8:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Off-Site Session
The Preservation Society of Newport County
The Breakers Storage Tour
Tour Cornelius Vanderbilt's The Breakers (1895) with a member of the curatorial staff followed by a visit to the Preservation Society's main furniture and textile storage area. Then gather with colleagues at the Society's headquarters to discuss topics that include: planning the space and the installation, storage fixtures, and environmental monitoring. There you will be joined by the Society's textile conservator and the grants writer, who will also discuss the fabrics that are in storage and sources of conservation funding.
Chair: Jeff Moore, Chief Conservator, The Preservation Society of Newport County, RI
Pre-registration is required. Registration is limited to 25. Fee of $10 includes transportation.

9:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Off-Site Session
Culinary Arts Museum
Exhibition Critique 2008
The critique team is back with new panelists and a hunger for exhibits. We are off to the Culinary Arts Museum at Johnson and Wales University to savor 1,600 square feet of Country Fare to Culinary Olympics.
This is an exhibit developed in-house that celebrates the history of cooking competitions. The director, Dick Gutman, is a seasoned producer of museum media and the exhibits will include multi-media presentations and immersion theming. Stroll the exhibits and bring your thoughts to the discussion that follows.
Chair: Serena Furman, Principal, A Space, MA
Pre-registration is required. Registration is limited. Fee of $10 includes transportation.

8:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Concurrent Sessions

Choosing the Right Path for Historic Sites
The future of historic sites is a central question to the field today. Preservationists and public historians recognize that historic sites face an uncertain future. This session considers how stewards of three historic sites chose different paths to preserve their properties while serving the needs of their communities. Two newly-established properties are looking beyond the traditional house museum. The third, a museum and garden in danger of closing, decided the best use was to continue as a museum.
Chair: Kenneth Turino, Community Engagement and Exhibitions Manager, Historic New England, MA

Connecticut Museum Quest: A Visitor's View
What do visitors want? If only we could answer this question, particularly for the visitors we are so anxious to attract. One articulate passionate museum visitor, a 35-year old father who lives in a Connecticut suburb, is telling the world exactly what he likes and does not like about museums. Come meet the blogger behind www.ctmuseumquest.com and shift your point of view.
Chair: Laura Roberts, Principal, Roberts Consulting, MA

Digital Planning for Museums
Regardless of size or discipline, museums have a responsibility to be trusted sources of information and provide accessibility to their content. To do this effectively, museums need to create sustainable digital plans that will make information accessible through electronic means. Attendees will gain insight on
establishing short- and long-range plans that integrate digital needs (i.e., digital imaging, art collections management, data standards, web initiatives, computers/servers to support these needs) into an institution-wide plan.
Chair: Linda Colet, President and Founder, DaoPoint Digital LLC, CT

Please Touch: Senses and the Museum Experience
How can museums compete for over-scheduled and over-stimulated audiences? Some institutions invest in costly technology. Are there effective, less expensive ways to succeed? Is it time to return to the basics, focusing on varied learning styles and the power of our senses? Panelists will discuss why and how these approaches can engage the visitor. Workshop attendees will participate in a hands-on activity exploring how their museums can become a more vibrant part of the community.
Chair: Ellice Gonzalez, Principal, FG Interpretive Services, MA

Struggling with Change: Old Sturbridge Village's Recent Travails
Senior program staff from Old Sturbridge Village will discuss the recent years of difficult choices and change at New England's largest outdoor history museum and what is currently being done to stabilize the museum and its visitation. Experimentation with program and staffing models from the last several years, some much needed infusions of capital, and new audience research are providing the basis for a transformed and renewed experience at the museum.
Chair: J. Edward Hood, Vice President for Museum Programs, Old Sturbridge Village, MA

Trends in Philanthropy in Today's Economy
Even though times are looking tough, remember that your donors love you, through thick and thin. The more you connect their confidence with your outcomes, the smoother the ride through choppy waters. Share your fund-raising successes, listen to others' solutions, and look to the future as we embrace a new administration, Congress and each state's financial outlook.
Chair: Anne Peyton, CPF, CFRE, Principal, Yellow Brick Road Consulting, VT


10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions

A Conversation: Taking the Pulse of Museums in New England
In 2007, The Boston Foundation published a research study that examined the vital signs of cultural organizations in Greater Boston. The study investigated the presence/absence of innovation, environmental supportiveness and audience engagement, and assessed optimal organizational size. These findings serve to inform this conversation with the objective of creating an open forum for point-counter point discussion, the exchange of ideas and a safe place to share common and not so common experiences.
Dorothy Chen-Courtin, President, Marketing & Management Associates for Nonprofits, MA

College, Community, Coursework: The Challenges and Opportunities of Student-Curated Exhibitions
Need a fresh perspective on your collection? Wondering how to engage a student audience? Three different models of student-curated exhibitions are discussed: a museum studies course created by a college in collaboration with a history museum, a university museum where student interns interpret the collection, and a student-run art gallery. This session will discuss the challenges and opportunities for both museum staff and students and share practical materials for others to engage in similar collaborations.
Co-chairs: Leonie Bradbury, Director/Curator, Montserrat College of Art Galleries, MA; Elizabeth DeWolfe, Professor of History, University of New England, ME

Designing Your Insurance Program: An Insurance Handbook
This interactive session is intended for art handlers, registrars, risk managers or directors and trustees of universities and museums of all sizes and disciplines who wish to review their current insurance plan or create a new one. Attendees will each be provided with an "Insurance Handbook" which the presenter will help participants complete for their individual institutions. A museum registrar will also discuss how this guide is used in her institution. Participants should bring a copy of their current insurance policy.
Chair: Mary Pontillo, Assistant Vice President, DeWitt Stern Group, Inc., NY

Finding the Right Balance: A Workshop on Conceptual Planning for Museums
Using Museum L-A in Lewiston as a case study, participants will work in groups to learn how to make sound planning decisions about audiences, programs, facilities, budgets, and outcomes for their museum projects. The focus will be on balancing the many factors involved in planning a museum and how to make good decisions early in the process.
Chair: Guy Hermann, Museum Master Planner, Museum Insights, CT

Get Them In Your Door!
How do small to mid-sized museums keep visitors coming across the threshold? Two Executive Directors will offer their thoughts for the best new, as well as tried and true, ways of sustaining and even increasing visitation. The two panelists will draw on their own experiences as well as offer information learned from other sites that they surveyed prior to conference.
Co-chairs: Susan Robertson, Executive Director, Gore Place, MA; Mark Thompson, Executive Director, Portland Harbor Museum, ME
Take the audience development survey at www.nemanet.org/geteminsurvey.htm.

Legacy Giving Building Blocks: Building the Infrastructure for a Donor-Centered Legacy Giving Program
As museums continue to move into the fund-raising arena, they will need both to pursue immediate gifts and create endowments to support their collections, operations and facilities in perpetuity. This session will walk participants through the six-step process required to build a solid foundation for legacy and endowment gifts for their museums. If you have a legacy giving program, or are just considering starting one, these basic building blocks will help to ensure your success.
Co-chairs: Brian M. Sagrestano, JD, CFRE, Founder and Managing Director, Gift Planning Development, LLC, PA; Caleb Rick, JD, Managing Director, North Common Associates, LLC, VT

The Pitter Patter of Little Feet (CANCELLED)

Swing Your Partner: Rejuvenate Your Museum Through Youth Outreach (rescheduled from Thursday, November 13, 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.)
Youth outreach may seem daunting to any museum professional, especially those in small institutions. Partnering outside the museum field can help fulfill community needs and organizational goals_from both the perspective of the museum and the community partner. Join representatives of the USS Constitution Museum, the Revolving Museum in Lowell and their partners in outreach to learn how practical and successful partnerships at two very different museums brought forth new ideas, energy and enthusiasm.
Chair: Anne Grimes Rand, Executive Vice President, USS Constitution Museum, MA

12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Exhibit Hall Closing Reception and Raffle Prizes
Don't miss this special opportunity to explore the services and products in the Exhibit Hall.
Will you win one of the wonderful Raffle Prizes generously donated by our exhibitors? Perhaps you'll win a registration to next year's conference!

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Annual Meeting Luncheon
Find out what’s new in your association! Hear about NEMA’s new strategic plan, plans for networking and idea-sharing, and new benefits and services. Relax with friends over a delicious lunch before heading to the afternoon’s exciting sessions.
Chair: Kent dur Russell, President, New England Museum Association

2:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions

Theme Conversation
The Landscape of the Future Now
Not so long ago, the public perceived museums as being one of the most-trustworthy places to access information, learn about art, culture and history. But now it feels as though we are losing our relevance among several constituents—potential audience attendees are increasingly turning to the internet for information; donors are being faced with multiple demands locally, nationally, and internationally for their resources; and everyone is being bombarded with options on ways to spend their leisure time. In this environment, where do museums fit in and how do they survive?
Chair: Dorothy Chen-Courtin, President, Marketing & Management Associates for Nonprofits, MA

Meet the Funders!
As the economic climate has become more difficult for museums, funding organizations have worked hard to ensure that their programs help museums to fulfill their public missions. This is an opportunity to meet with representatives from foundation, government and corporate funding agencies that serve art, science and history museums in a variety of ways. Learn about the full range of resources available and how to create a competitive application. Plenty of time will be allowed for questions and discussion.
Chair: Randall Rosenbaum, Executive Director, Rhode Island State Arts Council

Plays Well With Others: A Case Study of Effective Collaborations
Creating collaborations can be a powerful way for museums to share resources and sustain their respective missions, but collaborations come with their own challenges and opportunities. Through a brief presentation and a hands-on project, the directors of two Nantucket non-profits will describe the features of their collaborations, which have created projects such as a published biography of Maria Mitchell, an exhibition, other public education programs as well as a shared curatorial staff position. Practical tips on how to develop and effectively maintain collaborations will also be shared.
Chair: Niles D. Parker, Executive Director, Penobscot Marine Museum, ME, and former Curator and interim Executive Director, Nantucket Historical Association, MA