On Tue, 1 Feb 2000, LynneTeather wrote:

++++[CLIP]++++

> One way that younger members might be attracted to ICOM is for our museum
> studies educational places (schools, associations, institutes) to emphasise
> the work of ICOM and its many committees and affiliated groups. I'm afraid
> my experience is that such is often not the case, especially in North
> America.

=============================

Lynne:

Agreed.  Another would be to allow those National Committees who want to
do so to recruit people on specialised advanced museology courses
(Postgraduate Diploma and Master's upwards) into ICOM as Student Members,
able to take part in ICOM's activities, but not to hold any ICOM office.

This is the way most professional bodies, including many national museum
associations, recruit the MAJORITY of their members.

Unfortunately, all such proposals to ICOM have been ferociously blocked in
the Advisory Committee and have therefore never reached the General
Assembly for proper consideration, let alone a vote.  The only arguments
(excuses?) I  ever heard offered during my 12 years on the Advisory
Committee and 9 years on the Executive Council were:

OBJECTION 1. "In our country we don't have museology students.  Everyone
is now expected to take a PhD to work in a museum, so every one of the
country's  tens of thousands of PhD students could become ICOM members to
get the ICOM Card and free admission, and take over the National
Committee."

ANSWER: If you don't have Museology/Museum Studies students then nobody
from your country could apply to be a Student Member, so you do not have a
problem.

OBJECTION 2. "If too many people get free admission through having an ICOM
Card museums will withdraw recognition from the ICOM Card."

ANSWER: Most specialist advanced students already have several free
admission cards, e.g. the UNESCO young persons card, national student
cards etc. Also, though ICOM membership has nearly trebled in the past 20
years no museum has ever has so many free visits from ICOM members that it
has threatened to recognition.

-------------------

The ICOM Training of Personnel Committee (ICTOP) has been convinced for
many years - like Ignatius Loyola - that "you must catch them young".
Currently ICOM rarely recruits museum professionals until they are already
half way through their working life - in their late thirties or older. In
contrast, what might reasonably be called "normal" professional bodies
recruit their members when they are in their twenties and at their most
vigorous and enthusiastic.

We have never proposed that National Committees that find the idea of
Student Members (or even museology courses!) totally abhorrent should be
forced to accept them.  All we ask is that those National Committes that
WANT to encourage ICOM membership amongst highly motivated younger
professionals in this way should not be banned from doing so.


Patrick Boylan
Chairperson, ICOM-ICTOP


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