Special Topics
Workshops on a variety of more focused topics are held throughout the year. Content for these topics rotates and changes on a regular basis.
ABCs of Collections Management
How do we create a collections policy? How do we document donations of artifacts and what should you say – and not say – and do for your donors? We have bugs and rodents; what do we do? What are agents of deterioration? How do we number artifacts? What forms should my museum develop to ensure we comply with collections’ legal issues?
If you have ever asked any of these questions, the ABCs of Collections Management is the perfect workshop for you. You’ll spend a day with a collections expert, who will present invaluable information about collections policies and collections management; handling and moving artifacts; agents of deterioration; good housekeeping; displaying and sorting collections; and much more. Have all your questions answered!
Visitor Experiences Academy
A museum visitor’s experience does not begin at the entrance to an exhibit or the beginning of a public program and it does not end when he or she walks out the door. The time a person spends at a cultural institution is just one phase of how he or she engages with and processes what that institution has to offer. The MMA Visitor Experiences Academy is a relatively new professional development workshop intended to help museum professionals, board members and volunteers look at the entire process of how visitors experience their institution. Workshop participants will come away with resources and tools to apply to their own institution and improve the experiences of visitors there. Included will be a look at the plethora of research about how visitors experience museums, activities to better understand the engagement of audiences and methods for better understanding visitor experiences at your museum.
If you are interested in hosting a workshop or in attending one, contact the MMA office at 313-334-7643 or via email at lcbrisson@michiganmuseums.org.
