Professional Development 2012 Programs AASLH
Building Leaders in the Field of State and Local History
American Association for State and Local History
Your Home for History
AASLH is committed to inspiring and building generations of history leaders. No matter what stage you or your institution is in, AASLH has a professional development opportunity for you. We offer everything from traditional workshops and online courses to vast networking opportunities to give you the tools you need for an effective career and successful organization. Whether you are an individual, volunteer, employee, or institution, AASLH provides the highest quality training to advance the field of state and local history.
2 Professional Training > Onsite Workshops
Professional Training AASLH’s professional training is for everyone—individuals, volunteers, employees, and institutions. We offer Onsite Workshops and Online Training for anyone looking to further their knowledge of the field. Our sessions are led by seasoned professionals in the field with years of experience in public history. Four scholarships are available for paid employees of history organizations to attend a 2012 Workshop. www.aaslh.org/workshops
Onsite Workshops Museum Education 101 Through interactive activities, hands-on training, and case studies, participants will learn about volunteer management, docent training, tour techniques, active learning with people of all ages, developing exhibits with visitors in mind, and online education. Participants will leave the workshop with information and materials they can take back to their organizations to adapt and use. Instructors: Nancy Cutler, Museum Education Consultant, Phoenix, AZ Tim Grove, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC Location: Historic New England, Otis House, Boston Dates: March 15 – 16, 2012 Fee: $250 members / $325 nonmembers; $20 discount if payment is received by February 10
Historic House Museums Issues and Operations This workshop presented in partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation focuses on the unique needs, management, and interpretation of historic houses. With a focus on historic house museums, topics covered include collections care, types of research appropriate for historic house museums, exhibition development, interpretative tours, volunteers, and building and landscape maintenance. Instructors: George McDaniel, Drayton Hall, Charleston, SC; Max van Balgooy, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, DC Location: National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, DC Dates: March 22 – 23, 2012 Fee: $250 members / $325 nonmembers; $20 discount if payment is received by February 17
Professional Training > Onsite Workshops
Exhibit Makeovers Learn innovative and engaging ways to bring exhibitions to life for visitors through interpretative storytelling. Using examples, participants will experiment with ways to make exhibit content meaningful and memorable for visitors by employing media, educational components, label writing, and design. Instructor: Alice Parman, Museum Consultant, Portland, OR Location: Johnson County Museums, Shawnee, KS Dates: April 12 – 13, 2012 Fee: $280 member / $355 nonmember; $20 discount if payment is received by March 9
Collections Management and Practices Learn about your institution’s responsibility toward its collections through policies, procedures, and best practices. With an emphasis on shoestring budgets, become familiar with current collection-care issues and trends; the role of collections in exhibition and interpretation; the basic steps of collections management from acquisition to disposal; professional standards and ethics; and resources available for collections preservation. Instructor: Vicki Berger, Retired, Phoenix, AZ Location: Historic New Orleans Collection, New Orleans, LA Dates: June 13 – 14, 2012 Fee: $250 members / $325 nonmembers; $20 discount if payment is received by May 16
Collections Camp: Military History This two-and-a-half-day workshop will focus on the care and conservation of military artifacts in museum collections, particularly items from the 19th century. Spend time working with conservators and curators to learn how to be a better steward of your military history collection. Instructors: Gordon Blaker, US Army Artillery Museum, Ft. Sill, OK; Myers Brown, Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, TN; Gordon Jones, Atlanta History Center, Atlanta, GA Location: Atlanta History Center, Atlanta, GA Dates: June 27 – 29, 2012 Fee: $280 member / $355 nonmember; $20 discount if payment is received by May 23
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4 Professional Training > Onsite Workshops / online training
Professional Training Online Training StEPs Webinar Series AASLH is able to offer the following webinars free of charge with funding generously provided by an IMLS 21st Century Museum Professionals grant. Webinar content is supported by StEPs standards and performance indicators. Pre-registration is required.
Telling a Good Story A good guided tour is a good story told well says guest speaker Linda Norris. Join us to learn the basics of creating a meaningful tour and creative ways tour guides can connect with visitors who arrive at your site with many different interests. Date: November 17, 2011
Creating Historic House Interpretive Plans that Connect Interpretive plans that connect with your visitors and their lives are the keystone for a positive visitor experience. Guest speaker Nancy Bryk will show participants how research is an integral part of the interpretive planning process. Date: December 8, 2011
Redefining Audiences Who are our current audiences and how can we engage new ones? Looking at the most recent U.S. Census, Susie Wilkening will discuss demographic change and the valuable ways in which history organizations can use census data. Date: January 27, 2012
All AASLH Onsite and Online Workshops may help institutions achieve standards and performance indicators as part of the StEPs Program. S e e p a g e 7 f o r mo r e i n f o r m a t i o n .
Professional Training > Online training
The Basics of Archives Proceed at your own pace through this online course covering the basics of archival management and practices. Developed by a team of specialists, participants learn the core aspects of managing and protecting historical records using best practices for acquisition, processing, housing, and access and outreach. Instructor: Charlie Arp, Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH Duration: 15 – 20 hours, self-paced Dates: •A nytime between October 31 – December 2, 2011 Registration opens online August 3, 2011 •A nytime between January 16 – February 10, 2012 Registration opens online November 1, 2011 •A nytime between May 7 – June 2, 2012 Registration opens online February 1, 2012 Fee: $85 members / $160 nonmembers
Are You Ready for Volunteers?* Help eliminate high volunteer turnover and improve volunteer-run programs by addressing management issues associated with volunteers. Participants will learn how to address common pitfalls of volunteer-run programs and how to make sure your nonprofit is ready for them. Duration: 2 – 5 hours, self-paced Dates: • A nytime between March 1 – 30, 2012 Registration opens online January 5 Fee: $40 members / $115 nonmembers
Seven Steps to a Successful Volunteer Recruitment Program* Having volunteers in the wings who can give eight hours a day is no longer the case. This course will give practical advice for successful volunteer recruitment, identifying the right people for the right task, and how to create the environment where people want to volunteer their time. Duration: 2 – 5 hours, self-paced Dates: •A nytime between April 1 – 30, 2012 Registration opens online February 1 Fee: $40 members / $115 nonmembers *These online courses presented in partnership with the University of North Texas
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6 Leadership Opportunities
Leadership Opportunities AASLH’s Leadership programs are designed for individuals, volunteers, and employees looking to advance their career and gain administrative leadership skills.
Project Management for History Professionals This unique program improves how history museums operate and serve their community by bringing in outside experts to teach the fundamentals of project management to history professionals. Everyday work—exhibitions, programming, fundraising, special events, outreach, and collection care—benefit from the knowledge gained. Through a series of onsite workshops and webinars providing thirty-five hours of formal training, participants learn: • Strategic planning • Resource allocation • Risk assessment • Effective communication
• Successful budgeting processes • Task management • Fundraiser/sponsorship expectations
www.aaslh.org/projectmanagement
Developing History Leaders @SHA Class of 2012
Dates: October 27 – November 17, 2012
SHA is the longest-running professional development seminar in the country. For over fifty years, this leadership program has provided an intensive, three-week residential program for history professionals. SHA is designed for full-time, paid staff of history institutions with a minimum of three years of challenging work experience in the history field and who are now in a position of administrative responsibility or are preparing for such a role. The program will enhance the leadership of its participants and strengthen their organization’s capabilities. SHA employs case studies, workshops, forums, and field trips to present best practices and ideas of history organization leadership and management. www.aaslh.org/histadmin
Institutional Planning
Institutional Planning AASLH’s Institutional Planning opportunities are geared towards organizations interested in improving their institution and taking strategic action towards fulfilling their mission.
StEPs Watch your organization take a giant leap forward with StEPs, a selfstudy program for small- and mid-sized history organizations. With StEPs, your organization will create more meaningful goals and budgets, build credibility with funders and your community, and better track and articulate your successes. Developed by AASLH with funding from IMLS, StEPs offers specific recommendations for meeting national museum standards. StEPs performance indicators help your organization answer the question, “How do we know when we are meeting a national standard?” Enrollment benefits include the easy-to-use workbook, access to the StEPs website for sample forms, policies, and other helpful resources, the opportunity to earn Gold, Silver, and Bronze certificates, discounts on AASLH technical bulletins and workshops, a colorful window decal, and more! One-time fee with: • no application
• no eligibility requirements
• no deadline for completion
Fee: $150; must be an AASLH institutional member to enroll
www.aaslh.org/steps
Visitors Count! One size does not fit all when it comes to meeting visitor expectations. AASLH developed the most comprehensive visitor research program available for mid- and large-sized history organizations. Visitors Count! provides confidential data and feedback that helps create visitor-driven strategic and long range plans, strengthens marketing and fundraising, and focuses improvement efforts on what matters most to your visitors. In partnership with the Center for Nonprofit Management, the Visitor’s Count! program offers you a customized survey and then benchmarks results to other organizations. Pick the survey that is right for you: • Museum Visitors
• Historic House Visitors
• Teacher/Student Visitors
2012 Registration Deadlines: Spring/Summer Visitor Survey Group – January 16, 2012 Summer/Fall Visitor Survey Group – June 1, 2012 Education Survey Group – September 1, 2012 Visitors Count! Survey Fee: $4,200 ($3,500 for AASLH institutional members); payable in two installments
www.aaslh.org/visitorscount
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8 Get Involved
Get Involved These opportunities are for everyone, and provide the perfect place to network, share, and learn from your peers while engaging in the history community.
Annual Conference Get caught up on the latest trends in the field, gather new ideas to take back to your institution, and make valuable connections with colleagues across the country. With four days of workshops, sessions, roundtables, affinity lunches, and evening events at Salt Lake City’s museums and historic sites, you’ll renew your professional spirit while exploring Utah’s rich history. 2012 Annual Conference Crossroads: Exploring Vibrant Connections Between People and Place October 3 – 6, 2012 Salt Lake City, Utah www.aaslh.org/anmeeting
AASLH Annual Meeting
Salt Lake City October 3–6, 2012
CROSSROADS:
nections Exploring Vibrant Con Place Between People and
Annual Online Conference AASLH’s Online Conference is a way for you to participate in our conference when unable to attend. Every year, AASLH features a selection of sessions broadcast as live webinars from the conference. Participants can interact with speakers and pay a one-time fee for all sessions.
Get Involved
Affinity Groups Discuss the latest issues, share ideas, and help initiate changes that benefit you and your specific field of interest. Choose from ten different AASLH Affinity Groups and help develop programs and services that reflect current trends in your field. Benefits include meal functions at the AASLH Annual Meeting, workshops, training opportunities, and more. Visit www.aaslh.org (click on “Programs”) to learn more about the mission and goals of these current AASLH Affinity Groups: •C orporate History Museums and Archives •E ducators and Interpreters •F ield Services Alliance •H istoric House Museums • I DEA – Internet Digital Encyclopedia Alliance •M ilitary History •P residential Sites and Libraries •S mall Museums •V isitors’ Voices
History Careers Whether you are just starting out in the field or are a seasoned professional, AASLH is committed to helping you find the right career. The AASLH Career Center is an online center specifically for history professionals, museums, historical sites, and institutions. Employers can target their search and Job Seekers can post their resume all in one place. It is the most comprehensive list of qualified candidates and open positions in the history field. www.aaslh.org/jobsonline
To register for any AASLH Professional Development Opportunity, please visit our website or contact us at: www.AASLH.org AASLH 1717 Church Street Nashville, TN 37203 615-320-3203 membership@aaslh.org
Photo Credits
Your Home for History cover: Clockwise, Connecticut Historical Society; Tom Cogill; Missouri History Museum; Orange County Regional History Center; Indiana Historical Society Collections & Library pg 1: AASLH; Atlanta History Museum Collection, Atlanta History Center; Missouri History Museum pg 2– 3: Missouri History Museum pg 4: Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library andMuseum pg 5: Special Collections, State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines; Indiana Historical Society Collections & Library back: Missouri History Museum
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AASLH provides leadership and support for its members who preserve and interpret state and local history in order to make the past more meaningful to all Americans.
www.AASLH.org