From IMLS:
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded grants for 211 museum projects totaling over $25M through its Museums for America and National Leadership Grants for Museums programs. Over fifty grants were awarded to institutions in the mid-Atlantic region. For the full list of recipients visit: http://www.imls.gov/news/2014_all_oms_grants_list.aspx
Washington D.C.
National Building Museum – Washington, DC
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $915,257
Contact: Ms. Cathy Frankel
Vice President for Exhibitions & Collections
(202)272-2448×3303; cfrankel@nbm.org
The National Building Museum will create a comprehensive visitor center and orientation experience for museum guests to improve way-finding, streamline ticketing, explain its mission as the nation’s building museum, and set visitors on their way toward a positive learning experience. The new center will comprise three distinct areas: admissions and information, an object-based exhibition, and an immersive multi-media experience. The visitor center will be moved from the large Great Hall to an enclosed area where admission desks and information kiosks will be located. The orientation experience will give visitors an overview of the exhibitions and educational programs before learning more about architecture, engineering, construction, urban planning, historic preservation, design and landscape architecture. Together, the visitor center and orientation experience will create a more visitor-centric museum environment.
Maryland
Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture – Baltimore, MD
Grant Program: Museum Grants African for American History and Culture
Award Amount: $69,674; Matching Amount: $72,266
Contact: Dr. Michelle Wilkinson
Cultural Resources Contractor
(443)263-1823; wilkinson@maamc.org
The Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture will hire a curatorial graduate student intern, create a postdoctoral fellowship in African American history, and establish a professional development fund that will allow staff at all levels to take advantage of training programs relevant to their work as museum professionals. In collaboration with the Center for Africana Studies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), the postdoctoral fellow will experience hands-on learning in curatorial practice and collections; research and write articles that focus on topics in African American history, museum collections research, and upcoming exhibitions; and host two public talks that highlight civic and cultural engagement as related to his or her museum research. The graduate student intern and postdoctoral fellow will develop valuable career skills, and the professional development fund will enhance the ability of the museum staff to present information about the lives of African Americans in Maryland.
Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum – Baltimore, MD
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $136,202; Matching Amount: $248,298
Contact: Ms. Sanchita Balachandran
Curator/Conservator
(410)516-6717; sanchita@jhu.edu
The Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum will complete an ongoing collections management project that will document the entirety of the museum’s 7,500-object collection for purposes of access for teaching, research, exhibition, and long-term preservation. The museum will rehouse 2,000 archaeological objects in archival storage containers, complete the digital photography of 5,200 objects, and continue ongoing cataloging of objects that will be both physically accessible, and also digitally accessible through the museum database. This project will transform the way the museum collection is used, making it fully available not only to members of the university but also opening the collection more completely to researchers and the public.
Baltimore Museum of Art – Baltimore, MD
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $85,280; Matching Amount: $87,605
Contact: Ms. Rena Hoisington
Curator of Prints, Drawings and Photographs
(443)573-1790; rhoisington@artbma.org
Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) will hire a project cataloger to inventory and catalog more than 8,000 Northern European prints in the Garrett Collection, a 20,000-piece print collection formed in the 19th century by Baltimorean Thomas Harrison Garrett. Working closely with BMA curators and conservators, the project cataloger will re-house the prints in archival folders, boxes and flat files to improve their long-term preservation and create more efficient use of storage space. Enhanced electronic records will greatly increase the accessibility and use of these works. This project will enable the museum to provide more effective service to scholars, students, and the general public.
B & O Railroad Museum – Baltimore, MD
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $91,200; Matching Amount: $107,190
Contact: Mr. David Shackelford
Chief Curator
(410)752-2490×215; chiefcurator@borail.org
B&O Railroad Museum will design and develop a permanent exhibit focusing on railway safety, the history of rail safety, and the individuals who keep railways safe. Through the use of life-size dioramas, historic artifacts, photos, archival documents, and interactive learning stations, the exhibit will be an educational tool for visitors to learn about the evolution of railroad safety and the role of organized labor, proper ways to engage rail systems, and gain an understanding of the safety tools and signs as well as the jobs of different railroaders. The exhibit will also be incorporated as a mandatory visit component for school groups utilizing the museum’s History Passport Program, a free admission program for students.
Sandy Spring Museum – Sandy Spring, MD
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $130,925; Matching Amount: $235,730
Contact: Ms. Allison Weiss
Executive Director
(301)774-0022; aweiss@sandyspringmuseum.org
The Sandy Spring Museum will open its historic collection and facilities to artists, individuals, and partner organizations to make the museum a place for community-driven programming. The museum will offer access for visual, literary, and performing artists to interpret history using the museum collection and for partner organizations to offer programming to the community using the museum building and grounds. The museum will create a culture of participation for community members and make the museum a community gathering place through partnerships and collaborative programming.
New Jersey
Grounds For Sculpture – Hamilton, NJ
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $19,300; Matching Amount: $74,250
Contact: Ms. Cassandra Demski
Curator of Education
(609)586-0616×222; cdemski@groundsforsculpture.org
Grounds For Sculpture (GFS) will expand its volunteer docent training program to double its docent corps and enhance its ability to encourage experiential-based art discovery among museum visitors through guided tours. GFS will conduct four docent training courses comprised of five training sessions and an educational field trip; trainings will include conceptual analysis of Visual Thinking Strategies and Learning Theories, hands-on art workshops, and in-depth consideration of the GFS collection and history. This project will provide an inclusive artistic enrichment opportunity that is singular in the economically strained Trenton area, so that docents may, in turn, have a positive impact GFS education outreach efforts.
Princeton University Art Museum – Princeton, NJ
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $99,493; Matching Amount: $100,523
Contact: Dr. James Steward
Director
(609)258-2870; jsteward@princeton.edu
The Princeton University Art Museum will complete the digitization and cataloging of its photographic archive of seminal American photographer Minor White and provide access to it through the museum’s website and the ARTstor Digital Library. More than 5,000 images and other photographic process materials that have never been accessible to scholars or the public will be prepared for discovery and search and shared through the museum’s website. This project will increase access to a high priority area of the museum’s collections, further its mission to advance teaching and research in art and archaeology through object-based study, and help the museum fulfill its obligation to properly steward the collection.
New York
Historic Cherry Hill – Albany, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $23,394; Matching Amount: $12,819
Contact: Ms. Rebecca Watrous
Education Director
518-434-4791; becky@historiccherryhill.org
Historic Cherry Hill will develop a public programming initiative entitled “Outdoor Life,” focusing on the museum’s landscape to attract new audiences and better connect the museum with the local Albany community. The museum will create interactive and relevant learning experiences linking history, agriculture, and nature in four program components: a summer camp for families and children, a garden program for teens, a community event focusing on pets, and a garden lecture geared towards landscape and social history enthusiasts. Community groups and residents will participate in program development, which will create lasting partnerships and make the museum more responsive to community needs, resulting in dynamic and relevant programming.
American Museum of the Moving Image – Astoria, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $149,674; Matching Amount: $369,830
Contact: Dr. Barbara Miller
Curator of the Collection and Exhibitions
(718)777-6800; bmiller@movingimage.us
American Museum of the Moving Image will plan, design, fabricate, develop, and install “Jim Henson: The Exhibition,” a long-term exhibition showcasing the work of the legendary puppeteer, performer, director, and producer. Organized into sections based on the type of film or television programming, including Sesame Street, the Muppet Show, and Saturday Night Live sketches, the exhibition will feature Henson’s artifacts, sketches, storyboards, and moving image content. The museum will also develop and implement related education and public programs and conduct preliminary planning for a traveling exhibition. Through this project, audiences will have the opportunity to learn about Henson’s work, cultural impact, and creative innovations.
Bronx Museum of the Arts – Bronx, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $295,544
Contact: Mr. Sergio Bessa
Director of Education
(718)681-6000×138; sbessa@bronxmuseum.org
The Bronx Museum of the Arts will hire an evaluator to asses and facilitate the growth of its three signature programs–Bronx Stories, Back in the Bronx and Bronx Lab–to ensure that they continue to celebrate, affirm, and advance the vibrancy of the borough and its multigenerational voices. The museum will assess training, seek community input, and apply new knowledge gained through program redesign and implementation. It will enhance outreach and communication, and analyze and share outcomes. Using an advisory group of community stakeholders, the museum will amplify its services by drawing increased audiences, expanding its role as a cultural gateway, and highlighting the Bronx as a dynamic community.
New York Botanical Garden – Bronx, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $144,824; Matching Amount: $1,445,565
Contact: Ms. Karen Daubmann
AVP for Exhibitions and Public Engagement
(718)817-8535; kdaubmann@nybg.org
The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) will plan, implement, and evaluate educational programming for its upcoming garden-wide exhibition, “Frida Kahlo’s Garden.” The programming and interpretation will create an immersive, compelling, interdisciplinary learning experience that merges arts, humanities, and science themes. Programming will celebrate Mexican culture, immersing visitors in the music, dance, food, and fashion that influenced Kahlo and continues to inspire people today. Through the exhibit and programming, visitors will gain insight into the impact of Kahlo’s interest in the natural world on her artwork; understand the continuing impact of Mexican nature, nationalism, and intellectual history on arts and culture; and make personal connections between art, nature, and their own lives. The project will also provide a model for other botanical gardens to use to create interdisciplinary exhibitions.
Toy Museum of New York – Brooklyn, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $25,000
Contact: Ms. Marlene Hochman
Exceutive Director
(718)243-0820; toymuseumny@gmail.com
The Toy Museum of New York will expand its distance education programming, add interactive “webisodes” to its website, and enhance programs aligned to the Common Core Learning Standards to prepare the museum to expand its reach and impact nationwide. The project will support enhanced museum technology, align programs with curriculum standards, and promote lifelong learning for senior citizen groups, families, and toy collectors nationwide. In addition, the project will increase the use of technology for informal learning through lessons by providing a pathway to virtual field trips and web-based videos within instructional settings.
New York Transit Museum – Brooklyn, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $330,766
Contact: Mr. Robert DelBagno
Senior Manager, Exhibitions
(718)694-1787; robert.delbagno@nyct.com
New York Transit Museum will develop and implement the “Bringing Back the City: Transportation First Responders” exhibition to show how New York City recovered following four recent crises: the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the blackout of 2003, Hurricane Irene in 2011, and Superstorm Sandy in 2012. The exhibit will use interactive technology and multimedia displays to allow audiences to see and hear transit workers’ stories describing their jobs during those four historic events, accompanied by transit equipment and samples of the specialized tools workers used to restore transportation services. This project will demonstrate to visitors how past disasters can inform future disaster response, how STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) is fundamental in transit jobs, and the critical role transit workers play in a city’s recovery from disaster.
Cool Culture – Brooklyn, NY
Grant Program: National Leadership Grants for Museums
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $449,800; Matching Amount: $460,921
Contact: Ms. Barbara Palley
Director of Education
(718)230-3186; bpalley@coolculture.org
Cool Culture will implement “Strengthening Neighborhoods’ Arts Access Program” (SNAAP), a program to increase early learning outcomes through family engagement in museums. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum, and Queens Museum of Art will serve as community anchors for 10 early learning programs each in neighborhoods of high need with families living in poverty and at high risk for low educational outcomes for children. The project will build the capacity of museums and museum educators to design developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive programming, support early learning, increase family visits to cultural institutions, and guide parents in making visits enjoyable and educational.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden – Brooklyn, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $714,239
Contact: Ms. Sonal Bhatt
Vice President of Eductaion and Interpretation
(718)623-7382; sonalbhatt@bbg.org
Brooklyn Botanic Garden will develop “Living Classrooms,” a new way to enrich and expand their informal education through live interpretation. The program will ensure that all visitors are given the opportunity to engage in meaningful ways with plants and learn how plants connect to their lives. Through “Living Classrooms,” BBG will redesign and expand its drop-in Discovery Programs, create comprehensive self-guided materials for families and school groups, train staff and volunteer Garden Guides and Discovery Docents to use dialogue-based techniques, and create new topical tours that will engage BBG’s growing and diverse audience. By placing the learner at the center and delivering reimagined programs, the garden will help visitors connect plant science, conservation, sustainability, and ecosystem to the context of their own lives so that they might be inspired to become active stewards of the environment.
Green-Wood Cemetery – Brooklyn, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $42,000; Matching Amount: $62,777
Contact: Mr. Jeff Richman
Historian
(718)210-3080; grnwdtours@aol.com
Green-Wood Cemetery will hire professional conservators to conduct detailed condition surveys of its diverse collections, which includes fine art, framed items, photographs, books, and three-dimensional items. Results of the survey will establish treatment priorities and will also assist the staff as they develop a long-term collections care plan. The survey will provide the foundation for future conservation efforts including treatment methodologies, estimated costs, and housing recommendations. This project will ensure that these items will be preserved for public display, both at Green-Wood Cemetery and at partnering cultural institutions.
Hudson Highlands Nature Museum – Cornwall, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $144,996; Matching Amount: $145,567
Contact: Ms. Sandra Dixon
Director, Young Naturalist Preschool Program
(845)534-5506; sjdixon24@yahoo.com
The Hudson Highlands Nature Museum will develop its Early Childhood Action in Nature (ECAN) project, which will increase understanding about the educational and developmental value of frequent Nature Play, or unstructured play in natural outdoor settings, in the mid-Hudson Valley. Through free programs for early childhood programs (ECPs), ECP staff trainings, and public visitor programs, ECAN will promote the value of Nature Play on the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development of young children to two audiences: early childhood professionals and a subset of the general public that includes parents, grandparents, and caretakers of preschool-aged children. The project will increase opportunities for Nature Play at early childhood centers, develop a community of parents and caretakers who connect about Nature Play through social media, and ultimately help more children develop a love of nature and a desire to care for it.
Adirondack History Center Museum – Elizabethtown, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $24,950
Contact: Ms. Margaret Gibbs
Director
(518)873-6466; mgibbs@adkhistorycenter.org
Adirondack History Center Museum will catalogue and conserve the newly acquired collection of more than 550 toys and prototype models by toymaker and theme park designer Arto Monaco. Project activities will include engaging the services of a wooden objects conservator; purchasing metal shelving and rehousing supplies; upgrading the museum’s collections management software; and increasing the collection manager position to full-time to undertake the work. The conservator will advise on object handling and rehousing, propose treatment plans for three fragile objects, develop a conservation plan to be phased in over the next three years, and provide a training workshop for museum staff, volunteers, and board members of local museums. The project will not only preserve Arto Monaco’s legacy, but will also make his pieces available to the staff for research, education, exhibits, and programs that share an understanding of the context and history of tourism in the Adirondacks in the mid-twentieth century.
Chemung County Historical Society – Elmira, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $24,927; Matching Amount: $22,560
Contact: Ms. Erin Doane
Curator
(607)734-4167; curator@chemungvalleymuseum.org
The Chemung County Historical Society will create planning documents for its new permanent exhibit titled, “Youth in Chemung County.” The exhibit will explore life in Chemung County and look at the passage of time through the eyes of young people growing up in the area. The museum will reach out to various groups in the community that are currently underrepresented in its collection, especially the local African American community and new immigrants from Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. The final result will be a new exhibit built with strong and broad community input and better connections to previously underrepresented groups.
Long Island Children’s Museum – Garden City, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $321,452
Contact: Ms. Aimee Terzulli
Director of Education
(516)224-5841; aterzulli@licm.org
The Long Island Children’s Museum will undertake the second phase of its Theater Program Expansion Project by strengthening service to its core audiences: families and schools. The museum will work with the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau to connect new families to its theater, offer free access to theater programs and parent workshops for Spanish- and Haitian-Creole-speaking families participating in the museum’s kindergarten readiness program, make performance activities available online, and support teachers in addressing state arts standards through the content of performances, educator materials, and pre-visit and post-performance programs. The project will nurture current and future audiences’ awareness and support of the performing arts, support the development of pertinent 21st century skills, and strengthen relevant connections for educators and families between the content of theater performances and state standards.
Long Island Children’s Museum – Garden City, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $246,257
Contact: Ms. Aimee Terzulli
Director of Education
(516)224-5841; aterzulli@licm.org
The Long Island Children’s Museum, in partnership with the Westbury School District, will expand its Westbury STEM Partnership program to provide additional professional development and ongoing support for teachers, and experiential STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) learning opportunities for both first- and second-grade students in their classrooms and at the museum. The program will support inquiry-based, hands-on STEM learning in a high-need school district neighboring the museum, provide professional development to teachers, bring students to the museum to experience exhibits and programs, and make the museum’s education staff available to educators for mentoring and content support as they integrate new teaching strategies into their classrooms. The project will promote improved STEM teaching and student learning by supporting teachers in integrating inquiry-based teaching strategies, enriching experiential learning for students both in and out of the classroom, and strengthening local school and community partnerships.
Livingston County Historical Society – Geneseo, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $25,000; Matching Amount: $26,356
Contact: Ms. Anna Kowalchuk
Museum Administrator
(585)243-9147; lchistory@frontier.com
The Livingston County Historical Society (LCHS) will bring together an interdisciplinary team of architects, engineers, and museum-related professionals to advance preliminary conceptual designs for enhanced collections and exhibit spaces, designated spaces for collections care, and upgrades to visitor services at the Livingston County Museum. LCHS’s museum storage space planner and collections conservator will work with architects to collaborate on schematic designs and design development and to create detailed base drawings. These will be used to create the plans necessary to implement improvements to collections and overall museum operations.
Sciencenter – Ithaca, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $159,542
Contact: Dr. Charles Trautmann
Executive Director
(607)272-0600×26; ctrautmann@sciencenter.org
Sciencenter will develop and deliver “Science from the Start,” a program to empower parents, caregivers, and early childhood educators to integrate STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) into everyday activities for preschool children. Using workshops to help parents, caregivers, and educators engage children in science discovery, the museum will provide support, training, and inquiry-based activities to increase their comfort and knowledge of methods to encourage their children’s STEM learning. “Science from the Start” will increase the museum’s capacity in early childhood education and disseminate results to science and technology centers to promote a deeper understanding of the importance of early childhood education as the foundation for lifelong learning.
New School – New York, NY
Grant Program: National Leadership Grants for Museums
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $484,769; Matching Amount: $592,868
Contact: Ms. Laura Auricchio
Associate Professor of Art History and Dean
(212)229-5800; auricchl@newschool.edu
The New School will use the grant to establish an ongoing national training program to explore best practices for museums to use in opening public dialogue on civic issues. The program will cultivate 150 new museum trainees who will collaboratively design, implement, and evaluate an exhibit to travel nationally, web platform, and public dialogue strategies related to the history of a contested issue of shared concern, such as immigration or mass incarceration. The school aims to use this program as a test run for new strategies in the use of museums as effective catalysts for civic engagement. A goal and byproduct of the project is the creation of a national network of students, faculty, and museum staff that are experienced and interested in using museums for the purpose of civic participation.
Art in General – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $420,429
Contact: Ms. Anne Barlow
Executive Director
(212)219-0473×36; anne@artingeneral.org
Art in General will organize and implement a signature educational initiative in the form of a large-scale, annual public symposium. The goal is to engage a wide range of audiences with contemporary art using the museum’s core commissioning exhibition program as a springboard for exploring current trends and topics impacting artistic and curatorial practice today. The “What Now?” symposium will generate significant educational content including live streaming of the conference, podcasts of conference presentations, interviews with key contributors to the conference, and a publication featuring critical writing and original new content on contemporary art and ideas relevant today. The results of the symposium will be shared with the public, curators, writers, and scholars for use as a learning tool for both international and local audiences focusing on artistic practice, arts administration, and curatorial training.
Children’s Museum of the Arts – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $100,680; Matching Amount: $107,392
Contact: Ms. Rachel Rapoport
Director of Community Programs
(917)409-1205; rrapoport@cmany.org
The Children’s Museum of the Arts will implement an audience-informed professional development initiative for museum staff that will create a supportive and accessible museum environment for children with disabilities and their families. The “Art for All” project will combine several components, including: focus groups composed of children with disabilities and their families; staff training; a website with multimedia materials and a museum visitor guide for families that include children with disabilities, and an advisory group composed of professionals with expertise in occupational therapy, special education and museum accessibility, and parents. By equipping staff to design and implement programs that accommodate the needs of visitors of varying abilities, the museum will engage children with special needs and their families in making and learning about art, and encourage them to become participants in the museum community.
Children’s Museum of Manhattan – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $129,217; Matching Amount: $130,325
Contact: Ms. Leslie Bushara
Deputy Director for Education
(212)721-1223×250; lbushara@cmom.org
The Children’s Museum of Manhattan will implement and evaluate the effectiveness of an intensive, six-month onsite program and performance series presented as part of its “Hello from Japan!” exhibition. The museum will evaluate three core programs: the effectiveness of its daily, hands-on workshops, conducted in the exhibition space that explore contemporary and traditional Japanese culture for families; six monthly festivals that explore various aspects of contemporary and traditional Japanese culture in depth; and 24 music, dance and theater performances highlighting both contemporary and traditional Japanese performing arts. The project will result in an evaluation report and best practices guide that will serve as a valuable resource to the museum staff and to other museums throughout the country developing culture programs.
American Museum of Natural History – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $147,571; Matching Amount: $148,865
Contact: Ms. Judith Levinson
Director of Conservation
(212)769-5434; levinson@amnh.org
The American Museum of Natural History will re-house and treat top priority items in its Siberian collections and share the results with the museum field and source communities from which they originated. The museum will enhance collections records with information on the presence of pesticide residues to ensure safe handling, consult with native Siberians, increase access through digital preservation, and broadly disseminate results through multiple channels. The project will result in increased and safer accessibility to collections for all who seek to examine, understand, and work with these artifacts, and ensure that these Siberian collections are preserved and accessible for scholars, indigenous communities, and visitors everywhere for generations to come.
Museum of the City of New York – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $148,318; Matching Amount: $196,937
Contact: Ms. Lacy Schutz
Director of Collections
(212)534-1672; lschutz@mcny.org
The Museum of the City of New York will catalog and digitize its 2,000 object American silver collection and upload these high-resolution images to a user-friendly collections portal where they may be studied by curators, art historians, scholars, students, and enthusiasts. High-resolution images will make available details such as engravings and makers marks that may enable scholars to further identify production methods and increase understanding of less-known aspects of silver making. This project will enhance access to this collection and enable scholars to better study American decorative arts.
Museum of the City of New York – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $121,242; Matching Amount: $159,399
Contact: Ms. Lacy Schutz
Director of Collections
(212)534-1672; lschutz@mcny.org
The Museum of the City of New York will acquire and implement a new collections management system to improve stewardship of and access to the more than 750,000 objects and images in its New York history-focused collections. After conducting an audit of the legacy system and creating a detailed report of desired functionalities for the new system, the museum will migrate 462,000 records, beta test the new system, train staff on it, and evaluate it. The new system will enhance collections discoverability, improve internal collections management processes, and streamline information input and reporting. In addition, staff members expect improved accuracy of cross-field mapping with the museum’s Collections Portal (www.mcny.org) platform, which will facilitate research by external users, such as scholars, writers, curators, filmmakers, and students.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $144,641; Matching Amount: $185,424
Contact: Ms. Francine Snyder
Director of the Library and Archives
(212)360-4222; francine.snyder@guggenheim.org
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum will inventory, arrange, describe, digitize, and make publicly accessible four audiovisual recording collections from their archives. The public will be able to access, for the first time, audiovisual documentation of the Guggenheim’s history of performances, public programs, artist interactions, and exhibitions from the 1960s to the present. The project will ensure the responsible stewardship of culturally important audiovisual collections that may otherwise be lost or unknown, while also significantly increasing the ease of access to and discovery of these collections through the use of digital technology.
Queens Museum of Art – New York, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $150,392
Contact: Mr. Jason Yoon
Director of Education
(718)592-9700; jyoon@queensmuseum.org
The Queens Museum of Art will launch a new initative entitled PAVE, the Parent Ambassadors in Visitor Experience Program, that will build and extend the museum’s existing strengths and community ties to better serve families and children. Working with a group of diverse, local parent leaders, museum staff will show how the museum can be used to advance children’s academic success through evidence-based practices in early learning and parent education. Participating parents advise the newly launched Visitor Experience program to help the museum provide more educational and engaging experience for families with young children. The museum’s program will promote the academic success of children and provide a civic space that catalyzes parent power and activism, especially for low-income or immigrant communities.
Philipsburg Manor, Historic Hudson Valley – Pocantico Hills, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $149,558; Matching Amount: $227,179
Contact: Ms. Ross Higgins
Director of Digital Programs
(914)366-6941; rwhiggins@hudsonvalley.org
Philipsburg Manor will design and execute “Traders and Raiders,” a three-pronged project employing the latest gaming and digital learning methodologies to teach end users about transatlantic trade, piracy, and how Philipsburg Manor, a National Historic Landmark site in Sleepy Hollow, NY, played a role in this vast and complex system. Developers will create free digital experiences including a free learning game for children ages 8-12, a mobile treasure hunt for children ages 4-7 to enhance the onsite experience at Philipsburg Manor, and detailed webpages for adults. The project will engage visitors in interactive and self-directed learning to enhance their understanding and enjoyment of history.
Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum – Poughkeepsie, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $146,799; Matching Amount: $180,742
Contact: Ms. Lara Litchfield-Kimber
Executive Director
(845)471-0589×19; llkimber@mhcm.org
The Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum will grow its existing partnership with the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center to enhance school readiness among low-income and underserved children ages 3-5. Through this project, young children from five early childhood education centers in Poughkeepsie, NY, will participate in monthly field trip programs at the museum and linked programs in their education centers to help develop successful transition into elementary school; family workshops will engage parents; and professional development sessions for early educators will provide instruction on how to strengthen links among parents, educators, and museum professionals. The project will benefit the community as the museum shifts into the role of community convener of organizations that promote school readiness, greater academic achievement, and success of youth.
George Eastman House – Rochester, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $48,254; Matching Amount: $52,656
Contact: Mr. James Layton
Assistant Archivist
(585)271-3361; jlayton@geh.org
George Eastman House will create an interactive, multi-platform “Technicolor 100″ website that will allow users to explore artifacts from the museum’s collections and learn about the history of Technicolor’s advanced camera and printing processes which enabled greater creative options for filmmakers over its 100-year history. At launch, the website will give users access to highlights of museum equipment and documentation collections, previously only accessible in person. It will serve as a portal for audiences to learn about other Technicolor centenary celebrations at the museum, including a film series, gallery exhibition, book launch, and symposium.
The Strong – Rochester, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $149,993; Matching Amount: $463,211
Contact: Dr. Jon-Paul Dyson
Vice President of Exhibits
(585)410-6341; jpdyson@thestrong.org
The Strong will complete fabrication and installation of Miniature Worlds, a 2,500-square-foot thematic zone within its new “America at Play” exhibit, the first-ever historical exhibit overview of play in the United States. The Miniature Worlds zone will be enhanced by a range of school lessons for children in pre-K to grade 8, and hundreds of images of the featured artifacts will be added to the museum’s online collection of nearly 50,000 artifacts. The installation of the Miniature Worlds zone will give the public a chance to interact with one of the largest diversified collections of miniature settings for pretend and to learn more about how the artifacts relate to American social and cultural history.
Memorial Art Gallery – Rochester, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $24,085
Contact: Ms. Nancy Norwood
Curator of European Art
(585)276-8979; nnorwood@mag.rochester.edu
The Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester will treat and re-house 22 high-priority Asian miniature paintings from its permanent collection that, due to their current condition, are precluded from exhibition. Following the conservation treatment, the museum will develop an exhibition plan incorporating the paintings into a regular exhibition rotation schedule for light-sensitive objects in the Asian galleries. This project will make these diverse Indian, Persian, and Nepalese paintings, once again available to the public.
miSci (Museum of Innovation and Science) – Schenectady, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $149,793; Matching Amount: $149,793
Contact: Dr. William Sudduth
Director
(518)382-7890×247; mac.sudduth@misci.org
The Museum of Innovation and Science will deliver hands-on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) experiences to underserved youth and their families in afterschool and out-of-school time in collaboration with the member libraries of the Mohawk Valley Library System. The museum will deliver three STEM programs, astronomy content, and tabletop experiment stations to library visitors at each of the 23 member libraries. This project will help bring STEM awareness and interest to audiences in groups typically underrepresented in the STEM fields.
Staten Island Children’s Museum – Staten Island, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $95,000; Matching Amount: $126,460
Contact: Ms. Renee Wasser
Exhibits Manager
(718)273-2060×156; rwasser@sichildrensmuseum.org
Staten Island Children’s Museum will transform a 2,000-square-foot concrete roof deck into an outdoor exhibit incorporating natural elements and opportunities for open-ended play. Based on feedback from visitors, the new green space will focus on teaching age-appropriate science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) topics; developing an appreciation of nature and the environment; and providing an opportunity for imaginative, open-ended play. Some examples of exhibits include: “Musical Instruments,” an area for visitors to explore the relationship between the arts and science through nature-inspired sounds; “Root View Garden,” a look into how roots grow underground; and “Scout Camping Area,” a low-impact campsite that will demonstrate no trace camping to visitors. The Outdoor Play Area Project will complement the museum’s indoor exhibits, fostering confidence and skills that prepare children for a successful future.
The Wild Center – Tupper Lake, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $144,736; Matching Amount: $144,835
Contact: Ms. Stephanie Ratcliffe
Executive Director
(518)359-7800×104; sratcliffe@wildcenter.org
The Wild Center will design and implement an innovative learning experience through new installations on Wild Walk, an elevated walkway that runs through the Adirondack forest. The museum will also design and lead interpretive training for staff, interns and volunteers, and draft and test interpretive programs. Exhibits will include a thirty-foot-high rope net “Spiders Web” suspended above the ground; “Squirrel Run,” a series of suspended bridges that lead from the main walk; a two-story Tree House which will house multiple exhibits on wildlife and people-nature relationships; and a model Tree Snag that is 40 feet high and 12 feet in diameter. The museum aims to enhance audiences’ understanding of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) concepts through dynamic learning experiences and interactive exhibits offered through an elevated view of the forest. The learning experiences and resources will foster an appreciation of being active in nature and promote the philosophy that spending time outdoors is a valuable part of our lives.
The Wild Center – Tupper Lake, NY
Grant Program: National Leadership Grants for Museums
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $391,371; Matching Amount: $394,576
Contact: Ms. Kerri Ziemann
Naturalist
(518)359-7800×134; kziemann@wildcenter.org
The Wild Center will develop, implement, and disseminate a model program, VTS in Science, for the science museum field adapted from the Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) teaching method. In partnership with several museums, educators, and a consulting firm, the Wild Center will use current research to develop informal and formal learning programming; implement a model professional development program for science museum professionals and elementary teachers; provide educators resources and knowledge to develop VTS in Science programming relevant to daily teaching—including a VTS in science toolkit; facilitate a long-term collaborative process and model school-museum partnership among a diverse group of education providers; and evaluate the effectiveness of the VTS in Science program in order to promote replication by science museums nationally.
Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute – Utica, NY
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $100,029; Matching Amount: $129,558
Contact: Ms. Anna D’Ambrosio
Museum of Art Director and Chief Curator
(315)797-0000×2159; atdambro@mwpai.org
Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute will make 3,000 images of permanent collection artworks available online as an educational resource for the widest possible audience. The institute will create 2,000 new digital images of artworks to supplement approximately 1,000 existing high-quality digital images, install and integrate the industry standard eMuseum System with its website, and author didactic texts for object records that will provide context, interpretation, relationship to other artworks, and historical data. This project will enhance the collection’s usage as a teaching tool by expanding accessibility of major works and nationally significant objects to educators, researchers, and the general public.
Pennsylvania
Mercer Museum – Doylestown, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $74,236; Matching Amount: $74,454
Contact: Mr. Cory Amsler
VP for Collections and Interpretation
(215)345-0210×127; camsler@mercermuseum.org
Mercer Museum will rehouse and relocate 60 oil-on-canvas paintings, 700 historical medical instruments, and 750 African tools and cultural artifacts to the museum’s secure and environmentally stable offsite Collections Storage and Study Center (CSSC). The museum will hire a project assistant; purchase materials, supplies, shelving, and cabinet storage units; digitally photograph each artifact and artwork; and update inventory and location information in the museum’s collections management database. Project staff will consult with two professional conservators who will advise on the rehousing and relocation plan and will prepare collection-level condition summaries, including prioritized recommendations for future examinations and treatments, for each of the groups of objects to be moved. This project represents not only the final stage of a major 15-year collections storage initiative, but also an important component in the museum’s commitment to storing its most sensitive collections in the best possible environmental conditions and to providing improved public access through digital photography and enhancements to online catalogue records.
Nurture Nature Center – Easton, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $76,180; Matching Amount: $99,569
Contact: Ms. Kathryn Semmens
Environmental Scientist
(215)872-3998; kalese@gmail.com
The Nurture Nature Center will conduct a community needs assessment in four Easton neighborhoods to broaden its engagement with populations at risk for natural environmental hazards. The needs assessment will discern topics of greatest concern to residents in the four neighborhoods, identify factors triggering alarm and awareness, gain a sense of general knowledge and misconceptions, learn what people want to know, and understand better how to develop comfortable ways for people to talk about problems in places where they live. The assessment process will be incorporated into the nature center’s Risk to Resiliency model of community engagement and science learning about environmental hazards. This model will be applied regionally and nationally to communities that face a wide range of hazards such as flooding, wildfires, climate change, earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes.
Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation – Gettysburg, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $145,714; Matching Amount: $173,068
Contact: Ms. Barbara Franco
Executive Director
(717)339-1358; bfranco@seminaryridge.org
Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation will create “Transformation through Dialogue,” an innovative theater program that will work to answer critical questions about how and why visitors actively participate in museum experiences and what museums can do to encourage these engaging opportunities. The foundation will design and develop four pilot programs that will combine theater and dialogue techniques tailored to four target audiences—school children, families, older adults, and African Americans—and develop a dialogue component for the program based on best practices in interpretation, educational theory, and counseling. This pilot theater program will allow the 19th-century dilemmas presented in the exhibition to set the stage for visitors as they consider historical questions and their contemporary equivalents in open-ended dialogue. It will also contribute new data to national and international conversations about how museum visitors engage in personal meaning-making.
Oakes Museum of Natural History – Mechanicsburg, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $98,500; Matching Amount: $98,508
Contact: Mr. Ken Mark
Director
(717)796-1800×7190; kmark@messiah.edu
Oakes Museum of Natural History will install an space-saving mobile storage system to provide an optimal environment for its most vulnerable collections: Native American, oology (bird eggs and nests), and botany. The new storage system will help to stabilize the condition of the artifacts and allow museum curators and educators to access the collections in a safer and easier manner. In addition, the new storage system will allow access to stored collection for education purposes offering preschool through college level students, researchers, and community members increased opportunities to learn and appreciate the culture and practices of Native Americans in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
John J. Tyler Arboretum – Media, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $146,609; Matching Amount: $259,120
Contact: Mr. Richard Colbert
Executive Director
(610)566-9134×207; rcolbert@tylerarboretum.org
John J. Tyler Arboretum will develop visitor programming that will provide educational opportunities in its Edible Garden Center focused on the benefits of growing and eating fresh fruits and vegetables. The center will include a food gardening exhibit that addresses urban gardening issues such as raised beds, container gardens, rooftop gardening, holistic sustainable gardening practices and technologies, and traditional vegetable gardening techniques. Cooking demonstrations, healthy eating programs, and dedicated gardening activities will allow for hands-on learning about health and sustainability. The garden will also include a play space for children, art performances and art installations to create a visitor experience that is dynamic, educational and forward-thinking.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts – Philadelphia, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $150,000; Matching Amount: $304,650
Contact: Ms. Monica Zimmerman
Assistant Director of Museum Education
(215)972-7600; mzimmerman@pafa.org
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) will implement School and Community Partnership, a new program designed to unite PAFA’s resources for schools, families, and community outreach into a single, multilayered initiative. PAFA will partner with two consistently underserved Hispanic neighborhoods in Philadelphia -where there is significant existing interest in exploring the role of art in education, family life, and community development – to bring field trips, art-making programs, teacher and parenting workshops, and community-based arts experiences to all members of the community. Through arts education and increased student, family, and community interest in arts and museum activities, the program will improve student visual literacy and 21st century skills, as well as help PAFA integrate and enhance its community offerings and strengthen its role as a leading art education resource in Philadelphia.
Mütter Museum – Philadelphia, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $149,164; Matching Amount: $159,564
Contact: Ms. Karie Youngdahl
CEPI Project Manager
(215)399-2253; kyoungdahl@collegeofphysicians.org
The Mütter Museum will develop a new interactive online exhibit that explores the important role of medicine in American history through its unique collections. In keeping with the museum’s broader medical humanities focus, the online exhibit will be presented thematically in a life cycle sequence. Representative objects will include obstetrical forceps, an iron lung, a surgical kit, William Harvey’s book on blood circulation De Motu Cordis, eyeglasses, a tooth extractor, and an embalming kit. The museum will also develop a curriculum that addresses national secondary school education standards in history, science, and health by utilizing narrative stories, specimens, models, medical tools, photographs, and texts from collections. Exploring historic events and their health and medical underpinnings through an interesting narrative lens will engage audiences in critical STEM topics by connecting personal stories to the objects actually used to understand disease and heal people.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $24,380
Contact: Mr. Matthew Lyons
Director of Archives and Special Collections
(215)732-6200; mlyons@hsp.org
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania will rehouse and preserve its Philadelphia Record photograph morgue (1900-1947) and develop a plan for improving preservation of and access to its sister collection, the Philadelphia Record news clippings morgue (1918-1950), which together comprise 620 linear feet of archival materials. The historical society will purchase rehousing materials and hire a project archivist and two project interns to rehouse all folders, create a collection finding aid with detailed descriptions to the box or folder level, and develop a phased work plan for improving the preservation of and access to the news clippings morgue. The project will ensure that these important resources documenting the history of the Philadelphia region and its place in the national story are documented, protected, and made available for study.
Wagner Free Institute of Science – Philadelphia, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Learning Experiences
Award Amount: $148,930; Matching Amount: $184,331
Contact: Ms. Pat Warner
Assistant Director
(215)763-6529×11; warner@wagnerfreeinstitute.org
Wagner Free Institute of Science will develop, prototype, and produce new interpretive tools to enhance visitor learning experiences and deepen visitor engagement with the museum’s rich history, unique collections, and Victorian-era exhibit gallery of natural history specimens. Interpretive tools will include a site guide; a map of the natural history installation, which will contextualize the exhibit and provide a bridge to contemporary science; specimen stories to drill deeper into the collection; and interpretation-infused admission protocols. In creating these approaches, the Wagner will directly involve college students and young adult visitors through an iterative process of prototype testing and refinement. The initiative will result in new ways for visitors to experience the museum; make connections between science and history; and foster learning through self-directed discovery.
La Salle University Art Museum – Philadelphia, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $76,391; Matching Amount: $124,874
Contact: Ms. Klare Scarborough
Director and Chief Curator
(215)991-3653; scarborough@lasalle.edu
La Salle University Art Museum (LSUAM) will undertake a comprehensive two-year database migration and digital access project to improve internal collections management processes and make its art collection available to public audiences online. Activities include purchasing a new collections management system that can be supported by the university; creating 4,225 digital images of collection artworks; migrating 4,671 existing records from the current database into the new one; undertaking a pre-launch evaluation with an audience focus group; launching an online presence for the museum’s permanent art collection using the new system’s web kiosk platform; and completing a summative evaluation of the project. The project will improve the ability of LSUAM faculty and local educators to work with LSUAM’s collections in designing lesson plans; increase the visibility of LSUAM among local, regional and international audiences; and improve opportunities for research and scholarship.
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Community Anchors
Award Amount: $149,611; Matching Amount: $242,753
Contact: Ms. Lisa Brahms
Director of Learning and Research
(412)322-5058×221; lbrahms@pittsburghkids.org
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh will partner with ACTION-Housing on a project titled “Making Experiences for Post-Foster Care Youth” to provide hands-on, interest-driven learning experiences that help youth, especially at-risk youth aging out of the foster care system, become the innovators of tomorrow. The partners will design and develop a safe, supportive, permanent makerspace within a community-based residential home for young adults, and a complementary program of facilitated making experiences, career workshops, and paid internships will help youth gain much-needed 21st century and tangible making skills. This project will provide opportunities to help youth discover their future potential, explore their passions, and build confidence and coping tools through making.
Carnegie Museum of Natural History – Pittsburgh, PA
Grant Program: Sparks! Ignition Grants for Museums
Award Amount: $25,000
Contact: Ms. Chelsey Pucka
Assistant Director of Visitor Experience
(412)353-4660; puckac@carnegieMNH.org
Natural History museums have identified a need to transform their traditional spaces into vital forces for science education. The Carnegie Museum of Natural History (CMNH) will implement “Seeing as a Scientist,” a design-based research initiative to develop and test gallery interventions that have the potential to increase scientific observation skills for family groups. Working with the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Learning in Out-of-School Environments (UPCLOSE), CMNH will pilot a series of quick changes and additions to dioramas and outline expectations for each. Visitors will be observed to measure the degree of engagement in scientific observation (deliberate looking in order to understand visual evidence)–an essential skill for learning across scientific disciplines. The four most promising interventions will be evaluated to determine which are most successful in providing the necessary support for families to establish shared focus and two-way, science-based conversation. The project will include a blog to share information and to disseminate the results to other museums.
Carnegie Museum of Natural History – Pittsburgh, PA
Grant Program: Museums for America
Category: Collections Stewardship
Award Amount: $147,462; Matching Amount: $165,207
Contact: Ms. Gretchen Anderson
Conservator
(412)665-2607; andersong@carnegiemnh.org
Carnegie Museum of Natural History will develop dedicated and secure storage for the most important component of its vertebrate paleontology collection of 462 specimens, a valuable resource for paleontologists worldwide. Staff will create dedicated storage space for the collection, significantly improve mounts, enhance security, mitigate environmental concerns, and update collection data in preparation for a new collections management database. Ultimately, the project will enable the institute to make its invaluable vertebrate paleontology type specimen collection and related data more widely available and better known.
