Washington, DC, 11/3/2006 - The American Association of Museums (AAM) has formalized the national standards and best practices developed by the museum field through the Association, designating "AAM Standards and Best Practices for U.S. Museums." These standards and best practices are the authoritative sources that museums have relied upon for many years. They include the AAM Code of Ethics for Museums and the standards to which museums are held in the nationally recognized AAM Accreditation Program.

The American Association of Museums serves as the voice of the U.S. museum community and as a forum for discussion and resolution of important issues facing the museum field. Ongoing, field-wide discussion takes place through the Museum Assessment and Accreditation Programs, peer review, seminars, meetings, AAM's periodicals and books, and numerous professional committees. AAM captures the consensus of the field regarding standards (generally accepted levels that all museums are expected to achieve) and best practices (replicable actions and philosophies that demonstrate an awareness of standards).

"These standards provide a benchmark against which museums can measure their own performance and demonstrate to policy makers, media, philanthropic organizations, donors and members of the pubic that they are good stewards of the resources entrusted to them," said Kim Igoe, AAM's interim president & CEO. "National standards shape the way these different audiences assess museum behavior and performance and demonstrate the great commitment museums have to their communities."

The Standing Professional Committees (SPCs) of AAM have also worked with their members to articulate standards and best practices related to specific functions within the museum, such as education or curation. The AAM Board and Accreditation Commission are working with the SPCs to review and approve these standards, as well. AAM will continue to work closely with other museum professional associations as they expand upon and refine these national standards and clarify how they apply to museums in specific disciplines.

The following are "AAM Standards and Best Practices for U.S. Museums":

Standards

Code of Ethics for Museums, 2000

The Characteristics of An Accreditable Museum

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding Mission

            Statements

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding Governance

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding Institutional

            Planning

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding Collections

            Stewardship

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding An Institutional Code of Ethics

The Accreditation Commission's Expectations Regarding Delegation

            Of Authority

AAM Guidelines on Exhibiting Borrowed Objects

AAM Guidelines Concerning the Unlawful Appropriation of Objects During the Nazi Era

AAM Guidelines for Museums on Developing and Managing Business Support

AAM Guidelines for Museums on Developing and Managing Individual Donor Support

Considerations for AAM Accredited Museums Facing Retrenchment or Downsizing 

Best Practices

The Accreditation Commission's Position Statement on Best Practices Regarding Loaning Collections to Non-Museum Entities 

The Accreditation Commission's Position Statement Best Practices Regarding Unlawful Appropriation of Objects During the Nazi-Era

Links to Accreditation standards and best practices are available on AAM’s website.  

About the American Association of Museums

The American Association of Museums has been dedicated to promoting excellence within the museum community for over 100 years. The only organization representing the entire museum community, AAM's mission is to enhance the value of museums to their communities through leadership, advocacy and service. Since its founding in 1906, AAM has grown to include more than 15,000 individual members, 3,100 museums, and 300 corporate members. For more about AAM, please visit www.aam-us.org.

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