Posts
Facing Change
Core Concept Primer: DEAI is the responsibility of the entire organization
Sustained, meaningful, and impactful DEAI work must be reflected in all aspects of museums, from individuals to organizational culture, to policy and process. This work must not solely rely …
The Four Principles of Purpose-Driven Board Leadership
In the face of increasingly pressing systemic inequities, nonprofit boards must change the traditional ways they have worked and instead prioritize an organization's purpose, show …
How to Master Humble Learning, a Requirement for Cultural Competence
Among dancers, there is a common saying that even an advanced dancer can always work on their basic step. I have been a salsa and Latin dancer for over a decade, but when I attend a …
New TrendsWatch! Navigating a Disrupted Future
In a normal year, TrendsWatch explores the impact emerging forces of change may have on museums in the next decade or longer. Some, such as demographic shifts, affect all museums in the …
What Can Museums Learn from the “American Dirt” Controversy?
As an avid reader of Chicanx/Latinx literature, I’ve been closely following the national conversation about the recently released novel American Dirt by author Jeanine Cummins. The …
The Transformative Power of Inclusive Storytelling in Museums
My mentor Dr. Johnnetta Cole, the former director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art (NMAfA), often says, “It’s easy to live without art, but it’s hard to live well.” For me, …
Group Learning, Individual Work: An approach to DEAI
Many years ago, I had the opportunity to prepare my museum and the local communities for a science exhibition presenting race as a social construct. As we discussed the best way for our …
What Kind of Ancestor Will You Be?
As Facing Change Senior Diversity Fellows, I and my associate fellows have been tasked with supporting museums as they address the lack of racial diversity in the governances of their …
Table Setting: The work before the work
Often when I talk with folks about DEAI work there is a sense of urgency. They’ll say, “We’ve gotta make this happen now because so and so is really a problem,” or “We need our community …
Facing Change: Advancing Museum Board Diversity & Inclusion
This introduction video provides an overview of AAM’s Facing Change program, with messages from AAM and museum leadership. Referenced in the video is the Board Leadership Report which …
Meet the Facing Change Senior Diversity Fellows
Only nine short months have passed since AAM began its initiative Facing Change: Advancing Museum Board Diversity & Inclusion, which provides training, support, and resources to help …
Latest Stories from AAM
Museum Colleague Shoutouts for 2023
Category:
Alliance Blog
Last month we asked readers of our Field Notes newsletter to share their shoutouts for outstanding museum colleagues in honor of the new year. Here were some of the responses they shared: …
Chatting About Museums with ChatGPT
Category:
Center for the Future Of Museums Blog
Two months ago, the research and development lab OpenAI released ChatGPT, an interactive “chatbot” powered by artificial intelligence. Chatbots aren’t new (I’ve been writing about …
Different by Design: A New, Inclusive Framework for Accessible Museum Exhibitions
Category:
Alliance Blog
In January 2020, I authored a post for the Alliance Blog about speechless: different by design, an exhibition that I curated for the Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) and the High Museum of Art in …