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A Free Survey to Measure a Sense of Belonging at Museums

Not everyone wants to visit a museum. This is in part because of operational issues like cost, location, schedule, but these aren’t the whole story. Some don’t even reach the point of …

Transforming Museums with Immersive Sound

Sound is a potent force. When harnessed with intention and care, its impact can be substantial. As a trained ethnomusicologist with experience working in museums like the Louis Armstrong …

The Best Museum Bathrooms, According to Museum People

When you think of all the memorable, thoughtfully designed spaces in museums, the bathrooms may not be the first thing that come to mind. They aren’t usually considered the feather in an …

Celebrating curiosity at Brooklyn’s Children’s Museum

Atiba Edwards has been the executive vice president and COO of Brooklyn Children's Museum (BCM) since February 2019. The world's first children's museum , it dates back to 1899 and is on …

Crafting a Post-Disaster Experience: How Visitor Experience Staff Have Adapted to the Pandemic

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, museums everywhere have become more people-centric. Top-line conversations have centered on the thoughts and feelings of our visitors as we have …

On the Ground: How Visitor Experience Teams Are Teaching Front-Line Staff to Be DEAI Advocates

In the museum experience world, making visitors feel welcome is serious business. Our goal is to exceed guests’ standards for positive experiences, and nothing undermines that goal like a …

Inside The Smithsonian National Air And Space Museum’s Virtual Docent Program

Since July 2020, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, an adjunct of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM), has dispatched virtual docents to guide and interact with visitors …

Crafting the Museum Experience: How Mingei International Museum Centered Mission and Visitor Experience in a Major Renovation

In September 2021, Mingei International Museum will reopen after a three-year, fifty-five-million-dollar renovation. This ambitious and unique capital project, completed in partnership with …

Inviting Engagement: Front-of-House Workers Become Online Content Creators

After announcing our free admission initiative in January 2020, MOCA’s lobby was a bustling hive of activity. Visitor engagement staff welcomed attendees by scanning their tickets and …

Empathy Interventions: Mia Experiments with Cultivating Empathy in Museum Visitors

Can the visual arts foster empathy and understanding? From our experiences as art museum educators, we believe they can, but there is little empirical research to support this theory. So, …

Using Local Data to More Fully Understand the Visitor Experience During COVID

At Thanksgiving Point Institute—a farm, garden, and museum complex in Lehi, Utah—we’ve been wondering how visitor agendas are changing during the current health crisis. Understanding …

How the National Air and Space Museum Took Volunteering Virtual

A mother and her spaceship-loving children, ages five and seven, arrive at the Steven F. Udvar Hazy Center using their timed tickets. As they enter the museum, unsure where to turn first, a …
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Latest Stories from AAM

Finding the Future at #AAM2023

Category: Center for the Future Of Museums Blog
I’m taking a short break from prepping my materials for #AAM2023 to share a preview of what The Future will be up to in Denver. For me the conference starts on Thursday, May 18, with the …

CARE-apy: How to Measure Museum Social Impact: From Participant Recruitment to Retention

Category: On-Demand Programs: Audience Research & Evaluation
As the national Measurement of Museum Social Impact (MOMSI) study comes to a close, come learn how study sites navigated visitor participation in the project. Hear from three different …

Speak Up for FY 2024 Funding for Museums

Category: Advocacy Alert
In this Alliance Advocacy Alert: Contact Congress: Urge Your Representative to Support OMS Funding Now! President’s Budget Request for the Federal Cultural Agencies Ask Your …

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