The J. Wayne Stark Galleries at Texas A&M University is one of 10 museums included in the inaugural class of the Small Museums Accreditation Academy of the American Alliance of Museums.
Of those museums selected, six are academic museums and galleries.
The academy is a new initiative funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and assisted by an advisory panel of leaders in the museum field. It is a yearlong readiness program to make the alliance’s accreditation process more accessible to smaller institutions.
“The limited staff and resources of small museums do not preclude them from being operationally excellent and having tremendous impact on their communities," says Alliance President and Chief Executive Officer Laura L. Lott. "I'm excited to welcome these ten museums to our new program as they take a major step toward being recognized by the field for that excellence."
At the end of the program, the participating museums are expected to emerge with a stronger culture of excellence and be poised to apply for accreditation.
In addition to the J. Wayne Stark Galleries, the inaugural list of Small Museums Accreditation Academy includes Bainbridge Island Historical Museum, Bainbridge Island, WA; Earth & Mineral Sciences Museum at The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA; Godwin Ternbach Museum, Flushing, NY; Monterey County Agricultural and Rural Life Museum, King City, CA; Mountain Heritage Center Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC; Museum of Art University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH; Spartanburg Art Museum, Spartanburg, SC; University of Mississippi Museum and Historic Houses, Oxford, MS; and Zanesville Museum of Art, Zanesville, OH.
The academy is a guided online experience combining live sessions, mentoring and collaborative activities for staff and governing authority members at small museums. It is designed for high-performing organizations with five or fewer staff members that are striving to meet best practices and achieve accreditation. Applications for the 2017 class will open later this year.
For more information about the American Alliance of Museums, visit www.aamus.org. More news about Texas A&M University can be found at today.tamu.edu.
