Evs Vacancy in Italy (Long Term, March 2014-2015)

EVS VACANCY IN ITALY (LONG TERM, MARCH 2014-2015)

The Museo Tattile Statale Omero (2013-it-112) ( situated in Ancona (center of Italy) has just renewed its accreditation as hosting organization. It would like to host two volunteers from two different Countries for a lon-term EVS service from Martch 2014 to Martch 2015.

Volunteers must be from 18 to 30 years old.

If you are interested please send an email with your CV (English) and your motivation letter (English or Italian)

At this stage, we need to know also your sending association (short description, ei number and contact person ) by the 4th September 2013 to these email addresses:

and .

Here below you can read two roles: please write in the subject line “evs role 1” or “evs role 2”.

We will interview candidates Friday, 6th September 2013 from 15.00 to 19.00.

We will give confirmation about the interview time up, to be sure, keep free in that date and write to us which time you would prefer for the interview.

Thanks for your attention

HOSTING ASSOCIATION DETAILS:

DESCRIPTION:

The idea of a museum for the visually handicapped was first put forward by the Italian Union of the Blind. It was founded in 1993 by Ancona City Council with the aid of a grant from The Marches Regional Council, and it has been a State Museum since 1999 when it was recognized by the Italian Parliament in Law no. 452 of 25th November 1999, which confirmed its unique status at a national level.

The aims of the Museum, as set out in Article 2 of that Law, are to “promote the cultural growth and integration of the visually handicapped and to widen their knowledge of reality”. However, the Museo Omero wishes to be a pleasant and productive cultural space for everyone, and offers a state of the art structure equipped with flexible pathways which can be adapted to suit the specific needs of any visitor.

Since July 2012 the Museum has been hosted in a part of the Mole Vanvitelliana. This splendid building, which has become a symbol of the city of Ancona, was designed by the great architect Luigi Vanvitelli in the 18th century. Dominating a strategic and highly visible position close to the city centre and the harbour, this is a worthy setting for the Museum's collection. The reach collection of the Museum is now housed in 2,300 square metres, arranged over 3 floors ; furthermore, we can count now on a well equipped teaching room dedicated to meeting and trainings on accessibility of art lead at national and international level; each day schools and groups are hosted in two workshop rooms where educational activities take place; a library used as documentation centre for teachers and researchers contains the most famous and important literary masterpieces of history of art and accessible art education in order to let visually impaired experience Arts; the new building has also art - storerooms and offices.

Moving the Museum to the new building represented also a good opportunity to renew the Museum collection of masterpieces and to organize it in a more interactive way.

New works enriched the chronological account of the history of art and new technical and learning aids which have been recently set up improved functionality.

All these aspects together contributed to create an interesting and welcoming environment for all kinds of visitors, an intriguing and didactically efficacious lay-out, an adaptable area that can be modified to accommodate various requirements and build up our system of services for the public and the learning activities.

During the last year, for example, staff and volunteers worked hard to improve accessibility for the visually impaired public; for instance, the new layout of the collection has been thought with particular attention on special measures to be more comfortable and usable by people who still are able to see a bit.

The Museum Omero is a Museum that interacts with the local institutions, that is a study and research centre and part of the European mainstream of accessible tourism.
It promotes a far-reaching idea of artistic experience, whose keywords are multi-disciplinarily, cultural integration, cross-fertilization of ideas and adapting art to all public.

EVS MOTIVATION:

Our interest in hosting young volunteers from other Countries has been existing for 5 years, when one of our co-operators told us about evs and YIA Programme.

Since 2010 we have been accreditated as hosting organization, and in 2011 we became co-ordinating organization as well.

Our motivation in realising this project is to permit EVS volunteers to learn about the art and visual impairment in an exquisite environment as well as to encourage them to create new initiatives.

Until now we hosted three volunteers involved in two different projects. Two volunteers were from Belgium and one from Spain.

They have been involved in educational activities lead by the Museum Staff, and all the people who were in contact with them were very happy to breath an international atmosphere inside the Museum.

In addition to that, thanks to the great iniciative of the volunteers and to the good co-operation with the staff of the Museum and of the co-ordinating association we involved (Arci Ancona 2012-it-74), a big number of children and young people visiting the Museum was enthousiastic to discover the culture of the volunteers hosted and to discover about EVS opportunity.

Furthermore, hosting volunteers from other Countries enlarged the cultural perspective and contributed to develop intercultural workshops lead inside the Museum.

We think that EVS is a wonderful opportunity for us to extend our experience about accessibility of art to partially sighted and blind young people in a European context. EVS is for sure the possibility both for young people and for the Museum to exchange experiences, good practices; improving the skills of EVS volunteers in order for them to replicate their new skills in similar projects when back in their countries.

As follow-up activity, the young people will behave as promoters of this kind of experience concerning accessibility of art to visual impaired people.

We had a great example of co-operation: one of our ex EVS volunteers maintained the contacts with his sending association (dealing with visually impaired) and is starting to establish contacts to co-operate with museums in his Country to increase accessibility of art to visually impaired people.

MAIN THEMES FOR ACTIVITIES: ART AND CULTURE, DISABILITY

PROFILE OF VOLUNTEER:

As volunteers will be involved in activities dealing with art and culture, visual impairment and children, the Museo Omero would prefer working with sending associations dealing with these topics. Anyway, if as already it was the case of one of our past volunteer, a volunteer of a sending organization with a different profile will send us his/her motivation letter and CV, we will take into consideration more his/her motivation than his/her sending organization profile.

The volunteer should be enthusiastic, energetic, eager to learn, enjoy working with young people, and be full of creative ideas. Strong organisating and communicating skills would be very useful. He/she should be willing to study Italian. The volunteer should be comfortable living on his/her own, be able to show that they are able to adapt to new situations, and have good problem solving skills. Anyway, the mentor will support them for any obstacles or necessity they would eventually face, accompanying them in their process of integration and personal grow.

The HO is requesting a CV and motivation letter from potential volunteers, describing their previous experiences, their social background and their educational level, in order to be aware of getting started in better supporting him.

They will take into consideration the will of the volunteer to take initiative in realising new projects within the framework of The Museum’s activities, and the motivation and willing of offer his/her skills to the HO, either the interest of knowing the reality of the HO.

The desire to learn a new language and new skills is important.

SKILLS TO AQUIRE WTHANKS TO THE SERVICE:

Volunteers will have the opportunity:

To observe methods, instruments and support acces to the museum patrimony

To get to know better methodological and organizational aspects of accessible cultural events for vip’s

To get to know better methods, instruments and support for the realization of adapted educational activities

To know Museum Omero and its functions

To know better various types of disabilities and their special needs

Example of activities in which volunteers will be involved are:

Help leading workshops with school children concerning art expression (sculpture, modern art, contemporary art…)
Help to assist guided tours for individuals and groups in the Museum
Help to make adapted educational material for visually impaired people
Help to organise temporary exhibitions for the Museum
Help in searching external partners for the Museum activities (sponsors; other museums to share experiences; schools, universities to extend activities; blind associations to promote the activities of OM, …)
Write articles about various subjects in the Newsletter of the Museum Omero
Managing and sending to beneficiaries the Newsletter of the Museum Omero
Proposal of new activities that the volunteer could develop
Organise awarness sessions about access of visual impaired to art, with local community
- support the educational services in leading workshops with educational and rehabilitation centres;
. - help in managing temporary exhibitions exposing art works made by high school students inside specific projects;
- increasing communication within social networks;
- creating short movies and taking photos about various events which will take part during volunteer's service
This is just an example, but we are open for volunteers personal initiatives and we will try to support it according to our means.

ROLE OF VOLUNTEERS:

ROLE 1:

The volunteer with this role will be working in a specific project with local schools.

Starting from september, he/she will keep contacts with the task related support the different local colledges and high schools (pupils from 11 to 18 years old), and will set up with them and with their teachers a specific project consisting of making a tactile visit to the Museum Omero and setting up a specific project letting them feeling how visually impaired people perceive art; than, volunteer (always with the task related support) will guide pupils to create the needing supports to get the chosen masterpiece accessible to the visually impaired audience; volunteer, while not in class, will look for material, will be acting in the preparation of the adapted supports; once the supports will be ready, the volunteer with the task related support will be helping to organize a final event to show to the local community the results of this project (in February 2015).

ROLE 2:

The volunteer assuming this role will work more on individual service for visually impaired pupils.

Starting from september 2014, the volunteer with the help of the task related support will start to help during the guided visits and during the preparation of needed material. As this service will be only upon request, the volunteer assuming this role will be helping during the guided visits and the workshops for classes in the morning (e.g., helping in leading workshops on different topics such as on teaching Braille writing system, workshops on contemporary art, workshops on creating tactile booklets using recycling material etc).

Age of MTSO asking for these workshop is usually 8-18.