Using Grantwriting Principles in Program Planning, Part 1

One of my primary interests in museums is in museum education, however I have also explored an essential part of running a museum - development. Museums can't function without money and often that money comes from grants. Sometime in your museum career, you will at least help write a grant, if not write it on your own.

In my studies of grantwriting, I was amazed at how easy it was to plan programs based on the basic principles of grantwriting. When writing a grant, foundations and funders will often ask for your purpose, goals, objectives, methods and evaluations. These are some of the basic principles of planning a program, though we often don't write our thoughts out. Recently, I have taken to writing out my purpose, goals, objectives, methods and evaluations to present to my boss before implementing my ideas. I've found it to be a great way to fully flesh out my intentions, have every base covered and be able to show why it will work.


In addition to having your program fully fleshed out and ready for presentation to a superior or committee at your museum, you will also be prepared to take that information and write a grant. Not only will you have a great program, but you might also be able to get funding for it.

Since the process has been working so well for me, I wanted to share the steps in case the process will work for you. I will provide information about the purpose in this post along with an example of how I use it for one of my current projects.

Purpose

The purpose is the broad outcome of your program and is based entirely on need. It is an essential part of the needs statement in a grant. The purpose is the "why." Why are you planning this program? Why is this program important? It is also broad and covers all aspects. For example: The purpose of this school program is to educate students on natural history.

My current project is developing an internship program. This is what I prepared for the purpose of that program: The purpose of the internship program is to nurture future museum professionals. That statement is broad and covers all the aspects of the program.


Sort of like the "big idea" for a museum exhibit, the purpose is your guiding light throughout writing your program. If you ever get stuck trying to create your goals, objectives, methods or evaluations later on, you can look back to the purpose for inspiration. 




In my next post, I will talk about goals and objectives.


Suggested reading: 


The Complete Book of Grantwriting by Nancy Burke Smith and E. Gabriel Works

Appealing to New Audiences

Yesterday, I visited the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City. The facility itself is simply amazing and the exhibits are all very well done. I was with a friend to visit a specific exhibition on dresses of the 20th century worn by Oklahomans. Unfortunately, the museum does seem limited on special exhibition space as this exhibition was wedged between another exhibition on Pearl Harbor and an exhibit on sod houses. 

However, I want to focus on their exhibition space on entertainment in Oklahoma. Like much of their other exhibitions, this area had quite a bit of information all squished together without much of an over-arching story. Yet, I was intrigued that what seemed to be a typical buttoned-up history museum, had embraced an exhibition that many historians feel isn't worthy of museums. 

Photo by me at the exhibition.

The exhibition itself covered everything from comics to movies. My friend and I really enjoyed the exhibition, but on top of that, I think it appeals to a wide variety of audiences. In the section on film in Oklahoma, I know my grandmother would have loved to watch a few clips from the westerns. My brother and my boyfriend would have loved the section on comics, which talked about illustrators and authors from Oklahoma. Many age groups are fascinated by comics, whether for the memories they bring or the enjoyment they currently give to readers.

Can you see me? I'm Wonder Woman!

I was deeply impressed by this exhibition, but I was unable to find any corresponding educational programming with it. In fact, the History Center seems to lack very many public programs in general. There were a few on their website and the staff at the ticket counter couldn't think of any other public programs for the next year. I found that very disappointing since I could see so many opportunities, not only for the entertainment exhibition, but also for so many of their exhibitions as well. 

Professional Photography in Museums

Over the Thanksgiving break, I took my grandfather, my aunt and my uncle to the Anheuser-Busch Brewery Tour in St. Louis. We had a fantastic time. I always have a fantastic time. The facility is just awesome and there's free beer at the end. On this particular trip, the visit was a little different. This time they offered professional photography - something they had never done on any other tour. 

Photo from Anheuser-Busch

Normally, I don't have a problem with photography or even offering professional photography at your facility. My big problem is with forced photography. By that I mean, herding people into a line and basically instructing them that this is part of the tour and then asking for $20 for pretty bad pictures. I've found this to be an issue at places like Disney World, but never on a tour, and unfortunately, it cost us about 10 minutes of interesting information about the facility. Has anyone else had this experience before?

One place I've seen professional photography done right is the Skydeck in Chicago. It's incredibly difficult to get a good picture of people on the glass viewing platforms with just your average camera. Skydeck offers professional photographers at a couple stations and allows you to get some super cool pictures. The difference here is that no one forced you to get in line and take the picture. 

Photo from Skydeck Chicago

The question I pose is: Can museums offer professional photography that doesn't interfere with the visitor's experience? Do you think it's something museums should do?

Memorial Museums

You can probably ask anyone in America, college-aged and older, where they were on 9/11 and get a detailed answer. I was in my 9th grade Algebra class. My teacher usually had the news on while waiting for class to get in, but I noticed that the news was different. There was an urgency and uncertainty. If you ask people living in Oklahoma in 1995, they can definitely tell you where they were the day of the bombings. 

Two weekends ago, I visited the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum with my boyfriend. It's important to note that I went with someone and I strongly encourage visiting this museum with a close friend, significant other or family member. The content of the museum is heart-wrenching and does a great job of providing multiple-entry points to connect with the events of that day.


The Museum itself has a fixed path that starts you at an introduction to terrorism, then leads you through a gallery explaining the building itself - why it was built, what it looked like, what government agencies were housed there. I recommend starting in the Museum rather than the Memorial because for those who were very young at the time of the bombings or is not part of the Oklahoma City community have the opportunity to really connect to the devastation and heartache of that community in the galleries. We remember 9/11 and can easily connect to the stories of family members, the images of destruction and objects that barely escaped the building. We've seen that all on TV so many times and the galleries provide a good connection. Unfortunately, the galleries have not been updated to include 9/11 as part of the history of terrorism.


At the end of the first floor of gallery space, you are shuffled into a room where you hear audio from a meeting that was taking place at a neighboring building. It's an immersive experience where you hear the bomb going off and the next room is all too familiar to us. A news helicopter is on a television screen and you hear the audio very similar to the initial news stories from 9/11. It's a great way to make visitors feel as though they are going through that day with Oklahoma City. 


The rest of the gallery space continues with stories of the rescues, of the family members waiting and of the finality of the death of a loved one. You hear personal accounts and see objects from the building that truly measure the violence of the blast - broken glasses, shoes staying together by strings and watches frozen in time. Visitors also learn about the investigation and trial of the men involved in the attack.


At the end, an exhibit area shows images of those lost in the explosion and family members have been invited to donate items that their loved ones truly cherished or felt was representative of that person. A box of tissues is available for anyone that needs one. I know at this point, I was definitely tearing up. 

Above: Image of the gallery of people and objects relating to them.

Outside, the Memorial consists of two black walls on each end of a reflecting pool. These walls are marked with times - before and after the bombing - to represent the speed at which life changed. These walls are copper and will begin to tarnish in the rain, but the Memorial was designed for that. Each visitor is invited to place their hand in the water and then place it on one of the walls. This allows visitors to permanently make their mark on the Memorial. After going through the exhibit area, this is an incredible experience that really finishes the connection between you and the community. 

Above: One of the walls at the Memorial. Notice the patina at the bottom.

 The Memorial also includes chair sculptures representing each of the people killed in the bombing. Especially poignant are the smaller chairs representing children.

Above: Chairs at the Memorial.

For further reading, I recommend reading the article "Passion on All Sides": Lessons for Planning the National September 11 Memorial Museum that was in the January 2010 issue of Curator. The article discusses the design of that Memorial Museum and can definitely show us what we have learned about designing memorials that speak to us all.

Moving

I've been taking some time to think about how I want to approach this blog. About a month ago, I accepted a new position at a museum away from home. This is my first full-time museum job since graduating. My first full-time job ever. As I'm sure many of you have experienced with your own new jobs and new towns, most everything has changed. In the past, I've talked about museum administration and organization and how I'd like things to be in the future. In the past month, I've learned quite a bit about those topics and I really want to save those new thoughts for my position as well as for my potential PhD work. 


I'm still not sure what I will focus on in this blog, but I'm excited to explore new possibilities. Since moving, I have explored a few new museums and can't wait to share those experiences. 

Great Internships

 Image: Met Museum

Anyone that's been through a Museum Studies Program is familiar with the museum internship. Often highly recommended, but more often required, internships for Museum Studies programs are billed as a way to develop practical skills in a museum while using the knowledge gained from coursework. In some cases this is true, while other internships do not offer the same kind of experience.

Personally, I have had great internships and I have had some that definitely did not match my idea of a good internship. This has prompted me to determine what makes a great internship. Currently, I am working with a colleague to conduct a study of what interns believe make great internships and what intern managers believe make a great internship. We hope to uncover any disparities and get an idea of how internships can be designed for the best possible experience for both the interns and managers.

As someone who has been an intern and now someone who manages interns, I have a basic hypothesis of what I think makes a great internship:

1. Practical On-the-Job Training: This is useful for both the intern and manager. The intern will receive experience they can put on their resume and the manager will receive a worker they can trust to perform basic tasks.
2. Opportunities for Special Projects: Most interns are on the cutting edge of theory and practice from their coursework, so why not use that talent? For interns, this offers experience using what you've learned in school as well as a great project to put on your resume. For managers, you'll get something new and innovative to refresh whatever programming, etc that you're department is working on.
3. Opportunities for Improvement: This includes networking, extra training, community programs, etc where the intern can learn new ideas. Networking is very important when it comes time for the intern to be looking for jobs or other internships for the next semester. This can also benefit the organization as the intern can find new ideas or start collaborations with other organizations.

Those are the three main suggestions I have for improving internships. However, each program is different - has different resources, goals, etc. These are broad ideas and can be adapted for individual programs. I hope to share the results from my study in the next few months!

Weekly Links: Aug 27-Sept 2

Missed the Friday update, but here are the links:

Samantha at mus(eum)ings wrote a post on 9/11 museum exhibits. Less than a week away from the 10th anniversary.

Also, the Library of Congress offers a great site for teaching 9/11.

The Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City, MO just unveiled a new interactive website.

Klout just released the Top 10 Museums With Klout. If you haven't checked out Klout yet, definitely try it out and make sure to claim yourself.

The Smithsonian will be hosting the exhibition "Jefferson and Slavery at Monticello: Paradox of Liberty."

Hopefully you've already seen this, but if not, this performance at the Detroit Science Center is amazing!

Employee Training

Everyone has a job they've just been thrown into and expected to sink or swim. Hopefully, you survived it pretty well and eventually figured out most people's names, where the bathrooms were and how you fit into your department (if you're lucky enough to be on the organizational chart).

Then there are those great jobs that provide excellent employee orientation and training - the kind that makes you feel part of the organization before you even begin work. Though this is very important in large organizations where one department might never interact with another, small institutions can use trainings and orientations to their advantage as well. The great thing about orientations for museums and other cultural institutions is that everyone who works for you will understand and know your mission which is essential to presenting a cohesive message about your institution. I'd like to break down some essential elements to successful orientations and trainings.

1. Everyone should be required to attend - That means everyone from the floor staff to the Executive VPs. First this shows solidarity and commitment to the program. And second, it's a great informal way to meet people. 
2. Cover the basics - All your employees should know where the bathrooms and the most popular exhibits are in case they are on the floor and a visitor stops to ask them. Some other "basics" include your mission, employee benefits and a little background on your organization.
3. Overview of your organization - You can't expect all your employees to be experts in 18th century silver, but you can give them a little bit of information that the everyday visitor might not know. A great way to do this might be a tour by a curator or offering monthly programs that help keep your employees informed.
4. Explain how employees can stay up-to-date - If you have a fantastic intranet system, let employees know how to access it. Or if everything that's going on in the museum is posted in your monthly newsletter, let employees know how to get information about it. Many studies have shown that employees value being kept in the loop.
5. Remember to have fun - Think about how you're presenting your information and imagine if you had to sit through that program. Usually a variety of presentation methods are good - audio/visual, participatory, verbal, etc.

I recently sat through a great employee orientation and can't stop raving about how much I like the organization I'm working for. I can't help but think that the two are related.

If I Were a Museum Director....

Last week The New York Times asked experts in fields other than politics what they would do if they were President. The responses were varied and presented a different perspective than the traditional rhetoric we hear on TV. If you asked your family or friends, I'm sure you'd get a variety of responses as well.

This week I ask - What would you do if you were the director of a museum? Whether it's your museum or the dream museum you'd like to work for, send in your answers. I can't wait to see what you say!

Weekly Links: Aug 20-26

Still haven't managed to put up a post, but it's coming soon!

Archive.org has launched an archive of 3,000+ hours of 9/11 TV coverage. It's still hard for me to watch coverage. Does anyone else feel the same way?

Smithsonian Magazine is offering a free museum day across the country. Check out this list to see if there's a museum near you.

The National Media Museum created a platform video game to engage visitors in selecting objects for an exhibit. I don't know if anyone else has been keeping up with gaming in museums, but it's a particularly interesting topic to me.

Urban redevelopment is picking up across the country and St. Louis's Citygarden is an excellent example. Can museums fill similar roles in creating a sense of community?

Pop-up restaurants for museums can offer a great way to engage visitors outside of the traditional visit.

Weekly Links: Aug 13-19

Didn't get a chance to update with anything besides the weekly links this week, but I'll have something on employee orientations and benefits as well as a preview to my Blog Out Loud topic for my local Young Nonprofit Professional Network group.

Only one link this week on museums' emergency plans for WWIII.


Also, if you're looking for a job, be sure to use the #museumjob hashtag on Twitter and be sure to contribute, like @exhibitsmith, if you find jobs others might be interested in.

Weekly Links: Aug 6-12 (late!)

Sorry for the late post of the weekly links.

A street artist recreates real crime scenes to advertise joining the police force. Could museums recreate historic events to promote their institution?

Infographics are both visually pleasing and informational. It would be interesting to see museums adapt this style to exhibits.

The National Museum of American History blogged about collecting the history of digital photography, a new field that will impact museum professionals.

Museum Minute had a great post about visiting a museum with family, rather than as a museum professional. As a graduate assignment, I did something similar and have also had interesting experiences with my family in museums. It's a different experience to go to a museum with someone that you know well, rather than just observing from a distance.

This cool graphic on US Post Offices over time is really great and reminds me of a few museum exhibits I've seen. This graphic is so subtle, I've had to watch it a few times.

There's been a lot of talk about who volunteers in America and how they do it, but this graphic presents it so well.

The Netherlands Museum Association made a great case for the social impact of museums.

This New York Times op-ed is an interesting perspective on how education may change. How do museums fit in?

Taking the Museum Outside the Museum

In museum theory classes, you learn about the unique way visitors learn in museums. You also learn about the significant trust people place in museums over other sources of history, such as professors, books, even family members. If we assume that visitors are learning by making meaningful connections to other aspects of their life, then there are many places and people that use museum-style learning to effectively communicate their message. The following people and places are great examples of interesting information and programs similar to museums, but are apart from any sort of cultural institution.

Sarah Lohman

Four Pounds Flour

Sarah is someone I greatly admire for her unique perspective on history. Not only does she research historic recipes, but she recreates them so she and others can have a "taste of history." Though Sarah started in museums, which led her to her thesis, she has branched outside of the museum and that allows her to do very interesting things, like pub crawls. You can even hire her as a personal chef! Museums probably couldn't host pub crawls, but combining history with food and drinks is a great idea.

Jeffery Vinokur

Dancing Mad Scientist

Jeffery used his passion for both science and dance to create the "So You Think You Can Do Science Tour," a 45 minute show all about chemistry. Though his program is similar to that of science demos at many science and technology centers, Jeffery created a great business for himself, while sharing his energy and passion. Many science and technology centers couldn't (or even wouldn't) look for someone with a combined talent for science and dance. The thing to take away from this is to ask potential and current employees about their other talents and interests, you could discover something completely new that works for your museum.

David Briner
Genevieve Spencer

Similar to what the Massachusetts Historical Society is doing by tweeting the entries of John Quincy Adams's diaries, David Briner is tweeting the entries of his great-aunt's diaries. This is a great lesson for smaller history museums and historical societies who might not have access to the diaries of more famous individuals, like Adams. It's a great way to bring attention to your institution, while also sharing the treasures of your collection.

New York Nineteenth Century Society

The New York Nineteenth Century Society is composed of enthusiastic members inspired by the nineteenth century. Not only do these members participate to express their interest, but they also share their knowledge by offering events, lectures, etc, similar to a museum. A lesson for museums here is to tap into that energy and provide a forum for members of such organizations or start one themselves. A tip to the wise is to ensure that everyone is on the same page and dedicated to better understanding eras of history and not perpetuating myths and other ideas that have been proven false.

Weekly Links: July 30-Aug 5

I'm going to try to post some interesting links I find each week! So here we go:

The Museum Insight Blog asks "Why Bother with Young Adults?"

Citizen Science is pretty popular, but what about Citizen History?

The National Portrait Gallery in London is offering a five-sense visitor experience with music, cocktails, drawing, films and even perfume.

The National Portrait Gallery in DC is presenting "Portraits Alive." I think I saw another program like this somewhere, but it was a film. Has anyone seen a similar program?

The Brooklyn Museum is offering a "Choose Your Own Adventure" program where you use your phone to create a tour of the museum.

Look for more links next Friday!

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Conference Tips

As I've been organizing myself after the AMM conference, I've also been looking at what other bloggers have to say about preparing for a conference and what to do post-conference. Below are a list of links to some tips & tricks to making the most of your conference experience:

Preparation:

• peoplegogy has a great post on preparing for a conference and some specific tips for those who are giving a presentation.
• edoocee has some practical tips for using technology to take notes and a few links for business cards.

Before, During and After:

• GetElastic has tips for preparation, things to do while at the event and post-conference tips.

Post-Conference Follow-up:

• Get-it-Done Guy has some great ideas for following up with people you meet at the conference.

If you're going to a conference soon (maybe the AASLH meeting in September?), these tips will be useful for making your trip effective and fun.

Post-Conference Update

Earlier this week, I attended the Association of Midwest Museums/Visitor Studies Association conference in Chicago. It's rare for two museum conferences to be in the same city so it was an amazing experience, with many opportunities. Some of the best minds in the museum field were in attendance, including John Falk and Beverly Serrell, though neither presented.

To save a little money, I volunteered with AMM by assisting with tote bag stuffing (classic conference swag) and check-ins. Volunteering also provided great networking opportunities. Not only did I meet fellow museum studies grads, but I also was able to talk to other volunteers informally about their work and institutions. These short conversations were highly informative and gave me a better perspective on the overall situation in museums. Most are still short-staffed and underfunded, which does not bode well for those of us looking for jobs.

The sessions were also excellent. It's great to hear fellow museum professionals' perspectives, even if you disagree or don't have the resources to implement their ideas yet. The sessions were actually reminiscent of my museum studies courses, though with a more practical slant. Every session I attended was relevant to my interests or provided a new idea or way of thinking about things. It was very easy to find sessions that were useful to me because the AMM provided different "tracks" in their program for attendees to pick and choose sessions - tracks like education, volunteers, exhibits, etc.

As this was my first museum conference, I learned quite a bit about how to effectively use my time and make new connections. I'm not sure I did as much as I could this time around (unfortunately, I had a family emergency), but next time I will certainly have a plan. Here are some tips and tricks to museum conferences:

1. Bring business cards - Everyone trades cards at conferences so be sure to have one. If you don't have any yet, you can easily order some or make them yourself.
2. Have a resume on hand - You may or may not use it, but it's good to have at least one. You might meet someone in a session that is hiring for something you want to do!
3. Go to sessions that interest you - Even if you're there for your institution, be sure to go to at least one session that applies directly to you. You'll enjoy the conference that much more and you might run into someone who has a job opening in that area.

I hope this information is helpful to anyone going to a conference in the future. My next post will be on some ideas I'm throwing around for writing a paper or presenting at a conference.

Nonprofit Mergers

It happens in for-profit business all the time, but is something of a novelty in the nonprofit world - mergers. A recent link in the Center for the Future of Museum's weekly newsletter, which I highly recommend subscribing to, revealed the trend of mergers in nonprofits, including museums. Due the economy (and really what isn't anymore?), nonprofits are still looking for ways just to stay afloat. Smaller museums merging with larger, more stable museums could be a way to keep the doors open.

Recently the Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh, an affiliate of the Smithsonian, merged with the Meadowcroft Museum, the George Westinghouse Museum and the Fort Pitt Museum. The Fort Pitt Museum reports a dramatic increase in attendance from the merger. It's easy to see how the influence of a larger museum, that has higher attendance, could reach out to its current visitors and increase the visitation at an affiliated museum.

Besides the obvious financial benefit, another benefit might include the ability to share staff. While one museum might be able to afford a conservator, another museum might not be able to, but with a merger, the museums might be able to share that conservator and even be able to hire an assistant. Another benefit would be the easy loaning of objects for exhibits. The museums might also be better prepared to plan exhibits that work in conjunction with each museum, creating a cohesive visitor experience.

The list of benefits of merging with another museum could go on and on. But what about merging with non-museum nonprofits? Would this be an effective partnership? Museums already often work with different nonprofits on exhibits, educational programming and sometimes fundraising, but a merger would be a much bigger step.

Can you think of any current museum/nonprofit mergers? What would be the ideal partnership?

The Cost of Doing Business

I am lucky enough to live in a city where five large cultural institutions are supported by tax-payer dollars, which means that most of these institutions charge no admission. However, many museums must charge at least a small, if not cost-prohibitive to some, fee. Without some sort of fee, many museums would be unable to preserve artifacts and offer educational programming. Many would not even be able to keep their doors open.

Anyone in the museum profession will tell you that it's expensive to keep a museum running. Just keeping the power on can be costly to smaller institutions. Preservation, storage and management of collections, at the heart of many art and history museums, can be a challenge to fund. Then there's also educational programs, public programs, group tours, etc, that all cost something to provide. And there's always something else we wish we could do, if we had the money.

The public seems to mainly object to two things: staff salaries and high admission prices at institutions that receive or have received public funding. Neither objection is unreasonable, though much of the public does not know where museum money goes because most of the information is usually not available. Perhaps if a budget displaying where the money goes was shown next to how much it costs to get in, the public would at least have the opportunity to understand how the money is used.

Judging Exhibitions

Today, I had a rare opportunity to give direct feedback on an exhibition. A representative from the museum just happened to buy a membership while I was at my current job and just happened to mention that he worked at said museum. I, of course, piped up that as a project, I had evaluated that exhibition and he was curious as to my group's conclusion.

First, I must point out that we used a specific framework assigned by my professor for the assignment. The framework can be found in Beverly Serrell's Judging Exhibitions: A Framework for Assessing Excellence and a copy of the framework can also be found here. I also must be honest and admit that all the groups in my class spent more time criticizing the framework than we did evaluating the exhibitions we each visited.

As we were explained to by our professor, the purpose of the framework is to evaluate an exhibition based on how a visitor might view it. The issues we found with the framework were not so much that the aspects listed were not important, it was more that we found them limiting and did not appropriately assess how we felt about the exhibition. As I learned in my visitor research course, visitors have a variety of ways of looking at exhibitions and could easily rate an exhibition highly, but still not have enjoyed themselves or vice versa. The framework certainly attempts a more objective way of evaluating exhibitions, but we still found ourselves being subjective. Perhaps this is because museums are essentially meant to be subjectively viewed. With the exhibition we reviewed, we found the exhibits to have poor labels, undefined flow and a creepy mannequin. However, most of us were glad we were able to see the content and explore a new museum.

When I did bump into the employee at this museum, I was able to communicate my assessment of the exhibition, but I think I could have come to the same conclusion without the framework.

Has anyone used this framework? Has anyone attempted another method of similar style evaluation?

Exhibition Spotlight: Extreme Tree Houses

A couple weekends ago, I visited the Missouri Botanical Garden's Extreme Tree Houses exhibition. I was intrigued by the opportunities a botanical garden might have to experiment with exhibitions that museums normally do not have. Botanical gardens are a cross between an art museum and a natural history museum, but outdoors and with living specimens. Like art museums, botanical gardens are places for contemplation, where one can enjoy the bounty of nature in a controlled setting. Like natural history museums, botanical gardens usually offer scientific names of their specimens and opportunities to use hands-on science.

I'm not sure what the Botanical Garden's goal was in installing this exhibition, but it does bring attention to an area generally neglected by garden visitors, the trees. From personal observation, most visitors are interested in what's at eye level - bushes, flowers, vegetables, and smaller trees. The Garden does have a beautiful collection of large trees throughout the premises, many of which were planted over 100 years ago.

The houses were all designed by local designers, architects, schools, studios and individuals, without much educational material. However, this does not discredit the merit of this exhibition.

Extreme Tree Houses is more similar to an art exhibition than an educational science exhibition. Since each house was hand-crafted by some type of artisan, each house could easily be considered a work of art. More than that, though, is the child-like wonder each house invites with their whimsical designs and basis in a childhood object. Though I never had a tree house as a child, I can remember wanting one and walking through each house made me feel like a child again, wanting my own tree house. In one I could imagine "playing house:"

While in another I conjured up an image of pretending to be an inventor/scientist and going on epic adventures:

Each house invited an opportunity to imagine another world - pirates, fairytales, magic. Overall, the exhibit was a magical journey I will repeat again.

Museum Travel Programs

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a museum travel program, hosted by the museum where I have been employed. For the last two years, I researched the background information on many of the travel programs, providing a document for participants to refer to before, during and after their trip with basic information, other sources for information and resources for teachers. After all that time learning about the amazing trips the Science Center provides, I was hoping to one day go on a trip myself.

Currently, the Science Center provides four types of trips:

1. Science Around Town: Programs offered in the St. Louis area and often open to children as well as adults. The programs are less expensive than most of the other programs, since there are not usually overnight stays with the Science Around Town programs.
2. Domestic Discoveries - Behind the Scenes: The Science Center usually offer two Behind the Scenes programs each year, one at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, and another at the Field Museum in Chicago. These programs often offer a guided tour with an expert in the field and a behind-the-scenes tour with employees of the museum. The tours are always focused on science, usually paleontology since these two museums are famous for their collections.
3. Domestic Discoveries: Most of these programs involve a week-long look at a national park with experts leading the way. The most unique program offered is Paleotrek, a week-long adventure to search for dinosaur fossils in the Hell Creek formation in Montana.
4. International Explorations: One international trip is offered every year and also changes yearly. This year's trip is to Iceland, while next year the Science Center will travel down to Peru.

The trip I attended was the Behind the Scenes at the American Museum of Natural History. I've always loved New York so I jumped at the chance to attend, even though my final papers were due the next week! The trip began with dinner in Little Italy, where the group got to know each other a little better after our flight. The next morning we awoke to meet our paleontology expert who brought us to AMNH for our first tour. He led us through the Hall of Planet Earth as well as the Fossil Halls. Even though I have been working in the paleo lab of my museum, it was great to get more information about paleontology that I could pass onto my coworkers and to observe another museum's gallery to see the difference in their presentation.

Below: Our T. rex

And AMNH's T. rex

While our animatronic T. rex is great and visitors love it, AMNH's exhibits looked far more polished than ours. However, the exhibit did have less hands-on activities.

After our tours of the permanent galleries, we then visited the temporary exhibition The World's Largest Dinosaurs. This exhibition explored the life of the long-necked dinosaurs and offered far more hands-on exhibits than the permanent exhibitions. The exhibition also had an exhibit which used projection onto the belly of the dinosaur to explain digestion and respiration:

Next we were on our own, but later gathered for lunch and our final tour - behind-the-scenes. Though, I can't talk about much of our visit because many of the objects were still being researched, I can tell you that there are thousands more fossils than you see on the floor of this museum. The great thing about the tour was that we were able to talk with people who were conducting the research and see their techniques as well as what the current interests are of those in the field. I was very impressed with how seriously AMNH takes its role as a research institution.

That night we also dined together, but the next day was on our own until our flight. I appreciated the extra half-day to explore on my own some places I've wanted to see including the World Trade Center site, NYU and the Whitney Museum (though I was incredibly disappointed with the visitor services staff, I was impressed with their collection).

Overall, I enjoyed the experience though there things that worked better than others.

Pros:

• Planned entirely by the Science Center - I did not need to come up with my own accommodations.
• Tours with experts - This was an experience I could not get anywhere else, it was informative, entertaining and personal.
• Appeals to a wide audience - It was a good trip for the variety of people who attended from ages 23-to someone in their 70s, as well as teachers and people who had never even been to the Science Center. I think it works for people who enjoy a tour setting, but it also works for people who are looking for a new experience.

Cons:

• Logistics - Many museums would not be able to coordinate such an extensive trip since it requires extra manpower and time.
• Cost - Some of the tours are cost-prohibitive, however some tours have the option of applying for a teacher scholarship.
• Group dynamics - As always, when you travel in a group, you can be disruptive to the natives (New Yorkers especially do not like this) and you can run into personality issues. I personally felt a little uncomfortable since I was the youngest and traveling on my own.

I also want to leave you with a few other museums that offer travel programs:

• Smithsonian Journeys: The Smithsonian offers numerous travel programs domestically and internationally. You can search by destination and tour type (including college study abroad, family programs and by transportation). Each program has an expert accompany the tour. As a history nut, the Footsteps of Patriots tour sounds amazing!
• National WWII Museum: The National WWII Museum offers trips to famous battles including the Invasion of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. Each tour includes a team of experts.
• Field Museum: The Field Museum offers international tours to members-only (what a great incentive to become a member!). This year's journeys are all to Africa.
• Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Met offers multiple trips a year all focused on art, visiting museums and locations where artists lived. All trips are international as well, primarily to Europe.

Augmented Reality

Last year, the 2010 Horizon Report: Museum Edition identified six technologies to watch for their use in museums. One of the technologies they identified was augmented reality. Augmented reality is defined as "blending data with the real world." One website that you're probably familiar with is Yelp, which allows users to rate and review real world places, including restaurants, bars, museums, etc, then later use that information to make decisions about those places - where to go for dinner or which museum to visit on vacation. Museums have also been using augmented reality, such as the Powerhouse Museum's Layar, an app for mobile devices which shows images of what Sydney, Australia looked like 100 years ago when the user walks around the city. The Museum of London also offers a similar app, Streetmuseum.

Apps are not the only way to use augmented reality. One interesting use of augmented reality is the DisplayCabinet, which uses RFID tags placed inside objects to display information on a surface. For example, the keys in the image below tells you the temperature and if the dog is outside.

Photo Credit: Ben Bashford

The creators of the DisplayCabinet also used a wallet and a miniature train to display different information. This information is geared toward daily data that would be important to a person's daily schedule, like the train schedules or traffic issues. The information is presented in a different and fun way. It might even be easier than loading up your computer or unlocking your phone to just throw your keys onto a desk before you leave the house or even leave your essential items on the desk and have information updated in the morning. Even children could easily use the objects.

These objects could hold data that museums could use. Take for example a typical art exhibit.


The information on these labels is static and, at times, not engaging. Perhaps the label only tells a little data about the artist, date, and maybe the medium. Museums also struggle with connecting to all audiences. By using blank spaces and the objects, a museum could create multiple sets of labels related to information that a visitor might be interested in. For example, an exhibit on painted landscapes could have objects with data connected to information on the type of plants in the paintings, the artists, the type of paint, etc. Exhibits could easily be designed to have information geared toward general adult visitors, art students, children, teachers.

It's Been a While

I realize it's been 4 months since I've posted. At this point I probably can't call myself a blogger anymore, but I'm really going to try to keep things up from now on. I could explain away the million reasons why I haven't updated in a while, but suffice it to say, I finally finished my exit project and have graduated. I can't tell you how excited I am that everything is done, but I'm also on the job hunt right now so I'm still very busy.

My exit project turned out to be 50 pages of delightful Archives data, grants and volunteer information. I'm very proud of what I've accomplished, but I'm still interested in continuing my work. The audit is still ongoing, but I just lost my best (and only volunteer). She has a seasonal job with the National Park Service so I'm sure she's having a blast. Luckily, the Archivist just trained three new volunteers that I will be training in the audit this coming Sunday.

I've also been asked to sit on the Board of Directors for the Historical Society! I'm so very honored by this request and I can't wait to get started. Everyone at the Historical Society has been so enthusiastic and I only hope I can continue to bring energy to the Archives and Board.

The job hunt has been slow, as I'm sure it has been for anyone who's graduated in the last 2 or 3 years. I've done all the things people have advised: tell everyone you know you're applying, write specific resumes and cover letters and apply to jobs even if you don't think you're perfectly qualified. All good advice. Right now I'm just hoping for something part-time until I can figure out where I'm going and to hopefully find a job I'm passionate about.

In the meantime, I plan on focusing on the job hunt, continuing to work at the Archives, volunteering at the Missouri History Museum and watching a little bit of Netflix.

Everyone's a... curator?

It seems in the past year, the term curator has become increasingly popular. Our friends at Wikipedia define curator as “a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections.” The article also specifically cites galleries, museums, libraries or archives as the institutions in this definition. As many of us who study or have jobs with museums know, this is a pretty standard definition of what a curator does.

However, it seems like the definition of curator is changing in the digital age. Many websites are adopting the term curator in a variety of ways.

Etsy, a website for users to sell homemade and vintage goods, uses the term “curator” to describe a guest blogger who chooses items from different sellers and highlights them in a blog post. Unlike a museum curator, whose qualifications are usually from years of study and research in a specific topic or field, the guest curator on Etsy is often times someone in a design or aesthetic related field. Is this a stretch or does the title fit well?

Another website, Brain Pickings, defines itself as being "about curating interestingness — picking culture’s collective brain for tidbits of stuff that inspires, revolutionizes, or simply makes us think." Topics range from Fair Use to Retrofuturism and often use language similar to label text in museum exhibitions. Their post on Retrofuturism is actually a topic I was interested in addressing the museum my friend and I are planning.

Did Brain Pickings do a good job? I know there are things I would change, but would it be for the better? Should the term curator be redefined?

Museum of the Week: Beatles Museum

Earlier this week the Beatles Museum opened in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The museum is based entirely on the private collection of Rodolfo Vazquez, who earned a Guinness World record for his collection in 2001. The museum hosts a collection of over 8,500 objects and a thematic restaurant and bar.

Credit: CNN

This is the first Beatles Museum in South America, but not the first in the world. The Beatles Story, which opened in 1990, is a museum dedicated to The Beatles in Liverpool, England. The exhibitions take you through the life and times of The Beatles and spans two locations with over 23,000 sq ft. in space.

What I find to be most interesting about the museum in Buenos Aires is that it was founded entirely on the collection of one man. In the past, entire art museums have been founded on the collection of one individual or a group of individuals, sometimes concerned with the education of society.

As people are collecting a variety of objects in our material-driven society, will we see more collections of memorabilia as the foundation for museums?

Step One

Welcome to Deaccessioning the Student, a blog about one graduate research assistant's final semester and beyond. In a museum, deaccessioning is the process of disposing, selling or trading objects from a museum collection. Many decisions must be made, not the least of which is deciding how to get ride of the object. Trade it to another institution? Sell it to a private collector. Students must also make difficult decisions about their futures, such as deciding between pursuing more education and applying for a job.

In this blog, I will be covering a multitude of topics, primarily focused on my graduate exit project and my work at a local science museum. In addition, I hope to address current issues in museums and any interesting ideas that come my way.

Step one is to decide to deaccession and since I graduate in May, I don't really have too much of a choice. The second step is to decide how to do so. Hopefully, I'll have a job by May, but follow along to find out how everything goes.