Northern States Conservation Center announces three online courses in March:
MS205/6: Disaster Plan Research and Writing (starts March 5)
MS201: Storage for Infinity: An Overview of Museum Storage Principles (Starts
March 5)
MS209: Collections Management Policies for Museums and Related Institutions
(Starts March 19)
Please sign up at www.museumclasses.org and pay for the courses at
http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html If you have trouble with either,
please contact Helen Alten at [log in to unmask] or Eric Swanson at
[log in to unmask]
Descriptions for each of the courses follows:
MS205/6: Disaster Plan Research and Writing ***REVISED AND UPDATED***
Instructor: Terri Schindel
Dates: (Available twice in 2007)
March 5 through April 13, 2007
October 29 through December 7, 2007
Price: $475
Location: http://www.museumclasses.org
Description:
Every museum needs to be prepared for fires, floods, chemical spills,
tornadoes, hurricanes and other disasters. But surveys show 80 percent lack
trained staff, emergency-preparedness plans for their collections, or both.
Disaster Plan Research and Writing begins with the creation of disaster-
preparedness teams, the importance of ongoing planning, employee safety,
board participation and insurance. Participants will learn everything they need
to draft their own disaster-preparedness plans. They also will be required to
incorporate colleagues in team-building exercises.
A written disaster-preparedness plan is not only a good idea, it’s also a
requirement for accreditation. In the second half of the course, instructor Terri
Schindel reviews and provides input as participants write plans that outline the
procedures to follow in various emergencies. The completed plan prepares
museums physically and mentally to handle emergencies that can harm
vulnerable and irreplaceable collections. You will have a completed institutional
disaster-preparedness and response plan at the end of the course.
Course Outline:
1. Introduction to Disaster Planning
2. Disaster Team
3. Risk Assessment and Management
4. Health and Safety
5. Insurance
6. Documentation
7. Prioritizing Collections
8. Writing the Disaster Preparedness Plan
9. Emergency Procedures
10. Disaster Response
11. Emergency Procedures Recovery
12. Emergency Procedures Salvage
13. Emergency Procedures - Salvage Techniques and Guidelines
14. Emergency supplies and location of regional resources
15. Appendices: What to put in them
16. Next steps: planning drills and further resources
17. Conclusion
Logistics:
Participants in Disaster Plan Research and Writing work at their own pace.
Instructor Terri Schindel is available at scheduled times for email support.
Opportunities for interaction include forums and scheduled online chats. Each
section includes a written assignment that becomes support material for
drafting an actual disaster preparedness plan. Materials include readings,
lecture notes, links to relevant web sites and handouts. TDisaster Plan
Research and Writing lasts six weeks.
Required Textbook:
Disaster Plan Research and Writing uses the required textbook Steal This
Handbook! A Template for Creating a Museum’s Emergency Preparedness Plan,
which is available for purchase at http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html
Student Comments:
“This course was a great motivator to get me to work on the disaster
preparedness plan.” MS 205 Student
“The course exceeded my expectations … I am looking forward to developing
a plan that will protect the collections. I really enjoyed the course and plan
on taking additional courses in the future.” MS 205 Student
“Terri was good at asking little questions about procedures that I had either
overlooked or had not considered, and this got me moving in new directions.”
MS 206 Student
“To write the disaster preparedness and response plan, you need to set aside
a significant amount of time and this class forced me to do that so I
completed most of the plan. Hooray!” MS 206 Student
“A great motivator to get me to work on the disaster preparedness and
response plan. I really appreciate Terri’s time, knowledge, and flexibility.” MS
206 Student
The Instructor:
Terri Schindel graduated from the Courtauld Art Institute, University of London
with a concentration in textile conservation. She has assisted small and
medium sized museums in writing disaster plans for more than a decade and
helped develop national standards for disaster-preparedness materials. Ms.
Schindel specializes in collection care and preventive conservation and works
regularly with small, rural and tribal museums.
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MS201: Storage for Infinity: An Overview of Museum Storage Principles
Instructor: Helen Alten
Dates: March 5 through April 13, 2007
Cost: $425
Location: http://www.museumclasses.org
Description:
Storage for Infinity covers everything you need to know to limit damage to
stored collections. Participants will learn about building new storage areas and
retrofitting existing space. Other topics include constructing support mounts,
security and drafting proposals to fund storage improvements. The material
emphasizes philosophy and planning, \handling, materials and techniques.
Course Outline:
1. Introduction
2. Storage Philosophy
3. Agents of Deterioration and Preservation Planning
4. Storage Facilities
5. Storage Furniture
6. Preparing Collections for Storage
7. Storage Materials
8. Storage Mounts
9. Storage of Specific Collections
10. Funding Improvements
11. Conclusion
Logistics:
Participants in Storage for Infinity work at their own pace through 11 sections.
Instructor Helen Alten is available at scheduled times during the course for
email support. Materials include PowerPoint lectures, reading materials and
lecture notes. Supporting resources include message forums, weekly online
chats projects, quizzes and links to relevant web sites. Storage for Infinity
runs six weeks.
Student Comments:
"My first online class. I plan to do more." - Student in MS201
"I am so glad that you offered this course. I found it very beneficial." -
Student in MS201
"The most valuable part of the class will be the reference book I compiled with
all the lectures, forums, assignments, additional readings, etc. This class
contained a staggering amount of information … Something like this is much
more accessible, no travel expenses or ‘lost’ work time." - Student in MS201
" The layout of the web site made perfect sense to me. The flow of it was
easy to follow and it was nice to be able to see what things had
transpired/been posted.” - Student in MS201
"You seem very approachable and knowledgeable, Helen. This was a good
opportunity for meeting new colleagues and networking." - Student in MS201
"You could not have decided to offer a course any more relevant to the
precise issues that our institution is currently dealing with. Tons of detailed
info. and a lot of practical help that will actually be useful in daily operations." -
Student in MS201
"This was my first online class and I believe that it was quite a success thanks
to the organization that was provided by yourselves. I did not know what to
expect but both of you have surely set a very high standard of excellence in
online courses.” - Student in MS201
The Instructor:
Helen Alten is an objects conservator and owner of Northern States
Conservation Center, St. Paul, Minnesota. She has been an educator,
conservator and trainer since 1986. Ms. Alten received her master’s degree in
archaeological conservation and materials science at the Institute of
Archaeology, University of London in 1986. She began working with small,
rural, and tribal museums as conservator for Montana and Alaska.
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MS209: Collections Management Policies for Museums and Related Institutions
***NEW***
Instructor: William G. Tompkins
Dates: (Available twice in 2007)
March 19 through April 13, 2007
September 3 through 28, 2007
Price: $395
Location: online at http://www.museumclasses.org
The Northern States Conservation Center ( http://www.collectioncare.org ) is
pleased to add Collections Management Policies for Museums and Related
Institutions to our online collection management curriculum. This popular
Smithsonian workshop is now available online at www.museumclasses.org
Acquiring and holding collections impose specific legal, ethical and professional
obligations. Museums must ensure proper management, preservation and use
of their collections. A well-crafted collections management policy is key to
collections stewardship. Collections Management Policies for Museums and
Related Institutions helps participants develop policies that meet professional
and legal standards for collections management.
Collections Management Policies for Museums and Related Institutions teaches
the practical skills and knowledge needed to write and implement such a
policy. The course covers the essential components and issues a policy should
address. It also highlights the role of the policy in carrying out a museum’s
mission and guiding stewardship decisions. Participants are expected to draft
collections management policies.
Logistics:
Participants in Collections Management Policies work through sections at their
own pace. Instructor Bill Tompkins is available for scheduled email support.
Materials and resources include online literature, textbook readings, slide
lectures and dialog between students and online chats led by the instructor.
Course Textbook:
John E. Simmons, Things Great and Small: Collections Management Policies,
American Association of Museums, 2006, $40 non-member, $30 member, 208
pages, ISBN: 1-933253-03-7, available from the AAM bookstore
http://www.aam-us.org/bookstore/detail.cfm?id=721
Course Outline
1. The Principles of Collections Management
2. Collections Stewardship: The Role of a Collections Management Policy
3. Policy Versus Procedure
4. Issues to Consider When Developing a Collections Management Policy
5. Essential Components of a Collections Management Policy
· Statement of Purpose
· Statement of Authority
· Definition and Scope of Collections
· Acquisition and Accessioning
· Deaccessioning and Disposal
· Preservation
· Collections Information
· Inventory
· Risk Management and Security
· Access
· Loans
· Intellectual Property Rights Management
· Staff Responsibility / Ethics
6. Monitoring and Revision
7. Potential Problems
8. Emerging Issues
9. Drafting a Collections Management Policy
The Instructor:
William G. (Bill) Tompkins is the national collections coordinator for the
Smithsonian Institution. Bill serves as a principal advisor to senior Smithsonian
management and staff on collections-management policies, procedures and
standards. He develops, implements and interprets Smithsonian collections
management standards. This includes reviewing and approving the policies of
the Smithsonian’s individual museums to make sure collections are maintained
according to policy, professional standards and legal obligations. Previously, Bill
was assistant director of the Smithsonian’s Office of the Registrar. He is also a
former collections manager at the National Museum of American History. With
nearly thirty years experience in the museum profession, Bill regularly speaks
at professional meetings, workshops and university programs.
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