2021 Conference: Re: Create, Re: Charge, and Re:Imagine
The NEMA 2021 Conference is this November 15, 17, and 19, 2021. The proposal session reading team has reviewed all the sessions and speakers have been made aware of the selections. Many thanks to those who submitted. We are looking forward to a robust conference.
Additionally, similar to last year, the conference this year will include multiple keynotes, networking lunches, and a virtual exhibit hall with demonstration stations and we invite businesses and institutions to sponsor, advertise, and exhibit. A full conference prospectus can be found online here.
Massachusetts Cultural Impact Commission
Dan Yaeger earlier this summer served on the Massachusetts COVID-19 Cultural Impact Commission and represented the viewpoints of museums as the group provided recommendations for what the cultural sector needs to recover from the pandemic. The commission, led by the joint legislative committee on Tourism, Arts & Cultural Development, released its report on June 30 recommending $575 million over four years from federal funding received by the state through the American Rescue Plan. In addition to funding, the group made policy recommendations that address equity and access throughout the cultural sector.
NEMA Staff Update
Scarlett Hoey is now NEMA’s Director of Membership and Development, an acknowledgement of her growing leadership role in the organization, particularly with new programs giving her responsibility for NEMA’s commitment to equity and social justice. Scarlett has been part of the NEMA team since 2017.
Share Your Inside Scoop!
We've missed seeing you in person, and we've missed your museums too! Did you revamp your storage while closed for the pandemic, or reinterpret a gallery? Do you have an exhibit that you really want your colleagues to see, or a prototype you'd like some professionals to play with? We're looking for museums across New England to host "Insider Events" this September and October for your museum colleagues. Click here for full details.
Excellence Awards
NEMA is proud to honor our colleagues' extraordinary effort and commitment to the New England museum community. Help us recognize their achievements by nominating someone you admire for the 2021 NEMA Excellence Awards. Nominations for an Excellence Award - for yourself or someone you know - are due August 27. Award winners will be recognized at the NEMA Annual Meeting on November 19. For more information, click here.
Supporting our field and NEMA
The past year has been difficult for our field, and NEMA is committed to continuing to develop robust online offerings (much of it free) for members and non-members, New England and beyond. Your support makes our programs possible, and NEMA cannot do great programming without your help. If you can, please support your fellow museum professionals by making a gift to NEMA.
Museum Learning Hub
Last year NEMA and the other five regional museum associations were awarded an IMLS grant to create a program designed to increase digital capacity in small museums. Through the Museum Learning Hub, take part in live-streamed webinars or access the recordings later in self-paced online training modules. Download resources, get inspired by your peers, and learn new skills during workshops taught by experts. You’ll be able to sign up for individual webinars or attend the entire series within each learning module - all at no cost.
Webinars, Town Halls, and Workshops
From January 1 to April 1, 2021, NEMA has hosted 48 virtual events, attended by more than 1,080 people, ranging from Lunch with NEMA, meet-ups, and webinars. The fall programming season will launch some of our new in-person “Insider Events” as well as more workshops, webinars, and networking opportunities on the horizon, at conference and beyond.
Thank you to all the PAG chairs, volunteers, and participants who have helped organize virtual events. Many of these have been recorded; go to http://ow.ly/1rps50zmrsg.
Lead a virtual “Town Hall"
Do you have a topic you'd like to discuss with your fellow NEMA members? NEMA is offering the use of our Zoom channel to any members who would like to call together a group to discuss issues arising now for their particular roles. Please contact Meg Winikates at meg.winikates@nemanet.org and Heather A. Riggs at heather.riggs@nemanet.org if you would like to schedule a discussion. If you're interested in hosting a regional happy hour or tea, please reach out to Scarlett Hoey
Lunch with NEMA
We are currently planning our 2021 Lunch with NEMA webinar schedule. If you have an idea for a Lunch with NEMA topic or are interested in speaking, please contact Meg Winikates at meg.winikates@nemanet.org. We are especially interested in topics which focus on practical tools and skill building across various roles in the museum field, but we’re interested in hearing anything you’ve got in mind!
PAG Updates
Welcome to our new PAG chairs!
- Historic Site Management: Robin Sherman, Curator & Museum Manager, Castle in the Clouds
- YEP PAG for Emerging Museum Professionals: Monica Andrews, Public Programs Associate, Shelburne Museum
- College and University Museums: Meredith Fluke, Director, Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery, College of the Holy Cross
If you are interested in getting involved as a Professional Affiliation Gathering chair, please get in touch with Meg at meg.winikates@nemanet.org. We’re currently looking for chairs to help lead the Exhibits, Development, Marketing, PR, Membership, Children’s, HR & Volunteer Management, and Library and Archives PAGs.
Four PAGs have Facebook groups! Join the Registrars & Collection Care Specialists (RACCS), Library & Archives, the Development, Marketing, PR, Membership, and the LGBTQ+ Museum Staff & Students PAGs online. Don’t forget to follow the NEMA Young and Emerging Professionals page.
Call for Articles
Have a great idea for an article for New England Museums Now? Museums Now is the professional journal for the voices of museum professionals across the geography, genres, and job descriptions present in our field, and we want your voice to be represented! Submissions for articles are accepted on a rolling basis. Though Museums Now issues each focus on a particular theme relevant to our field, we welcome articles on all museum topics. Your submission is not required to fit a theme for an upcoming issue. For complete details about submitting an article, click here.
Fall 2021: Climate Change
Museums are impacted by climate change in unique and challenging ways, and as trusted institutions we are also suited for educating the public on science & sustainability. How is your organization preparing your facility for a more sustainable future? How have climate impacts already changed your operations? What is your organization doing to promote climate awareness and sustainable actions in a mission-driven way?
Inquiry deadline: August 6. Submission deadline: August 20.
Executive Director Community of Practice
For the past several years, a group of first-time executive directors have met monthly online to share knowledge, inspiration, and support. Known as “EDCoP” (short for executive director community of practice), the program combines peer support and guest speakers to help them do their jobs better. If you’re interested in joining EDCoP or would like to create a NEMA-supported community of practice yourself, contact Dan Yaeger, dan.yaeger@nemanet.org.
NEMA Executive Roundtables
Since 2016, NEMA has offered an executive roundtable program for museum leaders with annual budgets of between $800,000 and $1.4 million. The roundtable is a confidential peer-learning group that improves the institution’s long-term stability and the director’s life. If you would like to discuss the Roundtable, contact Lawrence J. Yerdon (lyerdon@sbmuseum.org) or Dan Yaeger (dan.yaeger@nemanet.org).
NEMA 911
Museum leaders sometimes find themselves in uncharted territory, facing challenging situations for which they are unprepared or uncertain. These can include issues of finance, governance, ethics, facilities, collections, disaster management, personnel, and other concerns under the leadership umbrella. Unfortunately, resources to help them navigate these deep waters successfully can be scarce. Online guidance and books may be helpful, but they are no substitute for a trusted adviser who has the experience, judgment, and contacts to provide wise counsel.
NEMA 911 is a free, confidential service for members connecting museum leaders with helpful colleagues. Drawing upon a pool of volunteers who are senior-level professionals in or nearing retirement, NEMA 911 is a rapid-response resource that helps untangle problems, offer words of wisdom, and suggest pathways toward solutions. For more information on this free service, go to nemanet.org/nema-911.