American Association of Museums
Development & Membership Standing Professional Committee
The Development & Membership (DAM) Committee advances best practices in development and membership for all types of museums, gardens, historic homes, zoos, and aquariums. High quality sessions organized and sponsored for the Annual Meeting and online throughout the year, provide professional development tailored to the museum field.
Who are members of DAM?
You are eligible to join the DAM Committee if your interests include development or membership within institutions and organizations, both profit and non-profit, belonging to the American Association of Museums. You may be an employee, volunteer, or independent professional. DAM members come from all across the USA, Canada, and several other countries. Dues are just $20.00 annually.
Benefits of joining DAM
2011 Annual Meeting Resources
Thank you to all that joined us for the 2011 AAM Annual Meeting in Houston. We want to share with everyone the power point slides and talk outline from our luncheon speaker Robert Sharpe, Jr. who shared with us his insight on the philanthropic behavior of donors, not just major donors, to help us understand the "new normal." Mr. Sharpe also offered thoughts on the impact recent legislation regarding the estate tax, tax deductions for charitable gifts, and other laws will have on philanthropic behavior.
DAM Forum - DAM is pleased to announce a new benefit of DAM membership: DAM Dialogue, an online forum that will provide free access to resources to help you with your job and career. It also gives you the ability to post questions or describe problems you are confronting and receive responses from your colleagues. Much more than a listserv, DAM Dialogue is an online bulletin board where samples of best practices in museum membership and development are posted – plus the Q&A feature. You have your choice of subscribing to any or all of the “categories,” such as Creative New Ideas for Fund Raising or Membership. If you subscribe, you receive an email every time there is a new posting in that category. You can unsubscribe any time you wish.
To become part of this online community, go to http://iweb.aam-us.org/forum/default.aspx?forumid=17. Your AAM member number is your username. You choose your password. You’ll see the list of categories. Just click to open. To post a new question or document, click on “New Topic” in the upper left. To reply, look for the reply icon at the bottom of a posting.
Some of the items we have on DAM Dialogue already are sample gift acceptance guidelines and timelines for planning exhibitions and including development staff (See the Management and Governance category). There's a great idea for raising money to welcome The San Francisco Zoo's baby gorilla in Creative Ideas for Fund Raising, and in both the Membership and Development categories, a sample letter from the Metropolitan Museum of Arts board chair communicating decisions the museum has taken in response to the economic slowdown. There's also a Power Point presentation that makes the (perhaps) startling statement that people who are online prefer social networking sites over emails. That is something we all need to pay attention to.
If you have questions about content, please contact Julie Braley at dam.aam@gmail.com. For technical questions, contact Kathy Maxwell at AAM at kmaxwell@aam-us.org. For more information about how to get the most out of DAM Dialogue, go to online help at http://livedocs.fusetalk.com/net/userguide/index.htm . (That does not require a password.)
Thank you to Schultz & Williams for sponsoring DAM Dialogue during its initial year. See you in DAM Dialogue soon and often!
E newsletter – Stay updated and informed on the latest news about DAM educational programs, upcoming deadlines, postings of membership rosters, and new member offerings.
Professional Development – though DAM-sponsored sessions at the Annual Meeting, online mentoring, and new webinars, stay on top of issues in museum development, new technologies, new resources, and more.
Network with Colleagues – Meet some of the best and brightest professionals in your field at DAM events at the Annual Meeting and throughout the year through the DAM listserv.
DAM Directory – Find your colleagues throughout the country, by region, by institution, or by area of expertise in the DAM Directory, published in Excel and PDF form and available only to DAM members at dam.aam@gmail.com.
Participate in DAM activities – Attend DAM events and programs at the Annual Meeting and/or online and share your insights, which will help guide DAM’s recommendations for future programs and inform us of areas in which you would like more professional development.
Contact Information
Suzette A. Sherman
Director of External Affairs and Member Relations
National Museum Women Arts
1250 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20005-3970
202-783-7984
ssherman@nmwa.org
