Dudley-Wilkinson Award of Distinction

The Dudley-Wilkinson Award of Distinction was established in 1988 and was named for the authors—Dorothy H. Dudley and Irma Bezold Wilkinson—of Museum Registration Methods.

It is issued to a museum professional who has demonstrated commitment to the highest standards of excellence in the registration profession. Past recipients of the award include Marie Malaro, Kay Paris, Stephen Weil, Mary Case, Kittu Longstreth Brown, Cordelia Rose, Rebecca Buck and Jean Allman Gilmore, Deborah Hull-Walski and Gwen Bitz.

The award is presented every two years and the winner is asked to address the Collections Stewardship Network at its business meeting during the AAM Annual Meeting.

2016 Honoree

John E. Simmons, Consultant, Museologica, Bellefonte, PA

John has had a lifelong fascination with museums. He started his own natural history museum at the age of twelve and worked in a campus museum as an undergraduate. He began his career at the Fort Worth Zoo, then became collections manager at the California Academy of Sciences and later at the Natural History Museum of the University of Kansas, where he was also director of the museum studies program.  In addition to running Museologica (an international museum consulting company), Simmons teaches museum studies for Kent State University, the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, and Museum Study; and serves as adjunct curator of collections for the Earth and Mineral Sciences Museum and Art Gallery at Penn State University.

2014 Honoree

Sally Shelton, associate director, Museum of Geology and Paleontology Research Laboratory, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City

Sally has contributed to the field for more than 25 years in many capacities, including teacher at the Austin Nature and Science Center, as Assistant Conservator at the University of Texas’ Materials Conservation Laboratory, as Director of Collections Care and Conservation at the San Diego Natural History Museum, as the Collections Officer at the National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian Institution), and more recently her positions at the Museum of Geology. Sally has also contributed to the education and training of new professionals coming into the museum field. Her work is a clear illustration of her dedication to and love of museums.