There were four years in a row when I was involved in sessions with presenters from multiple disciplines. I represented children's museums. In each one there was someone from an art museum, someone from a history institution, and (in three) someone from a science institution. It was great to share ideas with each other and find the commonalities in how we thought about our work based on the session topics. The sessions attracted people from a cross section of institutions. Two of the sessions were interactive, and it was a lot of fun to watch people collaborate together. In one session on pop-up programming and exhibits a small group came up with a Paul Revere ride beach party! And in a session on hands-on programming, someone made a Bauhaus chair out of newspaper!

Linda Norris and Aleia Brown's session in 2015: #MuseumsrespondtoFerguson: Bringing Race Into the Foreground. I realized how far we have to go and, more importantly, how uncomfortable the work will be. That was a key moment—realizing that not only will achieving true social justice be hard and uncomfortable but that I have the privilege to opt out if I want. I need to choose the hard path that so many people have not other option but to walk.

One year I participated in a panel presentation organized by Laura Roberts. Each of the directors on the panel submitted a difficult decision they had to make. Mine was to suspend Saturday hours when, due to a number of factors, we were down to a few staff members who could not commit to Saturdays and we lacked the funds to hire anyone. The audience debated the decisions that were made while the panelists were there to listen and answer questions. (I think I got that right, it was a while ago.) What was most memorable was how vehemently the younger people in the audience disagreed with my decision. It was fascinating and eye-opening. I wouldn't go back and change my decision, but it was interesting nonetheless.

One of my favorite conference sessions is from the 2017 Conference. The session was called "Collections Management on a Shoestring at the House of Seven Gables." It stood out to me because, as someone who is interested in collections management, I am always interested in learning how museums are able to properly take care of their collections with small budgets.

LOVED the session on problematic objects at Mystic with Elon Cook Lee and others. Liked tackling a practical problem of display with the social issues involved.

The most unforgettable conference session I ever attended was about the Worcester Art Museum's exhibit, Knights! and the virtual jousting program. Even though my friend next to me fell asleep and was snoring.

In the late 1980s I attended a session on label writing given by staff from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It taught me the importance of chunking information and using sub-headings, and writing succinctly. I've used what I learned in that session ever since.

I see the museum field remaking itself as an agent of real change and education in the most fundamental areas. Schools within museums will become common--perhaps there will no longer be museums per say but education centers and community gathering spots. Whatever it looks like, it will be exciting.

Hopefully the trend towards transparency and inclusion will continue to gain momentum not just in engaging audiences but within institutional structures. Museums need to BE the change by transforming from within. We're starting the conversations and a few pioneers are doing the work in 2018. My hope is that what people call a "museum" in 2118 will be only vaguely recognizable to my 21st century self—true collectives of shared humanity.

As the Massachusetts Historical Society’s president, Catherine Allgor, observes, not since 1791 has our organization faced the prospect of changing so dramatically over the next 50 years due in large measure to technological developments. For my part, I hope still to find places of quiet reflection and learning that reflect the care and insights of expert curators when I visit museums in the decades ahead.

I hope that the emphasis continues to be on preservation of tangible museum collections in light of the growing threat of climate change on our historic structures that house these collections.

Hopes: That museums will continue to be valued by society as places that spark curiosity, wonder, and enjoyable learning. That art museums will continue to promote art-making using tactile materials and methods, and not become completely digital.

One of my hopes for museums in the next 100 years is for there to be a greater amount of people both working and visiting museums who are representative of the communities they're in.

More audience-produced interpretation; more visitor-curated content; broader and deeper digital collaboration between museums.

Museums will rise triumphant as leaders as we navigate the issues of our day. Or we will get absorbed into the organizations that do take on that role. My only hope for the field is that we realize we can let go of what we don't need (literally and figuratively) and we treat each other with true respect. We're all in this together.

That we remain relevant, but not just that. Cool. I want museums to be cool and hip and with it. I want everyone to really WANT to go to museums.

Local museums and historical societies housed in historic buildings (large pets that eat fat checks) will have to "hang together" in the future in order to survive. I see the need for regional centers where collections can be stored with proper care and viewed by member institutions who wish to deaccession, exchange or otherwise part with items that do not fit their mission. Such centers would be easily accessible and would provide exhibit space and conference facilities. Cost would be shared by the members. An early example that somewhat resembles such a center was the Museum of Our National Heritage when it was first opened. Many years ago I visited museums throughout the Commonwealth as an Itinerant Director for the then Massachusetts Council for the Arts and Humanities. I wonder whether one of the art museums on my list still has Civil War cannons in its basement.