Washington, DC, 5/20/2003 - The American Association of Museums (AAM) will honor Shannon Beatty, program coordinator at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, with the 2003 Nancy Hanks Memorial Award for Professional Excellence. The award will be presented on Tuesday, May 20, at AAM’s 2003 Annual Meeting in Portland, Oreg.

The Nancy Hanks Memorial Award for Professional Excellence honors a museum professional with less than 10 years’ experience in the field, and recognizes a specific achievement that has benefited either the honoree's institution or the museum field at large. The award certificate carries a $1,000 stipend to be used to further the honoree's professional development.

Beatty is program coordinator for the Wisconsin Maritime Museum’s World War II fleet submarine, USS COBIA, a National Historic Landmark. She develops and maintains educational programs and materials and is responsible for marketing the USS COBIA Overnight Education Program. Under her direction, the program’s attendance has grown from fewer than 1,000 annual participants to nearly 3,000 participants in 2002. Wisconsin Maritime Museum board member Harry Philippsen nominated Beatty for this award.

The Nancy Hanks Memorial Award for Professional Excellence commemorates the late Nancy Hanks, who was dedicated to cultural endeavors and to encouraging young professions in the cultural arena. Hanks’s many accomplishments included eight exceptional years as chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.

As the national service organization representing the American museum community, the American Association of Museums addresses the needs of museums to enhance their ability to serve the public. AAM disseminates information on current standards and best practices and provides professional development for staff to ensure that museums contribute to public education in its broadest sense and protect and preserve our cultural heritage. Since its founding in 1906, AAM has grown to more than 15,800 members, including over 10,000 museum professionals and trustees, 2,300 corporate members, and nearly 3,000 museums.

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