Providence is home to a thriving arts community and world-class museums. To acknowledge and celebrate that fact, the first day of the conference has been devoted to events and sessions of particular interest to art museums.

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Users Versus Visitors: How Digital Technologies Have Activated the Museum
How can visitor-authored experiences and content serve the educational goals of your institution? Web 2.0 technology has allowed our public the ability not only to access and respond in new ways to our exhibitions and programs, but also to “remix” and place our “expert authored” content within new contexts as defined by the museum visitor. This session will explore several museum applications of Web 2.0 technologies, such as on-line forums and tagging, to examine their impact on visitors and interpretation and to discuss implications for the future.
Chair: Dawn E. Salerno, Director of Education, Mystic Arts Center, CT

12:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
A Conversation with William U. Eiland, Director of the Georgia Museum of Art
Enjoy lunch with colleagues; then, over coffee and dessert take this opportunity to engage one of the field’s leaders in a lively and wide-ranging discussion. Bill will share his observations about how the concept of “museum” changes across disciplines and how groups such as ethnically specific museums are shaping the meaning of the term by their example. Hear Bill’s observations about the unique contribution that grassroots museums make to their communities. Finally, Bill issues a bold call to action for museum directors that focuses on sweeping away the drivel that too often passes for dialogue with our communities and engaging in a meaningful exchange of ideas and education.

A Woodrow Wilson Fellow, Bill has been the recipient of the Danforth Teaching Fellowship at the University of Virginia and a Museum Professionals Grant from the NEA. He has contributed to more than 50 publications, including Art Papers, US Art and Southern Antiques. He serves on the board of the Southeastern Museums Conference and is a trustee of the Association of Art Museum Directors. He served as the vice chairman of the American Association of Museums in 2004-2005. Bill earned the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries in 2007 and was named 1999 Outstanding Museum Professional by the Southeast College Art Conference.

Chair: Laurie Norton Moffatt, Director, Norman Rockwell Museum, MA
Pre-registration is required. Registration is limited.

1:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
Junior Curators: A Museum School Collaboration
Learn about an innovative collaboration between museum and school to fully engage students in a community-based organization. This nuts and bolts session will focus on how a class of eighth-grade students acted as Junior Curators and designed an exhibition featuring approximately 40 photographs from the Bruce Museum’s permanent collection. How can your museum aim to include teachers and students in the powerful instructional medium of the curatorial process? Roundtable discussions will allow participants to explore the possibilities of a similar program at their own institutions.
Chair: Jennifer Beradino, Curator of Education, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, AL, and former Manager of School and Tour Services, Bruce Museum, CT

On Your Toes! Exploring New Partnership Opportunities
Two case studies examine unique collaborations between museums and performing arts groups to enhance their educational offerings. Project leaders from the Yale Center for British Art, Elm Shakespeare Company, and New Haven’s High School in the Community English department will demonstrate some results. The second case study will be the Connecticut Landmarks award-winning collaboration with the Judy Dworin Performance Project for the presentation of a dance/theater performance entitled The Witching Hour that explored the 17th-century witch craze in Connecticut. Ample time will be allowed for questions and a discussion of other collaborative models.
Co-chairs: Linda Friedlaender, Curator of Education, Yale Center for British Art, CT; Rebecca Taber-Conover, Director of Education, Connecticut Landmarks

Power in Numbers—Driving Tourism Traffic and Building Community
Museums10 is an ambitious partnership among seven college museums and three independent museums in the western Massachusetts Five College area. Aimed at positioning the region as a premier cultural destination, Museums10 has emerged as a model for pooling resources for greater impact, expanding partners’ opportunities for exposure, and increasing tourism traffic. Find out how they did it, how their efforts have encouraged other partnerships, and what challenges they face as the collaboration evolves.
Co-chairs: Tony Maroulis, Project Coordinator, Museums10, MA; Nora Maroulis, Co-founder, wündergroup consulting, MA

3:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Making History: Reconsidering the Role of Museums in Current Events and Affairs
A panel of seasoned museum professionals will present approaches to developing exhibitions and educational programming related to contemporary events and issues of concern to our communities. Panelists will share the risks, rewards and lessons learned in undertaking such work. The session will provide attendees with a practical framework for: obtaining institutional buy-in, staking out a position (Is neutrality possible? Desirable?), selecting/collecting materials, working with the community, building dialogue and gauging visitor response.
Chair: Clarissa J. Ceglio, Department of American Civilization and the John Nicholas Brown Center, Brown University, RI

One More and Then...Drinking in Museums
“Eat, drink and be merry!” Explore the complex nature of alcohol in museums—the good, the creative and the ugly. Most museums use alcohol in conjunction with events and programs, but serving alcohol is both costly and legally complex. Session panelists will explore the use of alcohol in museums through an interdisciplinary approach that includes: sponsorship and donations, public programming, marketing, gift shop sales, and liability and legal concerns. While the panel cannot offer legal advice, gain a valuable understanding of issues to explore in your own jurisdiction. Hear what has worked, where problems have occurred, and share your own stories and experiences.
Chair: Scott Wands, Heritage Resource Center & Field Services Coordinator, Connecticut Humanities Council

Seeing What I Feel: Opening Museums to People Who are Blind or Have Low Vision
Using the long-time collaboration between the MFA, Boston, and the Perkins School for the Blind as a case study, this workshop will cover the key points of museum accessibility for people who are blind. A short panel presentation will be followed by simultaneous hands-on workshops that session participants can choose from. Tools and materials will be shared that can be put into practice immediately. This session will include information and adaptations for all types of museums and for visitors of all ages.
Chair: Hannah Goodwin, Manager of Accessibility, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

An Evening in Providence
Enjoy tours of the community arts space AS220, the David Winton Bell Gallery and/or the RISD Museum of Art’s newly renovated Chace Center featuring an installation by glass artist Dale Chihuly! Pre-registration is required.