Volunteering and Internships
From volunteering to internships, there are a variety of ways in which you can get involved with the Zeeland Historical Society and the work we are doing.
At the Zeeland Historical Society, our mission is to preserve and share our community’s rich history wouldn’t be possible without the dedication and passion of our volunteers. These incredible individuals are the heart and soul of our organization, contributing their time, skills, and energy to ensure that our heritage is cherished and accessible for future generations.
Our volunteers serve many important roles, including greeting at the Dekker Huis Museum, digitizing documents, creating and running public programs, maintaining our buildings, and much more.
The Dekker Huis Museum is completely operated by volunteer greeters! Greeters provide a welcoming face to the museum during open hours. They are trained on the museum’s exhibits, how to operate the phone and other technology, and how to answer basic guest questions. The basic qualifications for a museum greeter are a friendly presence to create a welcoming atmosphere for our guests, a willingness to learn, and a passion for our community. Volunteer shifts are 4 hours on weekdays and 3 hours on Saturdays.
We lead many programs throughout the year that educate visitors of all ages about our local history. These include school field trips, youth camps, guided tours, and drop-in educational opportunities. Docents are volunteer educators who provide an enriching educational experience for our guests. We rely on docents to interact with visitors and ensure the programs run smoothly.
We are seeking creative and dedicated program leaders. This vital role involves developing and implementing engaging and educational programs for any age. The ideal volunteers will have a passion for history, strong organizational skills, and the ability to create innovative learning experiences that inspire and educate our community. Program leaders manage events like youth camps, our annual ice cream social, family activities, and museum after-hours events. We welcome leaders to take over existing programs or develop new ideas.
We rely on a dedicated group of maintenance volunteers to keep our historic properties in top condition and reduce costs for basic repairs. The right people for this team are reliable and dedicated with some experience in basic home repairs. This essential role ensures a safe, clean, and welcoming environment for visitors, staff, and fellow volunteers. If you have a knack for repairs, enjoy hands-on work, and want to contribute to preserving our local heritage, this volunteer position is perfect for you.
We rely on meticulous and passionate collections and archival volunteers to assist in preserving and organizing our historical artifacts and documents. This critical role involves working behind the scenes to ensure that our valuable collections are properly cared for and accessible for research and exhibitions. Volunteers help with data entry, research, scanning, digitization, and more. Due to the training time, we prefer a commitment of at least one year for this position.
Our quarterly member’s newsletter, The Timeline, and our community e-newsletter rely on many volunteers! Our volunteers write historical articles, create updates from society events and programs, and develop other content. Other needs include layout and design, assembling mailings, and helping with administrative tasks.
The Zeeland Historical Society has several standing committees that welcome community volunteers. Committees are made up of staff, board members, and community volunteers. New community members need to be instated by the committee chair. To submit your name for consideration, fill out the volunteer form and let us know which committees you are interested in joining:
Join our dedicated team of volunteers and help us continue our mission of preserving and sharing our local heritage. Your involvement will enrich your understanding of history and ensure that future generations can learn from and appreciate the past. Together, we can keep our history alive.
The Zeeland Historical Society is looking for college interns enrolled in a Public History or related program to apply for an internship! The internship program is unpaid, but students work to meet internship requirements for colleges and universities.
The Zeeland Historical Society offers internships in archival methodology and practices.
The archives intern will implement proper care and practices to ensure accessibility and conservation of the materials.
The intern will work under the supervision of the Curator to process our archival collections using approved materials and proper storage. Furthermore, knowledge and organization of what we have, beyond individual memory, will allow us to access our archival materials moving forward; therefore, the intern will work to catalog and inventory our archival collections to provide a comprehensive list of what we have.
The intern will help process archival collections, create finding aids, and digitize archival material, providing researchers and visitors access to our collections.
This work will give the intern firsthand experience in the archival field, from processing to preservation methods.
Update and maintain the organizational system for storing archival collections.
Process archival collections under the supervision of the Curator.
Create finding aids and properly document materials.
Provide context for archival collections through comprehensive research.
Digitize archival collections.
Use OCR software to make digitized material searchable.
Add digitized material to the online catalog.
Record and input appropriate metadata.
Rehouse/refile using proper archival practice.
Implement appropriate preservation practices and labeling methods.
Update and maintain an organizational system for filing oversized archival material.
Transcribe and catalog oral histories.
Interested in becoming a Collections Intern?
The Dekker Huis Museum offers internships in collections methodology and practices. The collections intern will work under the supervision of the Curator to process, document, accession, and catalog artifact donations using Past Perfect software and approved museum methods of accessioning and cataloging. Collections interns will perform inventory checks, rehouse artifacts in storage, and assist with research on specific artifacts. The collections intern may also help with exhibition research and installing or uninstalling exhibits. The collections intern will receive training in proper care of artifacts, accessioning and deaccessioning methods, and museum cataloging software.
Learn and perform proper accessioning and cataloging methods for donated artifacts.
Fill out accession paperwork and keep appropriate records.
Label and house artifacts according to best practices.
Conduct necessary research to record accurate information for catalog records.
Catalog items using Past Perfect software.
Learn proper deaccessioning methods.
Assist the Curator with the deaccessioning process.
Document and maintain records of deaccessioned artifacts.
Assist with inventory checks.
Check the inventory of collections items against an inventory sample.
Fill out problem slips for items that need to be addressed.
Assist the Curator with displays and exhibits.
Conduct research and write object labels for items on display.
Assist with exhibit installation or uninstall as needed.
Assist with object rotation to ensure the preservation of artifacts.
Interested in becoming an Oral History Intern?
The Zeeland Historical Society offers an internship in oral history methodology and practices. This internship can be in-person, hybrid, or remote.
This intern will work under the supervision of the Director to transcribe audio and video oral histories, learn about the process of conducting oral histories, and archive oral history records into our collection management software system. The intern will gain research experience finding items in the archive and collection relating to the interviewee. If location and schedule allow, interns will have the option of completing an oral history themselves.
Interns will leave the internship with increased familiarity with navigating an archive and collection, the ability to pull key ideas from a long interview, database management skills, and an awareness of how oral histories contribute to the research process.
Transcribe oral history interviews from audio.
Research documents and pictures related to the interview. Depending on the interviewee, there could be a wide range.
Digitally collect and scan photographs and documents to the appropriate file.
Complete the necessary meta-data needed to upload the interview.
Create an index of oral histories with search terms.
Create a digital organizational system to effectively store and sort all the components, including:
Oral history release.
Audio file.
Supporting photographs and documents.
Video (if applicable).
If the internship is completed in person, there is the possibility of the intern conducting their own oral history interview. This will be dependent on schedule and availability as well as the intern’s interests and abilities:
Research the interviewee before the interview.
Compose qualitative questions that will spark conversation.
Schedule the interview and communicate about questions.
Ensure all video and audio equipment works before the interview.
Conduct the interview.
P.O. Box 165
Zeeland, MI 49464
Open Wednesday-Saturday
Sun-Tues: Closed
Weds-Fri: 10:00 am-5:00pm
Saturday: 10:00 am-3:00 pm