Associate Director of Arts in Medicine

Job Description:

Position Title: Associate Director of Arts in Medicine

Position Type: Full Time

FLSA Classification: Exempt

Division: Learning and Engagement

Department: Education

Reports to: Chief Learning and Engagement Officer

About Crystal Bridges & The Momentary:

Crystal Bridges is a museum of American art located in Bentonville, Arkansas. We explore the unfolding story of America by actively collecting, exhibiting, interpreting, and preserving outstanding works that illuminate the American heritage and artistic possibilities. Founded by Alice Walton in 2005, the museum opened in 2011 and is a public, non-profit charitable organization with free admission.

The Momentary is a new contemporary art space that opened to the public on February 22, 2020, in downtown Bentonville, Arkansas. A satellite to Crystal Bridges, the Momentary presents visual, performing, and culinary arts. The mission of the Momentary is to champion contemporary art’s role in everyday life and explore the unfolding story of contemporary American arts in an international context by actively commissioning and exhibiting outstanding works that explore new ideas and inspire action.

Position Summary:

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and The Momentary (CBMO), in collaboration with the Alice Walton School of Medicine (AWSOM), seeks an innovative and collaborative Associate Director of Arts in Medicine to advance transformative arts-in-medicine initiatives. This pivotal role will support the integration of the arts into AWSOM’s ARCHES curriculum, fostering a model where art enhances medical education to improve patient care and health outcomes. With a focus on harnessing the museum’s unique qualities—art, architecture, and the natural landscape—the Associate Director will support curriculum development and experiences that enhance health, empathy, and well-being for medical students, patients, and the public.  

The ARCHES curriculum is built on evidence-based approaches to teaching and learning. It includes the following six core elements:

• Art of Healing: This curriculum component focuses on the human dimensions of care by merging the methodologies used in the humanities and arts with medicine.
• Research: Students learn and complete the basic principles of research and evidence-based medical practice, including how to locate, analyze, synthesize, and apply medical literature effectively.
• Clinical Education: This curricular thread focuses on providing longitudinal clinical skills training and early clinical experiences throughout the first two years of the curriculum. In year three, students complete a diverse array of clinical requirements, and in year four, students explore focused discipline-specific patient care.
• Health Systems Sciences: Students are introduced to current health system structures, processes, and consequences, focusing on developing design skills to address them.
• Embracing Whole Health: Students learn the fundamentals of whole person-centered care, which considers the physical, behavioral, spiritual, and socioeconomic aspects of a person's life experience.
• Science of Medicine: Foundational sciences are featured and integrated into the curriculum in a horizontal and vertical pedagogical model. Students learn the core concepts of the foundational sciences of medicine and how they relate to normal and abnormal processes in the body in an organ-system approach.

Reporting Structure:

The Associate Director will support the arts integration initiatives at AWSOM while operating within a strategic framework overseen by the Chief Learning and Engagement Officer at CBMO. This position will report directly to the Director of Arts in Medicine and Wellbeing, who is part of the Learning and Engagement division at CBMO and leads the museum’s broader arts and health initiatives. This reporting structure underscores the collaborative partnership between CBMO and AWSOM, reflecting a shared commitment to leveraging art as a catalyst for health, empathy, and well-being.

Principal Responsibilities:

• Curriculum and Programming:
  • Support the development and integration of the arts across the ARCHES curriculum, going beyond observational training and incorporating practices that build whole-person care.
  • Support the design and implementation of experiential learning that leverages the arts, storytelling, creative expression, and other modalities to enhance medical students' skills in patient care and communication.
• Collaboration:
  • Serve as the primary liaison between CBMO and AWSOM, ensuring seamless collaboration and alignment of goals.
  • Partner with museum teams to integrate exhibitions, collections, and gallery experiences into curriculum initiatives.
  • Support opportunities for AWSOM students and faculty to engage with museum-led community initiatives and resources.
  • Collaborate with Heartland Whole Health Institute (HWHI) and AWSOM to align arts integration with broader health and wellbeing objectives within the enterprise.
• Research and Assessment:
  • Collaborate with AWSOM faculty to evaluate the impact of arts integration on student learning and patient outcomes.
  • Stay abreast of leading practices in arts-in-medicine programs, cultivating external partnerships and fostering innovation.

Qualifications and Skills:

• Strong collaborative skills and experience working in multidisciplinary teams.
• Familiarity with museum collections, exhibitions, and their application to learning and well-being.
• Demonstrated success in developing and implementing impactful, research-based arts-in-health programs preferred.
• Knowledge of curriculum development, interdisciplinary teaching strategies, and professional learning design. 

Work Experience and Education:

• Advanced degree in a relevant field (Arts in Medicine, Museum Education, Medical Humanities, or similar) or equivalent experience.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in arts-in-medicine, museum education, or a related field, with a strong focus on curriculum development, public health, or wellness initiatives.

Licenses and Certifications:

• Valid driver’s license with clean driving record required. Willing and able to travel locally as needed.

Physical Demands and Work Environment:

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Physical demands: In the work environment described below, position requires sitting at a desk and utilizing a computer and a telephone for prolonged periods of time and good eye/hand coordination, bending and stretching for filing, and physical stamina to lift a minimum of 25 pounds.
• Visual acuity to review artworks and written materials is required for this job. While performing the duties of this job, employee is occasionally required to independently travel in the local area.
• Work Environment: Work will be performed in an office environment, museum spaces, classrooms, and in communities served. The physical arrangement of the office may require the position to work in an open environment within close proximity to other colleagues. The noise level in the Museum work environment is usually low to moderate. Occasional evening and weekend work hours are required.

All offers of employment are contingent on your successful completion (where permitted by state law) of a confidentiality agreement and background check. In addition, you will need to provide proper identification verifying your eligibility to work in the United States on your first day of work.

Crystal Bridges is an equal opportunity employer committed to building and maintaining a culturally diverse workplace that is free of discrimination and harassment of any kind. We encourage women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans to apply. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, veteran status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate.