My Journey to a General Museum Studies Certificate

By Julia Robinson

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go."   Dr. Seuss     

I remember sitting in one of my undergraduate classes as a senior-wide-eyed, ambitious, and ready to take on the world as an elementary school teacher. For one of our exit courses, we had to take a class that covered many topics, from ethical behavior to acing an interview, to what else one can do with a teaching degree. In retrospect, the premise of the class was outstanding, and I am glad that I took it. It was the last topic covered in the class, What Else Can You Do with Your Degree?,that made me realize that, somewhere down the line, I might not remain in classroom teaching as I had planned. From that moment on, I decided to recognize the talents that I had and to keep an open mind to new opportunities. That attitude served me well over the years. We moved several times across various states, and with every move, I needed to reapply for a different teaching license. I navigated the waters of education as a classroom teacher, a school-wide Title 1 reading teacher, and a preschool director. With every new position, I had to acclimate myself to a new culture and a new mindset. I came to realize that the trait that served me best during those years was flexibility.

Interestingly, every position I accepted involved planning grade-level field trips. I had a knack for organizing the pre-trip preparations and studies, the events, and the wrap-ups. I don't think I had a favorite field trip-they were all my favorites, including the last one that I took my preschoolers to-the Hefner Museum of Natural History at Miami University. Honestly, from the moment I first stepped into that museum, something about it was different. With its wood tones, sculpted sky facades and the close proximity the visitor had to all of the animal mounts, the museum seemed to exclaim NATURE! I felt as though I was outside, and I could hardly contain myself as I walked through the Main Gallery. Each year, I returned with a new group of preschoolers. During one of my last visits, I remember mentioning to the museum director that I would love to be considered for a position, should anything become available in the future.

What was I saying? Work in a museum? Up to that point, all of my jobs had been somewhat connected. Where was the connection here? But I was drawn to this place.

One summer day, much to my surprise, I got a call from the director, asking if I remembered the conversation we had had about being considered for a position. Of course, I'd remembered it well. We talked, and a couple of months later, I started working at the Hefner Museum of Natural History. One of my first assignments was to find a museum studies program that would fit my schedule (mom of four) and broaden my perspective of the purpose and practices of museums. He wanted me to find something that was professional, yet practical and hands-on, and that led, ultimately, to a certification in museum studies. With my family's location and my very busy home life, I knew that my best option was online courses. I perused many online opportunities for museum programs, but one, museumclasses.org, stood out. Offered through the Northern States Conservation Center (NSCC), museumclasses.org was the only program that enabled me to contact an actual person. That was important, because I had many questions about the set-up of the program, ease of scheduling classes, the most helpful classes to improve our museum, and the likelihood of finishing a certification program. I found a contact number on the website for the director of the classes, Helen Alten. I left a message and she called me that very day. After that one phone call, I felt both calm and excited-all at once-about the prospect of taking online classes toward a certification.

Peggy Schaller, Certificate Program Coordinator (left); Julia Robinson(center); Don Kaufman, Director of the Hefner Museum (right)

Within a few months of employment at the museum, I started my first online class. In my master plan, I would tackle a series of 11 classes, each of which delved into a different aspect of museums, over the next three years. If I successfully completed all 11 classes, I would earn Level 1 General Museum Studies certification from the Northern States Conservation Center. How exciting! I felt like a kid again. It's true: When you keep learning, you feel younger.

I can't begin to discuss all the different topics that we covered in the online classes. However, all of the classes shared five characteristics that I grew to truly and deeply appreciate.  

Class Structure: All classes follow a similar flow chart, using current readings in the field, lecture notes, weekly chats, forums or responses, journal, and assignments or quizzes. A standard structure creates continuity between classes, making the technology and new material easier to learn. Each class offers a review of technology in the form of a technology manual. While this instructional file offered self-help, an actual person was always available to help students in the event that something didn't work as it should.

Expertise of Instructors: The instructors have diverse museum backgrounds, but they all use their core talents to construct an online course that offers practical solutions to daily concerns in museums. Instructors also provide information on current trends and they lend professional advice. I rarely had trouble contacting an instructor for a question. My instructors were eager to share their expertise in a nonjudgmental manner.

Online classes are not without their challenges. Instructors and participants lead day jobs and have busy lives that can change some aspects, but not the actual direction, of the course. The instructors were good communicators, keeping participants abreast of unforeseen changes. I also found them to be flexible, accommodating participants' varied backgrounds and different time zones.

Class Participants: Not all participants worked at natural history museums-or even at any kind of museum-or had similar backgrounds. Some worked in finance, others in management, and still others were simply searching for a career change. In addition, participants hailed from all over the world. Initially, I worried that the more participants in a class, the less direct instruction we would receive. I quickly discovered that I was wrong. In fact, participants greatly enhanced the instruction-they offered additions to readings, posted excellent questions and relevant concerns, and supplied practical, effective solutions from their own institutions or workplaces.

Chats and Forums: I found the chats and forums to be extremely important. It was through those avenues that I could learn from other class participants. Some had been immersed in the museum profession for several years and were simply taking an online class to brush up or learn newer techniques, while others were just as new to the profession as I was. The level of expertise didn't matter. All class participants are welcomed, accepted, and recognized for their input. All chats are archived for easy retrieval. Lots of information is shared during the chats and the ease of retrieving that information is a huge plus.

I was hesitant about the Final Chat, a requirement for those seeking to earn certification. However, after taking the classes and putting all procedures and techniques into practice, I realized that the Final Chat was more of a time to celebrate all that I had learned...which was staggering. After the first few minutes of my Final Chat, my anxiety vanished, and I found myself truly enjoying the process. When it was over, I was relieved, but I also was in awe of the instructors who had participated. They had prepared thought-provoking questions, offered meaningful comments and thoughtful responses, and carefully drew out the knowledge I'd accumulated over the previous three years. In doing so, they were able to assess all that I had learned.

Conferences and Final Projects: From the conferences, I learned the importance of networking and forming collaborations through our outreach efforts. We implemented many changes in our social media with new techniques that I learned from attending a statewide conference. My final project, an exhibit, led me to develop relationships across our campus and with different entities outside our museum.

Final Project Exhibition

Learning never really ends. As I went through my series of online courses, I continually put into practice something that I'd just learned. Cleaning old mounts, applying numbers to newly accessioned objects, working out the details to create an exhibit, organizing our volunteer program, rewriting our Collections Management Policy-I implemented everything I learned in a practical manner. The wide range of NSCC classes makes it easy to continue being a lifelong learner without a great deal of repetition in subject matter.

Blanchard's Cricket Fro by Miami Student Carly Hamilton (2016) Student Project Exhibition at the Hefner Museum

Over the span of three years, as I continued my classes and my skills grew, I grew increasingly confident and took on more responsibilities at our museum. I began to tackle new areas both outside of, and within, the realm of teaching. I now oversee undergraduate volunteers and their diverse projects, from mastering correct cleaning practices to creating exhibits to using social media to broaden and inform the museum's diverse audiences. In addition, I manage the museum's database and website, and I create new programs and conduct inquiry activities for tour groups. I secured external funding to develop a new university course for early childhood education majors seeking to earn an Early Childhood Environmental Education Certification; currently, I am completing my second year of teaching that course. To strengthen our outreach programs, I am forming outside collaborations. Finally, I joined the museum studies planning team at our university and helped plan one of the core courses (museum practices and procedures) for the new Museum Studies minor, starting this Fall 2015.

Cabinet of Curiosities by Miami Student Marsha Carney (2015) Student Project Exhibition at the Hefner Museum

Recently, to celebrate my completion of the certification process for my General Museum Studies Certificate our museum hosted a reception. We invited certificate coordinator and instructor for Northern States Conservation Center, Peggy Schaller, to present the certificate to me. Our biology department, museum affiliates, and dear friends and family came to the reception and presentation. I was thrilled to take Peggy through the museum, showing her firsthand the different things I had written about in my chats, forums, and assignments. I had the opportunity to meet in person someone whom I really enjoyed as an instructor. In fact, it wasn't like meeting someone new for the first time. We already knew each other by keypad, and the reception allowed us to meet in person. What a wonderful celebration!

What happened to my teaching? I really haven't left teaching at all-I just took a side step. I realized that I had a yearning to convey the message of our museum, environmental education, that I wanted to preserve our collections for generations to come, and that I longed to ignite a love of learning about nature in all our visitors, whether they are nine months, nine years old, or 99 years young. I am simply tapping into my formal teaching background to enhance our informal teaching at the museum. The NSCC certification I earned lends legitimacy to my cause.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all the instructors and class participants from my Level 1 General Museum Studies certification classes for their hard work and patience in teaching a novice like me. Thank you, Helen Alten, for providing the personal touch that started this process in the beginning, and Peggy Schaller, for offering constant, patient guidance throughout the entire process.

"Jump, and you will find out how to unfold your wings as you fall."   Ray Bradbury

Julie Robinson is employed at the Robert A. Hefner Museum of Natural History, Miami University, Oxford, OH as an Environmental Educator and Early Childhood Specialist. She teaches the course, Early Childhood Environmental Educator, and oversees many aspects of the museum, including volunteer programs and practices, and group activities. She recently completed the Level 1 General Museum Certificate through museumclasses.org, a subsidiary of Northern States Conservation Center.