semc executive director’s notes Dear SEMC: I want to say a sincere THANK YOU to all who attended this year’s Annual Meeting (in person and virtually) and made SEMC 2021 possible. It was truly wonderful to see so many of you both in-person and on-line. In my long experience with SEMC, the Annual Meeting leadership, planning teams, attendees and industry partners have always been a hard-working, dedicated, congenial group and it’s no surprise that the best qualities of SEMC were front and center in Chattanooga. The hybrid model was an ambitious undertaking, but with months of planning, collaboration, input, dedication, and SUPPORT from all the attendees, speakers, sponsors, Council, Program Committee, staff, the amazing event team from Hutchinson Design Group and all the dedicated volunteers, we were able to execute the first-ever SEMC hybrid meeting which offered over 60 sessions developed and led by museum professionals from across our region. More than 20 of those sessions were recorded and can now be viewed by SEMC2021 attendees on the PheedLoop conference page! The PheedLoop platform was a new addition for the conference and allowed the 400+ museum professionals who participated in SEMC2021 (both inperson and virtual attendees) to gather, present, and view online and live streamed sessions, post, network
and check out offerings from our industry partners in the Virtual Expo Hall. We welcomed 27 different companies that provide services to museums to the 2021 Expo Hall at the Convention Center and had booths showcasing the SEMC2021 Publication contest winners, the American Association of State and Local History, the Tennessee Association of Museums and Arkansas Museums Association. Corporate sponsorship was critical during this year of pandemic and uncertainty, and we are thankful for the 16 companies and foundations that contributed sponsorship dollars toward 2021 Annual Meeting events including all receptions and Expo Hall “breaks.” This was a challenging year to host the SEMC Annual Meeting and I am grateful for the effort the local teams and organizations in Chattanooga put into welcoming SEMC2021 attendees and making the conference a truly memorable event. We were thrilled that SEMC attendees experienced wonderful evening events at many different Chattanooga museums and sites including the Tennessee Aquarium, Hunter Museum of American Art, Bessie Smith Cultural Center, and the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center. Additionally, sites including Ruby Falls, Rock City and Sculpture Fields welcomed SEMC attendees for special excursions both pre and post conference. The images flowing
Zinnia Willits with Ahmad Ward, Chattanooga, SEMC 2021 annual meeting.
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