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An End-of-Year Note to the Museum Field

By Laura Lott

This past year has continued to show that our new normal is a precarious one. Our communities have been facing massive challenges on a daily basis, whether due to the impacts of the climate crisis, issues of equity and identity-based …
Museum People’s Favorite Museum Stores

By Joseph O'Neill

Museumgoers know that one of the best places to find distinctive, cherishable objects, books, and apparel is in a museum store. With their connection to their institutions’ educational missions, these special stores boast a …
An Interpretive Plan for a Castle in the Clouds

By Debbi Finkelstein

Every year, dozens of museums around the country participate in AAM’s Museum Assessment Program (MAP), offered in a cooperative agreement with the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Through guided self-assessment exercises and a …
Are Stay Interviews Worth the Effort?

By Katherine McNamee

With the tight labor market this year, a popular topic in human resources circles has been the practice of conducting “stay interviews,” which CNBC predicted last fall would be “the big next trend of the Great Resignation.” As opposed to …
#AAM2023: New Focus, New Flow, New Formats

By Joseph O'Neill

For as long as anyone could remember, AAM’s 115-year-old Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo had been structured in about the same way. As with most professional conferences, people who wanted to present at the meeting submitted session …
Remarks from Benin Bronzes Repatriation Ceremony

By American Alliance of Museums

On October 11, 2022, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art hosted a repatriation ceremony in which officials of the museum transferred ownership of twenty-nine Benin bronzes and the National Gallery of Art transferred ownership …
Museum Store Sunday 2022—Plan, Prepare, & Participate!

By Tia Bianchini & Susan Tudor

Museum Store Sunday is on November 27, the Sunday after Thanksgiving! Is your institution participating? Do not miss this chance to join forces with over 1,900 cultural institutions worldwide to spotlight and support your institution and …
Ask an Expert: How Can Traveling Exhibitions Go the Distance?

By Joseph O'Neill

In addition to creating their own exhibitions, many museums also host ones that originate from other organizations, including companies that specialize in creating them. These traveling exhibitions have long been a significant segment of …
A Collection of Resources by and for BIPOC Museum Professionals

By Youssef Shokry

A search for “diversity and inclusion” on the job portal Indeed produces over two thousand pages of results across public, private, and nonprofit organizations. The titles and responsibilities that come up—such as Chief Diversity Officer …
A Counterpoint to “Witch Kitsch”: Peabody Essex Museum’s New Salem Witch Trials Walking Tour

By Dinah Cardin

At 11:58 am, my finger hovered above the record button. I had set out on a hot August day to capture the noon bell chimes of the Immaculate Conception Church in downtown Salem, Massachusetts. My goal was to weave these ambient sounds into …