Volunteer

The North Carolina Museum of History Announces Upcoming Redesign of Museum and Exhibits. The third-floor exhibits closed on June 3, 2024. The first-floor exhibits and physical museum building will close on October 7, 2024. The Museum Shop will remain open to the public until December 29, 2024. Due to the closure and subsequent renovation, docent recruitment will be paused until further notice. Please check back on this page, as other volunteer opportunities will be posted here as they become available.

Volunteer Gallery Cart Docent Program at the North Carolina Museum of History

The museum’s volunteer docents are a lively group of history lovers who primarily engage museum visitors with a variety of discovery carts located throughout exhibit galleries. The discovery carts allow docents to engage visitors with hands-on objects related to current exhibitions. Thousands of visitors from near and far benefit from docent-led activities each year, and these interactions foster connections with North Carolina’s history in insightful and meaningful ways.

Tab/Accordion Items

A docent’s first duty is to serve visitors by…

  • interpreting the museum’s collections
  • communicating directly with visitors, including the general public, students, groups, and people with diverse learning styles and abilities
  • maintaining an attitude of respect toward all visitors regardless of race, sex, age, national origin, or physical ability

All docents must…

  • pass an interview to be accepted into the training program
  • have a valid email address
  • attend a five-month docent training program that consists of a combination of group workshops, online modules, and individualized training. This program will require an average of three to five hours per week.
  • pass evaluations on interpretation of three gallery carts (docents’ choice) at the end of training; passing these interpretations is necessary before docents will be scheduled for shifts in galleries
  • commit to at least eight hours of service per month (cart interpretation shifts are usually about two hours long) after training
  • accept periodic evaluations by the docent coordinator or assistant docent coordinator
  • function at all times within guidelines and procedures of the North Carolina Museum of History

  • digital copies of The Old North State Volunteer, a monthly newsletter published by the Museum of History for all members of the volunteer corps
  • invitations to monthly meetings that provide opportunities for continuing training, hearing guest speakers, and socializing with other docents and volunteers
  • opportunities to take part in excursions to historic and cultural sites in North Carolina, as well as occasional movie nights at the museum and an annual holiday potluck
  • invitation to an annual awards ceremony that recognizes service and dedication

In addition, volunteers who complete 25 service hours per year maintain active status, for which they receive an in-kind membership to the Museum of History Associates, the museum membership group.

Please contact Head of Volunteer and Intern Services Kathy Gleditsch at Kathleen.Gleditsch@dncr.nc.gov if you have any questions about the museum’s volunteer program.