Working with What You Have: Maximizing Storage Space & Object Safety on a Budget
Gaylord Bros., Inc. – 7282 William Barry Blvd. North Syracuse, NY, 800.962.9580

Learn collections management practices for getting the most from lean budgets. Making the most of available storage space and proper storage for objects is critical for all collecting institutions. This workshop will aid museum staff and volunteers with an understanding of selecting true archival materials, and simple low-tech solutions that can be used for a wide range of artifact types. Mock-ups will be discussed and available to demonstrate the many solutions that will be discussed. Solutions for object and three-dimensional artifacts, textiles and costumes, paper, archives, and books will be covered. Time will be used in sharing ideas and problem solving. Handouts will be a part of the workshop. Materials will include supplier address, glossary of materials, and “How-to” for solutions discussed. These materials will allow the participant to more readily implement the ideas learned at their own institution.

Discussion leaders: Karen Convertino, Registrar, Everson Museum of Art; Gwen Spicer, Principal and Conservator, Spicer Art Conservation, LLC; Joy Manna, Senior Product Manager – Archival Products, Gaylord Brothers, Inc

Trustee Training
The Everson Museum of Art, 401 Harrison St  Syracuse, NY, 315.474.6064

This free workshop will clarify the rules and regulations for chartered museums and historical societies, and the boards’ fiduciary responsibilities with the chance to talk with trustees from other organizations.

Discussion leader: Sarah Jastremski, Chartering Coordinator, New York State Education Department – Cultural Education Center.

Museums and the Common Core

WCNY Studio, 415 W. Fayette St., Syracuse, NY, 315.453.2424

What are the Common Core Learning Standards? How will they impact the interpretation of our collections and the delivery of our programs? How can we capitalize on this opportunity to demonstrate the wealth of ready resources and expertise within our institutions? Join this engaging discussion.

Discussion leaders: Erika Sanger, Director of Education, Albany Institute for History and Art; Ilene Frank, Executive Director, Rensselaer County Historical Society; Liz Hood, Director, Office of Educational TV & Public Broadcasting at New York State Education Department; Debbie Stack, Director of Interactive Education, WCNY

Erika Sanger common core powerpoint

Take a Tour of Westlake Conservators

Tucked away in a beautifully restored brick building along Skaneateles Creek, West Lake Conservators is internationally known for providing comprehensive preservation services for paintings, murals, painted objects, frames, paper art and artifacts, photographs and textiles. The facility tour is enlightening and inspiring, and may be of special interest for anyone applying for upcoming conservation grant funding from Greater Hudson Heritage Network.

The tour is free, but registration is required.

• Noon Sunday, April 14
• 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 16

Email conference@museumsinconversation.org and let us know which day’s tour you want to join.

• Arcadia Publishing
• Cathedral Corporation
• Dorfman Museum Figures, Inc
• Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
• Gaylord Brothers
• New York Council of Nonprofits
• New York Cultural Heritage Tourism Network
• New York State Museum
• Rudinec & Associates / RequestAPrint
• Selago Design, Inc
• Spicer Art Conservation, LLC
• University Products
• West Lake Conservators
• Wheelwright Consultants
• Zephyr Preservation Studio

Interested in being a Museums in Conversation Exhibitor?

Phoebe’s Restaurant, 900 East Genesee Street, Syracuse NY 13210

Pre-registration is required, cost for dinner is $45.
Have you been curious about the Museum Institute at Sagamore? Are you a Sagamore alum, looking to reconnect with friends from the Institute? Featuring eclectic American cuisine, dinner at Phoebe’s will surely put us in mind of dining “like a Vanderbilt” in Great Camp Sagamore’s dining hall. Join us as we reminisce about our adventures in the Adirondacks and plan ahead for the 2013 Institute. The cost to attend this event is only $45. All proceeds go to support Museumwise: MANY’s Museum Institute at Sagamore.

• Arcadia Publishing
• Cathedral Corporation
• Dorfman Museum Figures, Inc
• Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
• Gaylord Brothers
• New York Council of Nonprofits
• New York Cultural Heritage Tourism Network
• New York State Museum
• Rudinec & Associates / RequestAPrint
• Selago Design, Inc
• Spicer Art Conservation, LLC
• University Products
• West Lake Conservators
• Wheelwright Consultants
• Zephyr Preservation Studio

In terested in being a Museums in Conversation Exhibitor?

Diversity as Practice: Creating Community through Collaboration

Join us for a keynote presentation by Candice Anderson, Executive Director of Cool Culture

Founded in 1999, Cool Culture works as an intermediary between cultural institutions and new museum audiences. Each year, the organization provides more than 50,000 low-income families throughout the five boroughs with free, unlimited admission to 90 of New York City’s world renowned cultural institutions.

The organization’s collaborative model brings together families, early education programs and cultural institutions to support economically challenged children and families, and to build the audience of the future.

Candice Anderson’s keynote presentation

Expanding Audiences through Online Technology I (part one of a double session)
Learn how to use online technologies in your institution to expand your reach and engage new and existing audiences in this double session. The session will be structured so that participants can attend either single session or both.

Discussion leaders: Sarah Wassberg & Linda Seward, Hudson River Maritime Museum; Sean Conklin Regina Quick Center for the Arts; Kara Jefts, College of St. Rose Visual Resource Coordinator; Jennifer Palmentiero, Southeastern New York Library Resources Council; Kerry Sclafani, Greater Hudson Heritage Network.

Addressing Diversity in 21st Century Non-Profits: Engaging New Audiences through Art Exhibitions and Programs
Today’s nonprofit art organizations are increasingly struggling to engage new audiences. Participants will learn about innovative experimental methods where exhibitions and programs are used to address diversity that ultimately brings new audiences together.

Discussion leaders: Anja Chavez, The Warehouse Gallery; Pedro Cuperman, Punto de Contracto; Hannah Frieser, Light Work/Community Darkrooms; Stephen Mahan, Photograpy & Literacy Project (PAL).

Pedro Cuperman’s Presentation

Opening Doors, Opening Floors for New Audiences
An external assessment conducted by New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON) helped one museum to rethink its facilities and expand its community partnerships.

Discussion leaders: Terry McDonald & Jason Fume, The Roberson Museum; Doug Sauer, NYCON; Mocca Shabaz, Office of the Mayor of Binghamton.

Learning Together:  A Conversation on Collaborations between Museums and Libraries to Engage Early Learners and their Families

How can museums and libraries work together to engage early learners?  This conversation will share the results of a benchmarking process that explored the design of effective museum/library collaborations and engage in a conversation about the needs and abilities of New York’s museums—large and small—to work together on developing traveling, family-friendly library-based exhibits for early learners and their families.

Discussion leader: Linda Norris, Project Manager

Discussion leaders: Sarah Wassberg & Linda Seward, Hudson River Maritime Museum; Sean Conklin Regina Quick Center for the Arts; Kara Jefts, College of St. Rose Visual Resource Coordinator; Jennifer Palmentiero, Southeastern New York Library Resources Council; Kerry Sclafani, Greater Hudson Heritage Network.

Landing the Plane: The Anarchist Guide to Community Engagement
The Anarchist Guide for Historic house Museums and sites suggests embracing the neighborhood politically, contextually, and programmatically. This interactive discussion will bring to light methods of engaging neighborhoods and diverse (seemingly un-reachable) audiences for historic sites and house museums. The radical suggestion is, that seeking affinity groups based on what our assets are – is the inverse of what we should be doing! Education vs. Entertainment – let the heads roll in this messy and complicated discussion of what it really means to be diverse and community driven.

Discussion leaders: Franklin D. Vagnone, executive director, Historic House Trust of New York City; Deborah Ryan, professor of Architecture and Urban planning, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Curating Conversations: the Power of Community Collaborations
Attendees will shape the direction of a more rigorous conversation about the shifting roles of educators and curators and implications for collaboration among diverse stakeholders.

Discussion leaders: Pamela McLaughlin, Amy Goodall-Ayres, Debora Ryan and Kimberly Griffiths, Everson Museum of Art.

Diversity in Focus: IMLS Grant Programs for Museums
IMLS staff and successful New York grantees will discuss three ongoing projects that reflect the agency’s diverse approach to funding museums. After an introduction and context-setting by IMLS, each of three co-presenters will engage the audience in a discussion of their project aligned with one of IMLS’s strategic goals: Learning Experiences, Community Anchors, and Collections Stewardship. In each case, they will describe their funded project’s conception, its alignment with IMLS guidelines, and its progress to date.

Diversity in Focus – IMLS Grant Programs for Museums Presentation

List of Useful Websites

2014 IMLS Grant Opportunities

Discussion leaders: Connie Bodner, Supervisory Grants Management Specialist, Institute for Museum and Library Services; Priscilla Brendler, Greater Hudson Heritage Network; Deborah F. Schwartz, the Brooklyn Historical Society and Marlene Roeder, Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS)

Testing the Museum I (part one of a double session)
Through youth-facilitated interactive activities, role play and dialogue, explore how youth have “Tested the Museum” and informed the interpretive content and programming at the Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation Museum.

Discussion leaders: Vanessa Johnson, Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation, with a team of young people representing different races, ethnicities, countries of origin, socio-economic classes and geographic locales in Upstate NY.

Strength in Diversity
What Flavor is Your Museum? The History Center of Niagara is a microcosm of diversity in museums. We engage very different audiences through a variety of programming and venues within our own organization. Diversity can be considered from many different angles and in this session the three panelists will discuss various aspects of facilities, collections, challenges, successes and failures. Following a brief overview we will invite the participants to share their experiences in different museum settings.

Discussion leaders: Jean Neff, Independent Museum Consultant; Ann Marie Linnabery & Melissa Dunlap, The History Center of Niagara.

Meaningful Experiences for New and Diverse Audiences
This session will explore the meaning of diversity within the museum and cultural practice context, through the analysis of models of participation and collaboration as aids for cultural production and interpretation that is relevant to a specific audience. Panelists will frame this conversation with examples that center in research partnerships and participatory program development as tools of capturing interests and developing sustainable relationships that may allow cultural producers to reach diverse groups and segments of the population that might not typically engage with cultural institutions or museums.

Discussion leaders: Gonzalo Casals, El Museo del Barrio; Patricia Lannes, Queensboro Community College; Inmaculada Lara-Bonilla, La Casita Cultural Center.

More than Words: Creating lasting relationships with diverse communities Attendees will discuss how to make the transition from diverse representation among their visitors to creating sustained participation and community partnerships by mining their own stories for connections to diverse communities.

Discussion Leader: Cordell Reaves, Historic Preservation Program Analyst, NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

Resume Review Center
What are the skills and experiences that potential employers are looking for? Bring your resume and review it with the leaders in the museum field at the Resume Review Center.  Sign up for your appointment at the Conference Registration Table.

Discussion leaders: Vanessa Johnson, Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation, with a team of young people representing different races, ethnicities, countries of origin, socio-economic classes and geographic locales in Upstate NY.

Not So Black and White: Racial Diversity In the Museum Professional Field
What does real museum diversity look like? Exhibitions and programs alone can not be expected to achieve connections between our institutions and our communities. Join in on a conversation and brainstorming session about what your museum can do to increase the diversity of your staff and the museum
field.

Discussion leaders: Gretchen Sullivan Sorin, Catherine Bayles, and Ashley Bowden, The Cooperstown Graduate Program.

Out with the Old in with the Same: Revitalizing Your Museum to Re-Inspire Your Visitors
Is your museum intellectually sustainable? Come discuss practices and outreach options that can be developed around otherwise stagnant collections to help show they are diverse enough to support your varied audiences.

Discussion leaders: Sean Conklin, Evelyn Sabina, Regina Quick Center for Art, St. Bonaventure University.

Filling the Gap When Schools Stop Visiting: Ideas and Inspiration for New Audiences
Join educators from the Shaker Heritage Society and The Whaling Museum for practical ideas and inspiration for filling the gap left by the lack of school visitation. Explore approaches to expand toward newer audiences, inventive ways to keep programs relevant, and ideas for creating fresh community collaborations.

Discussion leaders: Samantha Hall-Saladano, Shaker Heritage Society, and Nomi Dayan, Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum.

The Everson Museum of Art, 401 Harrison St  Syracuse, NY 13202.

Kitty Hoynes Restaurant and Pub, 301 West Fayette Street, Syracuse, NY 13202

The Museumwise: MANY board invites you to nip across the street from The Warehouse Gallery and join us for dinner at Kitty Hoynes, a comfortable, cozy & delicious Irish Pub & Restaurant which welcomes all in true Irish pub fashion. Come share your latest news, muse over the day’s presentations & catch-up with your colleagues. The cost to attend this event is only $45. All proceeds go to support Museumwise: The Museum Association of New York.

Student Poster Sessions
Check out the latest research and developments being uncovered by the museum field’s emerging leaders.

Resume Review Center
What are the skills and experiences that potential employers are looking for? Bring your resume and review it with the leaders in the museum field at the Resume Review Center.  Sign up for your appointment at the Conference Registration Table.

Idea Incubator
Drawing inspiration from Science Education Crossroads (www.sciedxroads.org), several presenters will prepare a different statement outlining their vexation, venture and will provide a visual defining a challenge to diversity that they are facing. The session will be structured such that the ‘presenters’ spend more time listening than speaking. This will be an opportunity to begin and take responsibility for new pursuits, rather than find closure and completion to old ones.

Shoring up the Foundation: Engage and Keep your Old-Fashioned Friends (Young and Old)
The modern diverse audience is built on a foundation of old-fashioned museum-goers. This guided conversation will prompt participants to consider how, and how much, we can keep the traditionalists engaged.

Discussion leaders: Hallie Bond, Independent Historian and Museum Consultant, and Hillarie Logan-Dechene, The Wild Center.

Labor of Love: Cultivating and Diversifying Museum Volunteers
Do your volunteers mirror your community? Hear how museums engage constituents as collections assistants, budding scholars, and community ambassadors. Discuss ways to inspire non-museum-goers to take ownership of local institutions.

Discussion leaders: Lauren Sodano, The Strong Museum of Play; Kheli Willetts, Community Folk Art Center; Becky Simmons, Rochester Institute of Technology; Lynn Pono, Bronx Museum of the Arts; Emily Dittman, Syracuse University Art Galleries; Bart Roselli, Seneca Park Zoo.

Emily Dittman’s Presentation

“Museums for all & for all time”

Join us for the closing keynote presentation by Steven Kern, Executive Director at the Everson Museum of Art

Steven Kern’s keynote presentation

Take a Tour of Westlake Conservators

Tucked away in a beautifully restored brick building along Skaneateles Creek, West Lake Conservators is internationally known for providing comprehensive preservation services for paintings, murals, painted objects, frames, paper art and artifacts, photographs and textiles. The facility tour is enlightening and inspiring, and may be of special interest for anyone applying for upcoming conservation grant funding from Greater Hudson Heritage Network.

The tour is free, but registration is required.

• Noon Sunday, April 14
• 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 16

Email conference@museumsinconversation.org and let us know which day’s tour you want to join.