Autry National Center

Volunteer

A great way to make a difference at the Autry is to volunteer your time and skills at our events and exhibitions, or behind the scenes, and front desk. Volunteers of all ages and abilities are a vital part of the success of the Autry, and below are a few ways you can participate. To learn more, please contact our Human Resources department at 323.667.2000, ext. 352, or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Greet Visitors
Join the friendly and informative Autry staff in welcoming and guiding visitors to the Museum of the American West.  You can volunteer during regular museum hours, or at special events like Sizzling Summer Nights and Intertribal Arts Marketplace, or our big fundraisers like the Annual Gala and Masters of the American West Fine Art Exhibition and Sale. Helping at the Visitor Services or Membership desk gives you the opportunity to attend events and interact with visitors and staff.

Become a Docent
Love the West? Teach the West! History buffs and Western enthusiasts are invited to participate in this year’s summer docent training courses. Join scholars, curators, and educators in exploring the American West through history and artifacts. Then enjoy the rewards of passing along your knowledge to museum visitors as a tour guide.

Assist Families and School Tours
If you love children, you’ll love volunteering with our Education department. We have monthly hands-on activities that require museum teachers and volunteers to guide children and families in fun arts and craft projects and storytelling. Volunteers can also receive training and run tours for school children who arrive as part of the Autry’s All Aboard! program.

Help With Programs
Volunteers who love to be in the middle of all the action love to help with our public programs. We need the most assistance with our big festivals - everything from directing visitors to the event locations, and escorting performers backstage to manning booths and organizing other volunteers. Smaller programs may call for ticket-taking and checking RSVP lists. You can choose from theater and music performances, lectures, festivals, food and film series, and museum store sales.

Help in the Museum Store
The Museum Store provides a wonderful shopping experience for young and old. It sells everything from books, films, and music to clothing, jewelry, and art. Volunteers are helpful year-round by interacting with visitors, tidying up after the school tour rush, polishing jewelry cases, and even organizing beautiful displays.

Work With the Autry Collection
A more specialized area of volunteering at the Autry includes working directly with our vast collection of objects and artifacts. This exciting venture gives you access to the secure collections area where artifacts are studied, housed, and conserved. Led by a top-notch conservation team, volunteers help pack and move the collection as needed for storage or exhibition. They can also assist with photographing objects and reporting on their condition followed by uploading the information into the Autry’s innovative database. Volunteers may also help with the installation and de-installation of exhibitions. This unique volunteer opportunity can be used for college credit.

Perform Administrative Duties
For those that prefer a desk assignment, there is plenty to do behind the scenes in the administration offices. Database entry, letter-writing, and mailings are a big task for the Autry staff. Each department has a different need, and volunteers can earn great work experience by choosing a specialized area such as marketing, graphic design, or membership. Tose who can work in a fast-paced office environment are a welcome asset.

Work in the Library
Would you like to work with one of the nation’s most comprehensive book, archival, and artifact collections on Native American cultures and the history of the American West? If you volunteer in the Autry and Braun Research libraries, you can help preserve and provide access to these collections. Volunteers will work closely with librarians and archivists. Projects might include re-housing archival materials such as business papers, personal correspondence, financial papers and photographs in acid free folders, creating custom boxes for fragile materials, or conduct inventories, writing scope notes and content notes for archival collections, cataloging 20th century books or Spanish language books and documents. If you like detail-oriented work, please consider giving your time to the Autry’s libraries and research collections.