In addition to creating lifelike Realistic Figures, Dorfman Museum Figures also features a broad line of inert ethafoam Conservation Forms for display and storage of artifact uniforms, costumes, and garments. We also fabricate customized Forms in both archival and non-archival materials.
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VAM Welcomes Back Richard Josey
VAM is very excited to announce that we have hired Richard Josey to work with us over the next year to put an action plan in place for Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion (DEAI) work—both that can serve our members, and that can help VAM move forward as an organization. As a part of this work, we will be forming a DEAI Task Force from among our membership. If you are interested in finding out more about this task force, or are interested in serving, please email Jennifer.
VAM Leadership Fellowship
Are you a mid-career museum professional looking to impact the museum field? VAM’s Leadership and Advocacy Fellowship was created to provide opportunities to create valuable research, and provide connections and career and monetary support. This year's Fellow will focus study around VAM's Community Conversations: Facing Challenges in the Museum Field initiative. Selected Fellows are awarded $1,000 stipend. Learn more & apply by October 4th!
2021 Richmond Conservation Studio Grant Program
The second annual Richmond Conservation Studio Grant Program will open for applications this month! The deadline to apply is Monday, October 4th at 5 PM ET. VAM is so excited to be working with Richmond Conservation Studio again and appreciates their generous support of this project. To learn more, click here.
VAM Members Group
Have you joined our new Facebook Group Page for members only? Members are sharing articles, asking operational questions, advertising upcoming events, and sharing COVID protocols at their museums. Come join us and add to the conversation!
Don't Forget!...
Don't forget to pay your VAM membership dues. To see if you have an open invoice, login to your VAM account. If we can be of any assistance, contact VAM's Membership and Development Manager, Rebecca Guest. Thank you! |
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Peer Group Chats are Back!
Peer Group Chats will return this week and continue on Thursdays, from 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET. Gather with your colleagues to network, discuss issues relevant to your interest group, and connect when we can't meet in person.
Upcoming Events
More Virtual Events
Visit our website for upcoming events, now including those presented by some of our partners! Or, if you've missed a webinar or chat and want to get more information or the recording? Visit our calendar and search past events or contact Christina.
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New History Museum Opens as Hanover County Celebrates 300th Birthday
Hanover County celebrated its tricentennial by opening a new museum at its historic courthouse. The Hanover Museum of History & Culture is now open to the public. The museum also serves as Hanover's official welcome center.
Virginia Museums Receive IMLS Grants
Longwood Fine Arts Center at Longwood University and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts were awarded grants through the IMLS Museums for America program. The program supports projects that strengthen the ability of an individual museum to serve its public.
Richmond Community Foundation Awards 2021 Community Impact Grants
The Richmond Community Foundation announced its 2021 Community Impact grant awards, totaling over $3.5 million. This grant supports local nonprofits whose strategies and outcomes align with the Foundation’s four focus areas: community vibrancy, economic prosperity, educational success, and health and wellness. Congrats to the American Civil War Museum, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, Science Museum of Virginia Foundation, The Valentine, and Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Foundation for receiving grants through this program.
Grants Awarded to Virginia Tourism Initiatives
Across Virginia, 64 tourism initiatives received grants totaling $861,080 as part of the Virginia Tourism Corporation Recovery Marketing Leverage Program. Congrats to Colonial Williamsburg
Foundation, Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation, Stratford Hall, Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Virginia Quilt Museum, and York County for receiving funds to expedite recovery and economic growth through this program.
The Mariners' Museum is a Top Workplace
The team at the Mariners' Museum and Park in Newport News received a Top Workplace award from Inside Business. “I am incredibly proud of the way that our team approaches our community with a servant’s heart,” said President and CEO Howard Hoege. “Adopting a servant leadership posture towards our community has strengthened our team. We are kinder to one another, and we focus our collective energy and effort on the community we serve.” |
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Congratulations to our own Su Thongpan Adler - VAM's awesome Bookkeeper - on tying the knot!
Congrats to Amy Ritchie for joining the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation last March as the Community Affairs Manager. Amy previously worked with American Evolution, Jamestown 2019 as the Deputy Director of Partnership Programs.
Cheers to Ellen Peltz, the new Public Relations Manager with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She previously worked for the National Trust for Historic Preservation as the Associate Manager of Public Affairs.
Congratulations to Becky Haynie on being elected Board President of the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum. Her late father, Wendell Haynie, founded the museum.
Huzzah to Grace Abele Moyer on her recent wedding. Grace is the Site Director for the Jackson House Museum at Virginia Military Institute.
Congrats to Cathy DeSilvey for joining the VMI Museum System as its new Registrar. Cathy was previously at the George C. Marshall Museum & Library.
Cheers to VAM's Board Director of the Tidewater and Eastern Shore region, Felicia Abrams. Felicia and her husband welcomed a new baby girl to their family. Mom and baby are happy, healthy, and doing great. Felicia is the Manager of On-Site Education at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation.
Congrats to Elizabeth Piper for joining the Curtis Group as its newest consultant. She was previously the Director of Development for the Southern Environmental Law Center and served as Director of Development at Virginia Humanities.
Cheers to Sue Kovach Shuman on publishing her new book titled Mantua. Sue is a Research Historian at the Office of Historic Alexandria, and is a current student in the VAM certificate program.
Congrats to VAM's Board President and Secretary, Rob Orrison and Paige Gibbons Backus, for publishing articles in the American Battlefield Trust's Summer 2021 issue of "Hallowed Ground Magazine." Rob is the Division Manager and Paige is a Historic Site Manager at the Prince William County Historic Preservation Division.
Congrats again to Paige Gibbons Backus for receiving Emerging Civil War's Emory Upton Award. The award is presented for outstanding service to Emerging Civil War.
Cheers to Barbara Blakey on her recent retirement. She was the long-time VMI Museum System Registrar. She served for 45 years at VMI Museum System.
Huzzah to Matthew Gibson for being featured in Humanities Magazine, published by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Matthew is the Executive Director of Virginia Humanities.
We are sad to learn that Major General (Ret.) Merdith "Bo" Temple passed away in November after a long and valiant battle with cancer. Bo loved history and served on multiple corporate and nonprofit boards.
Farewell to Mick, the Virginia Living Museum's male raccoon. He did not recover from anesthesia after surgery. Mick was 14 years-old and was a charismatic and beloved member of the VLM family.
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Virginia Forum 2022 Call for Papers
The Virginia Forum will hold its seventeenth annual conference April 7–9, 2022, at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond. The Virginia Forum offers an opportunity for scholars, teachers, writers, museum curators, historic site interpreters, archivists, librarians, and all those interested in Virginia history and culture to share their knowledge, research, and experiences. This year’s theme “History Unmasked” encourages submissions regarding the dual theme of medical pandemic and social justice. Learn more and submit papers by October 15th.
Museum Learning Hub Webinars
Join National Association for Museum Exhibition Southeast Region Community on Slack
Do you find yourself not knowing where to turn to find information when it comes to exhibit planning and design? Try the free National Association for Museum Exhibition (NAME) Southeast Region Slack Workspace and connect with industry experts, colleagues, and other institutions in our region. Use this link to join the Slack Workspace. |
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Passion. Experience. Diligence.
Headquartered in Richmond, Bryan & Jordan Consulting serves clients throughout the country and abroad. Its firm specializes in planning, governance, financial, and human resource matters, from advising the board to identifying your next CEO.
Bryan & Jordan Consulting will offer a no-cost phone conversation of up to one hour to discuss and strategize solutions to difficult issues your organization faces due to the pandemic. For $2,500, Bryan & Jordan will assist you to develop a brief, one year Covid-19 adaptation to your existing strategic plan or current needs.
To see other promotions from VAM Business members, visit our Member Discounts page!
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Collections Assessment for Preservation
The Foundation for Advancement in Conservation is excited to announce that applications are now open for the 2021 Collections Assessment for Preservation program with a deadline of September 15, 2021. Participating institutions receive support for a general conservation assessment from a qualified collection and building assessor. To learn more and apply, click here.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services Library Grants
NEH Infrastructure and Capacity Building Challenge Grants
The National Endowment for the Humanities Challenge Grants program aims to help institutions secure long-term support for their core activities and expand efforts to preserve and create access to outstanding humanities materials. The program funds two distinct types of projects, Capital Projects and Digital Infrastructure. The program awards up to $750,000. Applications are due September 28, 2021. To learn more and apply, click here.
Six IMLS Museum Grant Opportunities Now Available
Museums and related organizations across the United States have six opportunities in the coming months to apply for grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Award amounts range from $5,000-$250,000. Applications are due November 15, 2021. Click on each grant, to learn more and apply.
Recordings at Risk Grants
Recordings at Risk is a national program administered by the Council on Library and Information Resources to support the preservation of rare and unique audio, audiovisual, and other time-based media of high scholarly value through digital reformatting. The program is generously funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Grant amounts are $10,000–$50,000. Applications are due December 15, 2021. To learn more and apply, click here.
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Prepare for the Semiquincentennial
AASLH has published Making History at 250: The Field Guide for the Semiquincentennial. Featuring big-picture ideas and guiding historical themes, this free publication can help museums, historical societies, and history institutions of all types, sizes, and in all regions of the country think about why they should connect to the 250th anniversary commemoration and how they can do it. The guide is free, and can be downloaded here.
What's Next for Museums?
Museums are at the heart of our cultural lives: they are where we go to learn and gather collectively. But the pandemic has restricted access to these spaces, and national conversations around equity are asking museums to reckon with where their collections came from, who they represent, and who has access to them. Watch this presentation from Chicago Humanities for a conversation about how museums will shift and change as we move into a new stage of the pandemic and come back together in public spaces.
VCA Webinar: The Arts are Open for Business - Guidance and Best Practices for a Safe Reopening
Our friends at the Virginia Commission for the Arts recently held a webinar to review the latest guidance on capacity, safety, health and sanitization, as well as planned and best practices for patron and event management. The resources are available for free online. Watch on YouTube, here. Download the FAQs & Resources, here. Download the Slideshow, here.
COVID-19 Resources
VAM is continually monitoring COVID-19 related information and resources of benefit to the museum and nonprofit sector. Please visit our website various resources pages for the following assistance, plus more.
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State’s Archaeologist Digs Virginia’s Past
Dr. Elizabeth Moore, the state archaeologist since 2019, leads efforts to document Virginia’s past — much of it “prehistory,” the time before the written word. Read the full article.
Rethinking Our Human Resources Practices to Build a More Equitable Museum
Faced with the "portal" of the pandemic, the Museum of Us has asked itself how it can use the opportunity to become a better version of itself, starting with human resources practices. Read the full article.
Colonial Williamsburg Uncovering LGBTQ History, Aims for Programming that Reflects the Time Period
Through the research conducted at Colonial Williamsburg, they are piecing together a more complete history of LGBTQ people in colonial times. Read the full article.
U.S. Returns Looted Artifacts to Iraq
The United States is returning more than 17,000 ancient artifacts looted and smuggled out of Iraq after the 2003 U.S. invasion, including the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet. Read the full article.
Nonprofit Mailers To Appeal Postal Rate Hike
The second postal rate hike of this year is on track to take effect following approval by the Postal Regulatory Commission. Nonprofit Marketing Mail would experience an average increase of 7.8%, ranging from 5.7% to 14.6%, depending on the category and class. Read the full article.
Why Richmond Leaders Think Momentum is Building for Shockoe Slavery Museum
A Heritage Campus to memorialize and capture the horrors and history of what was once the largest slave trade market in the United State is the cornerstone project of the plan to revitalize Richmond’s oldest neighborhood. Read the full article.
A New State Park Incorporates a Pre-Jamestown Outlook in its Design
A 21st century take on the yihakan, the traditional Algonquian longhouse, grounds the interpretive peninsula at Machicomoco State Park in Gloucester County. Read the full article.
Here's What Might Be in the COVID-19 Museum Exhibits of the Future
Museum curators and others are already sorting through the best way to show our present to future generations. Read the full article.
Man Accidentally Discovers Judy Garland’s Lost ‘Wizard of Oz’ Dress
A long-lost dress worn by Judy Garland as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz has been rediscovered at Catholic University. According to experts at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, only five authentic dresses exist from the 1939 film set. Read the full article.
The Era of the Visionary Museum Director Is Over…or It Should Be
The job should be less about fantastical visions and more about defining practical objectives for the entire institution and its constituents. Read the full article. |
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Search VAM's Career Center for information on the only certificate in museum management offered by a museum association, plus resume review help, job listings, and more.
- Audiovisual Production Technician
- Circulation & Archival Assistant
- Development Associate
- Education Director
- Executive Assistant
- Grant Manager
- Membership & Volunteer Coordinator
- State Collections Coordinator
- Weekend Docent
- Weekend Site Coordinator
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The Virginia Association of Museums helps our museum community succeed. |
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