Professional Development
Updated November 28, 2023
AAM PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CALENDAR
Hosted by the American Alliance of Museums and other museum service organizations, this calendar lists opportunities for museum professionals.
NATIONAL COUNCIL ON PUBLIC HISTORY AWARDS – APPLY BY DECEMBER 1
NCPH awards recognize excellence in the diverse ways public historians apply their skills to the world around us. The purpose of the awards program is to promote professionalism and best practices among public historians and to raise awareness about their activities. Submissions for the Book Award and Kelley Award are due November 1; all other awards (the Outstanding Public History Project Award, Grassroots Public History Award, Excellence in Consulting Awards, New Professional Awards, and Student Awards) are due December 1.
BECOME AN IMLS GRANT REVIEWER – DECEMBER 1
The IMLS Office of Museum Services is recruiting museum professionals to review applications for the FY24 Museum Grant Programs. IMLS welcomes participants representing a broad range of personal experiences, locations, and disciplines to ensure a robust and diverse pool of reviewers. In addition to supporting the museum field, serving as an IMLS reviewer is a valuable professional development opportunity for professionals at all stages of their career. All reviewers are eligible to receive an honorarium of either $300 or $500 for their service, depending on the type of review.
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR STATE AND LOCAL HISTORY VIRTUAL SUMMIT – DECEMBER 5–6
The American Association for State and Local History presents a virtual summit, “small But MIGHTY: the powerful resilience of SMALL museums”, that will celebrate the creativity and resourcefulness of small museums through the lens of resiliency. What have we learned about small museums responding to global change that can inspire the field? How can the challenges of operating a small museum also make it easier to be nimble when faced with obstacles? This virtual summit will provide practical information as well as inspirational stories.
CALL FOR PANELISTS: SAN DIEGO FUNDING APPLICATION REVIEWERS – APPLY BY DECEMBER 10
The City of San Diego is seeking applications from artists, cultural practitioners and arts field professionals from all disciplines and backgrounds throughout North America and Baja California to lend their time and expertise to review and rank proposals from nonprofit organizations for their arts and culture funding categories. Panelists who complete all required trainings and their assigned panels as well as provide all required documentation are eligible to receive honorariums.
CALNONPROFITS 2023 POLICY SYMPOSIUM (ONLINE) – DECEMBER 13
The CalNonprofits 2023 Policy Symposium: Action for Uncertain Times will take place online. This annual Policy Symposium for an inspiring look at creative advocacy efforts, their multi-year campaign to improve the way the state contracts with its nonprofit partners, and much more.
ONLINE COURSE: PRESERVATION OF TRIBAL CULTURAL MATERIALS IN TRIBAL COLLECTIONS – STARTS JANUARY 13
Topics include cataloging; care and handling for familiar collection items; storage enclosures; policies; and conservation and ethical treatment of Native American collections. Students are asked to identify the types of materials in their own collections, as well as the community values and uses of those materials. The course then covers deterioration risks associated with different collection materials and the methods available to reduce these risks.
RESOURCE: THE INCLUSIVE HISTORIAN'S HANDBOOK
This reference source supports inclusive and equity-focused historical work in public settings by sharing a knowledge base that invites more people to engage in history projects. This handbook provides concrete examples of how to make history work more relevant. It centers on equity, inclusivity, diversity, and public service while offering accessible windows into the many ways public historians work.
FREE DOWNLOAD: TRANSGENDER INCLUSION TOOLKIT FROM AAM LGBTQ ALLIANCE TASK FORCE
The AAM LGBTQ Alliance’s Task Force for Transgender Inclusion recently released the Gender Transition and Transgender Inclusion in the Museum Workplace: A Toolkit for Trans Individuals, Institutions, and Coworkers. This expansive set of guides approaches trans inclusion from various perspectives in an approachable and easy-to-understand format.
BECOME A PEER REVIEWER FOR THE AMERICAN ALLIANCE OF MUSEUMS
Peer reviewers are museum professionals who volunteer their time to support AAM's Accreditation and Museum Assessment Programs (MAP). They review museum self-assessment materials, conduct site visits and facilitate the institutional planning process. Their service is the critical backbone to the success of both programs. Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis.
POLARIS MUSEUM MENTOR NETWORK
Serve as an online mentor or to reach out for support as a mentee during this time of physical distancing by joining POLARIS: The Museum Mentor Network (free to all museum professionals).
DOWNLOAD THE AAM RACIAL EQUITY AND INCLUSION PLAN PRIMER
Advancing racial and ethnic diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion on boards can be a daunting task for any institution. No matter where you are in the process of creating a racial equity and inclusion plan for your museum, learn more from this new resource, including questions to help guide you and links to additional resources.
CULTURE TRACK INTERACTIVE TOOL NOW LIVE
This interactive dashboard provides compiles data from over 120,000 respondents who completed the Culture & Community in a Time of Crisis survey this spring. The comparisons included in the tool currently highlight members or subscribers to any arts or culture organization. In the coming weeks, it will be further enhanced to include splits by genre of cultural attendance as well as race and ethnicity to further aid cultural organizations in planning and implementation towards increased relevance, equity and sustainability.
MUSEUMS FOR DIGITAL LEARNING
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is pleased to announce the launch of an online resource center featuring dynamic digital museum content for K-12 educators searchable by subject and grade. Teachers across the country can now find resources that feature engaging activities from a growing number of museums all aligned with national education standards.
RECORDED WEBINAR: JUNETEENTH & CELEBRATING FREEDOM AT HISTORIC SITES
Continue learning about the history and significance of Juneteenth in this recorded webinar presented by The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH). Amber Mitchell, Director of Education at the Whitney Plantation, will discuss how your organization can join in the celebration in ways that are appropriate and respectful to the history of African Americans from slavery to modern interpretations, and elevating to the communities you are trying to reach all year-round.