Hi VivianLea!

Several graduate Museology or Museum Studies
degree/certificate programs in the United States (and
Canada) were founded in the late 1960s (i.e., University of
Toronto in 1969) and early 1970s (i.e., University of
Washington in 1972).  As the need for specialized
professionals grows, so too do the criteria for hiring and
the quality of the work - which, for collections managers
and registrars means improved skills at documentation.  It
would appear to be less a matter of specific reasons rather
than a general ethos: Museum professionals were expanding
their abilities (by narrowing their specialization) and
responding to a demand by the profession as a whole.

Some information I gleaned from the AAM's web site:

"The first museums were granted accreditation in June 1971."
("Accreditation General Information and Frequently Asked
Qeustions," http://www.aam-us.org/accredproginfo.htm)

The eligibility criteria for participation in the
accreditation process include: "To participate in the
American Association of Museums' Accreditation Program, a
museum must:... meet the following definition of a museum
... have a formal and appropriate program of documentation,
care, and use of collections and/or tangible objects..."
("Museum Accreditation Criteria & Characteristics,"
http://www.aam-us.org/webc&c.htm)

For more on collection stewardship, which includes
appropriate documentation, see the AAM's "Accreditation
Commission's Expectations Regarding Collections Stewardship"
at http://www.aam-us.org/collstewardship.htm.

I am not expert to be able to apply this to the legislation
to which you refer.  But I hope the general information
helps!

Sincerely,

Jay Heuman
Visitor & Volunteer Services Coordinator
Joslyn Art Museum
2200 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE, 68102
342-3300 (telephone)   342-2376 (fax)   www.joslyn.org

"You can’t lock up art in a vault and keep it frozen for
posterity. Then the artist is betrayed, history is
betrayed."
(Walter Persegati)


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> On Behalf Of VivianLea Stevens
> Sent: Wednesday, August 14, 2002 4:29 pm
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Impt Query re: Professionalism in Museums &
Abandoned
> Property/Unclaimed Loans
>
> QUESTION -- We need to better understand & explain to
> legislators, why museum documentation has changed so
> dramatically over time.  Why, sometime in the 1970s, did
> documenting collections become such an important focus?
> Sure, the bicentennial sparked interest in things
historic,
> but that alone does not explain the increased attention to
> record keeping.  When did AAM start accrediting museums?
> Was this about the time that the discussions of individual
> certification were rolling around? I was not yet in the
field at
> that point and would appreciate some 'sound bites' and
> information to use when trying to explain this to
non-museum
> folks.
> MANY, MANY THANKS for any and all input!
> VivianLea Stevens

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