Both earlier replies to this inquiry were excellent --useful and
insightful.

My additional two cents is that, in my experience, while doing a
director's job it is just not possible, practical, or feasible to do
research for other people. Too many other things are far more critical
uses of a director's time. It is a full time job (and more) just to
maintain a system whereby the museum's resources are available to and
retrievable by staff or volunteers and the public.

Optimally you should have a filing/catalog system for the clipping and
photo files that makes finding things on local history topics easy (I'm
currently working on such a system for 4 libraries and 2 museums in one
county and it will be ready to share with others by next fall if not
sooner.). With it (or even without it) you shouldn't have to do any
research for local people, they should do it themselves (aren't they,
after all, claiming to be 'researchers'?) It takes time enough to assist
and oversee their use of the cataloging system and files.

Non local and especially family researchers are another matter. That's
where, in a small institution, I think volunteers come in.  A modest
charge to compensate for time of a student or volunteer researcher as
per Alan Woods reply, is appropriate.  (The volunteer may be 'free' but
if they are doing the research they can't be doing other things that
would replace paid staff.)

The Board really has to be the bottom line decision makers about how
available resources are spent (including volunteer and Director's time).
Serving large groups of the public with stimulating exhibits and
published materials, maintaining appropriate collection care and
management levels, and serving research needs of individual probably is
always going to be a matter of balancing, setting priorities, stretching
resources and compromising. If the Board can come to agreement on these
(and other) priorities, then you have the basis with which to make
policy.  (Not all Boards will set the same priorities, so it's better to
write your own.)

You are very much on the right track to be thinking about developing
policy about this. If you have established policies, according to your
own priorities, it will help the director immensely in dealing with
these research requests. Then people don't take it as a rejection of
them or their needs, but as something that applies to everyone. And she
doesn't have to worry about whether some Board member will criticize her
for spending her time that way (or not spending her time that way)!

Lucy Sperlin
Chico, CA


Topsy Smalley wrote:
>
> Hi.  I am new to the list, so please excuse me if this question
> has been hashed (and rehashed) before.  I tried checking the
> archives, but didn't find a previous discussion.
>
> I am on the Board of Directors of a small historical museum
> (http://www.capitolamuseum.org) in California.  Our
> Director works 75% (and does 150%) of a fulltime job.
>
> Our Director is our local area historian.  She researches (on
> her own time), and writes and is published. We have a filing
> cabinet of photocopied materials about the history of the
> area, and lots and lots of photographs available for the
> public.  Other materials in the Museum (print and electronic)
> are working documents, papers, and the results of the
> Director's research; they are mainly kept in the Director's
> office.
>
> People in the area frequently contact her for information
> and details about events, and she shares her knowledge
> and gives interviews, does public speaking at all kinds of
> local events, etc. etc.  She writes a regular column for the
> local paper.
>
> Recently, she has been contacted by people who are
> writing their own books about this area.  They seem to want
> her to do more for them than we have been used to --
> research to find particular photos, for example.  Or, they
> seem to want to dig into the Director's own research files.
>
> If your museum has a written policy that outlines boundaries
> about doing research, or touches on these issues, I would
> be most grateful for a copy.
>
> Thank you!!
>
> Topsy N. Smalley
> [log in to unmask]
> Secretary, Capitola Historical Museum Board of Directors
> http://www.capitolamuseum.org/

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