I understand that the present economy has placed a tremendous strain on what museums can do. I also believe in this basic truth " You get what you pay for". If you want the best, you got to pay for the best. Education, which produce and sharpen valuable skills, cost money. It is true that if a museum professional want to succeed in their field, or any profession, he/she must always keep current with "in demand" skills. Museum professionals should always look for ways to keep on top of the trends and issues in the their profession. Museums should also realize the basic truth previously stated. If this can be done, museums should include in their budget some funds to help pay for an employee's cost of attending such wonderful opportunities like the Annual AAM meeting, or some of the less expensive meetings. Not everyone gets a scholarship.
A professional has spent a tremendous amount of money and energy investing in education (college) and job search activities ( resume paper and gas to travel to interviews) to gain employment in their profession. A museum professional, in my opinion, probably has spent even more money and invested more time than some other professionals. This is due to the difficulty found with breaking into the field, since there are much more people seeking a museum job than there are jobs.
I am not saying that we should put the museums in the poor house; but in this world, if you want to maintain an excellent employee, you have to give a little cash for the maintenance (education programs). If we could provide maintenance for our cars by paying for the tune up and oil check ever so often, we can certainly do the same for our brilliant museum professionals.
Sincerely,
Merri C. Pemberton