We used to have a single email contact, but then it was extremely onerous for one person to sort through that daily and expeditiously forward all the correspondence to the appropriate staff member. We have both departmental and individual email contacts on our website: yes, we do get tons and tons of spam but it is easy to set up filters to cut down on the volume, and we think the accessibility to the public is worth it. If we don't serve the people who need us most immediately, then why are we here? As for the volume and appropriateness of inquiries, we have found that neither is a severe problem. True, sometimes we get inquiries at times when we can't respond as quickly as we would like, but often if we respond with something like "we have received your message and will get back to you with a detailed response in 2 days" it's better than if we just ignored their message for the same 2 days until we can get to it. We don't do peoples' homework or papers for them, and we are all well versed on where the sources are that, for example, a 6th grader could use for the information they are seeking (and I personally have no compunction about suggesting that if I fulfilled their request entirely then they would not be getting the full learning experience that their teachers intended, and therefore I will not do so). Julia Muney Moore Director of Exhibitions and Artist Services Indianapolis Art Center 820 E. 67th St. Indianapolis, IN 46220 (317) 255-2464 x233 FAX (317) 254-0486 email <[log in to unmask]> website <http://www.indplsartcenter.org> ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).