2020 – Page 3 – American Alliance of Museums

Museums as First Responders: Museum of Homelessness

By Elizabeth Merritt

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed gaping holes in the systems that should shield communities from harm. Patching the frayed social safety net will require government, private, and non-profit sectors to work together, going beyond their …
onePULSE, Many Perspectives: Collaborating with Diverse Stakeholders to Develop the National Pulse Memorial & Museum

By Barbara Poma, Pam Schwartz, Mark Knott, and Anne Voshel

In the aftermath of a tragedy, there is no one way for communities to grieve and heal. This is especially true when the event impacts people on a national or even international scale. The response, as well as any attempt at permanent …
Hosting Remote Internships: Successes, Challenges, and Thoughts for the Future

By Emily Shield

When I posted our call for internship applications last December, I had a very different idea of what the summer would look like. A typical internship at the Chrysler Museum of Art involves current students or recent graduates gaining …
For Post-Pandemic Success, Get Creative with Distributed Museum Models

By Theresa M. Genovese, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB

As the global pandemic has put a halt to in-person visitation for much of 2020 and brought long-held planning and operational models into question, museum leaders across the country have been grappling with challenges of how to prepare for …
Giving Back: Museums and Older Volunteers during COVID-19

By Marjorie Schwarzer

As cases of COVID-19 spike across the country, resulting in more museums suspending operations, what are the implications for older docents and volunteers, especially in regard to ageism and creative aging? In part one of this two-part …
Register now for Perspectives on Legacy Creative Aging Virtual Conference

By Elizabeth Merritt

The Alliance’s work on museums and creative aging, supported by Aroha Philanthropies, focuses on “healthy aging”—how museums can foster curiosity, growth, and social connections among people “fifty-five and better.” While outside the …
With Rapid Response Collecting, Who Are We Responding To?

By Carol Ghiorsi Hart

After the start of protests over the killing of George Floyd and the subsequent looting of businesses, hundreds of plywood boards went up in Greensboro, North Carolina’s downtown. But these boards, which could have been an angry reminder …
A Big COVID-19 Pivot: The Museum Assessment Program Goes Virtual

By Anastasia Wallace & Dr. Matthew White

The Museum Assessment Program (MAP) is one of the most valuable programs offered by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) for emerging institutions, museums undergoing structural change, or organizations looking to improve one or more …
Digital Tools for Pandemic Times

By Elizabeth Merritt

Almost all US museums closed during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. While a few reopened by summer, many decided to remain shuttered for the entire year, and often for these museums the only way to engage with the …
Museums Losing Millions, Job Losses Mount as COVID-19 Cases Surge

By American Alliance of Museums

For Immediate Release Arlington, VA—The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, today reported museums are losing millions while operating on slim reserves, leaving …