project manager.

Oral History Interviewer/Researcher
We are seeking a compassionate interviewer with strong Japanese American community connections and content knowledge of the World War II experiences of Japanese Americans. This individual will conduct research in various Japanese American communities, identify interviewees, and conduct in-depth, video-recorded life history interviews. The position requires travel (approximately 1 out-of-town trip per month), long hours (10-12 hours of work per day over a 3-4 day period when traveling), and heavy lifting (move and carry equipment weighing 40-50 pounds). This position rewards the individual with amazing stories, life-long friends, and a deep appreciation of the Nisei generation. Consideration will be given to individuals who wish to work part-time, work remotely from a region with a large Japanese American population (for example the Bay Area or Honolulu), or graduate students wanting a summer internship.

Marketing Manager
We are seeking a marketing professional who can design and build sustainable programs that reach and inspire millions of people each year with the story of the Japanese American experience. This individual will increase Densho's audience by more than a hundred-fold by researching and advocating for key audiences; providing design input into future database and web development; creating and promoting sustainable, innovative marketing programs; and expanding Densho's public relations effort. The ideal candidate will have experience with market research, marketing programs, public speaking, web technologies, and social networking tools.

Education Outreach
We are seeking an educational professional who can lead a team to assess, design, develop, and promote Densho's educational materials. Densho's goal is to reach schools in every state of the nation with programs that are sustainable. The ideal candidate will have experience with innovative curriculum, education standards, public speaking, web technologies, and Japanese American history.

Fund Development Specialist
We are looking for an organized, tech-savvy individual to manage Densho's contacts database and cultivate donors. This individual will maintain and increase the size and quality of mailing and email lists, assess the impact of Densho's direct appeal mailings and email newsletters, manage general mailings, coordinate community outreach and fundraising events, work with community volunteers, and support the Executive Director with fundraising tasks. The ideal candidate will be comfortable learning new computer applications, work well under deadline, and is good with details and people.


Working at Densho
Because big dreams take many minds and hands to complete, we work in teams. At Densho, teams are custom built for each project. For example, I may be leading a team of technologists for a month to design a website upgrade and the next day I might be asked to drive a truck and unload supplies for the fundraising team. Roles are dynamic and fluid at Densho, and each person contributes the best he or she can.

Densho is a non-hierarchical organization with many opportunities for flexibility and autonomy, but with the risk of ambiguity and misunderstandings. For this reason, regardless of what position you have at Densho, it is important that you communicate well and are able and willing to work with others in a generous manner. Everyone at Densho goes the extra step to make sure everything flows.

For me as executive director, the rewards of working this way is that once we agree on what we are going to do, I can either move on to another project or take on a role as a team member. In other words, people at Densho figure out and communicate how they are going to get something done without being told by me. I recognize that this style of management is difficult for people who are used to a stricter structure, but for others it becomes a creative and nurturing environment with lots of opportunities to grow.

Finally, at the heart of Densho, we care deeply about social justice issues and the Japanese American community, especially Nisei elders. More than just collecting stories or photos or letters to preserve, we feel we are being entrusted and honored with gifts to share for many generations to come. It becomes natural and assumed that we will do our best to create world-class systems to preserve and share these historically valuable materials for hundreds of years. This is what drives us at Densho. Money is not the motivation because unfortunately we can't pay a lot or give big bonuses. And yet, without strong financial incentives, people still work so hard. I am often the first to leave the office at 6:30 after a ten-hour day. And when we are crunching on a big project, I have to ask people to go home and rest. All the staff take great pride in what Densho offers to our growing audiences.

I hope this gives you a clear, more personal glimpse at what it is like to work at Densho. If this is the work environment for you, please consider applying for one or more of the open positions. There is plenty of good work to go around and we could use help from energetic, fresh thinkers!

For more information about Densho, who we are, and the work we do, please visit our website at www.densho.org.