2020 – Page 7 – American Alliance of Museums

Don’t Be Surprised, Be an Ally: Better Security Planning for Virtual Programs

By Kenneth Cohen

It was my ninth virtual program of the COVID era that prompted this essay. The first eight had gone relatively well. After some low numbers and awkward silences early on, later events exceeded attendance and engagement expectations. The …
Essential Evaluators: Separation of Powers

By Rose Jones, Laureen Trainer, and Andréa Giron Mathern

Essential Evaluators seeks to gather evaluators in a common space to dialogue, reflect, and support each other in a world upended by COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter protest movement. This is a time of uncertain and unknown expectations …
AAM’s Statement on Ceased COVID-19 Relief Negotiations

By American Alliance of Museums

Arlington, VA – In response to the President’s announcement that further negotiations over a COVID-19 relief package would cease until after the election, Laura Lott, President and CEO of the American Alliance of Museums, released …
“Decolonizing is Literally Unsettling”: Repatriation of Nonprofit Land and Assets

By Elizabeth Merritt

On July 16, 2020, the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation (NACF) and the Yale Union (YU) announced that YU would transfer its land and building in Portland, Oregon, to NACF. The historic building will become the headquarters of the NACF …
Earning Income from Education Programs during COVID-19

By Daryl Jorgenson and Kate Jackson

In this series of posts, EdCom’s Trends Committee is taking a deeper look at emerging phenomena identified in the 2020 edition of TrendsWatch from the Center for the Future of Museums. In this post, they turn their attention to the …
The Call of the Moment: Marjorie Schwarzer on the New Edition of Riches, Rivals, and Radicals

By Sabrina Oliveros

Riches, Rivals, and Radicals: A History of Museums in America has been read by students, professionals, and museum lovers alike since its first publication in 2006; its public television adaptation has nearly half a million views on …
Building True, Lasting Collaborations with Source Communities

By Meredith Schweitzer

It’s well-documented by this point: museums are changing. No longer solely repositories of information and keepers of culturally important artifacts, museums today are taking on new roles and shaping revised definitions of …
“Access for All” Begins with Community Listening at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden

By Alyssa O’Connell, Shasta Bray, and Alix Gasser

Cassandra Clement was always on the lookout. A self-described “stalker” of quiet places to sit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (CZBG), she always took note of benches tucked away in more secluded areas, or any nook or cove …
Navigating a Job Search in the COVID-19 Market

By Dana P. Hundley

The museum field, and cultural institutions in general, have undoubtedly been hit hard by COVID-19. As a result, many museum professionals are finding themselves job searching and considering career transitions at a time with seemingly …
Eye of the Storm: How Do Museums Prepare for Hurricanes during a Pandemic?

By Lori Foley and Cori Wegener

It’s a Thursday afternoon in July and the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico (MAPR) is almost empty. Director Marta Mabel Pérez is in her office, leading a virtual hub of staff and other professionals through crisis management, reopening …