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Public Programming
How the Greenwood Art Project United a Community in Reflection and a Vision for the Future
By 1921, the thriving Greenwood district of Tulsa, Oklahoma, had generated one billion dollars of collective wealth in today’s economic terms. Nicknamed “Black Wall Street” by W.E.B. …
Catching Feelings for a Triceratops: How Live Theater in Museums Evokes Empathy in Visitors
An excited murmur can be heard throughout the audience as they await the show to begin. When we come together to watch a live performance we expect to be moved, to be transported out of the …
Pivoting Your Programming: Virtual and Other Unique Options for Small Museums
This is a recorded session from the 2020 AAM Virtual Annual Meeting and MuseumExpo. Learn more about how small museums are continuing to connect with their audiences, even when COVID‐19 …
With the Help of MAP, the Manassas Museum Met Its Changing Community’s Needs
Through the Museum Assessment Program, museums gain perspective on how to improve core areas of their operations, with a combination of guided self-reflection and close consultation with an …
Picture of Health: How MFA, St. Petersburg, Reimagined the Museum Program as a Source of Wellness and Healing
As the Curator of Public Programs at the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, my professional focus has always been the MFA’s public spaces, performing arts venue, and gardens—not the …
These Museums Helped Welcome Immigrants and Refugees to their Community, and Yours Can Too!
Welcoming America’s annual Welcoming Week enlists organizations around the country to welcome new immigrants and refugees into their new communities. This year, AAM is a national partner of …
The Peabody Essex Museum’s Climate + Environment Initiative Seeks to Create a Different Climate Future
As the director of an interactive art and nature space, I’ve included climate change as a topic in many shows and programs over the years. But until recently, I had convinced myself that …
A National Collaboration Unites Black Museums in Celebration of Juneteenth
African American museums across the country bear a glorious responsibility to educate and engage, to inform and inspire, to bring together and build. As anchors for this engagement …
Virtual Programs for Children—What Do Parents Want Now?
After of year of chaos, anguish, and reflection, the world is entering a new phase—perhaps “post-pandemic,” maybe the “new normal”—it will take a while to settle on the right label. Last …
Thriving as a Virtual Museum: The National Museum of American Jewish History’s Playbook
Like many museums, the National Museum of American Jewish History (NMAJH)’s doors have remained closed to the public since March 2020. Our physical doors, that is. Our museum is very much …
How the Frazier History Museum Is “Bridging the Divide” in Its City
The Frazier History Museum is located on Main Street in Downtown Louisville, Kentucky, at the corner of Ninth Street. What makes our address significant, historically significant, is that …
Running with Scissors (and a Mask!): COVID-19 Responses at Old Salem Museums & Gardens
Just as flexible buildings can withstand hurricane-force winds and earthquakes, flexible institutions can withstand monumental challenges like a global pandemic. Because of our four years …