NEMA Conference 2009

The New England Museum Association 2009 Conference will be held in Nashua, NH on November 11-13. I will present on Thursday the 12th as part of the session titled Volunteer Docents vs. Paid Interpretive Staff: Pros, Cons, Issues and Solutions. My co-panelists include Tara Young (Museum of Russian Icons), Maria Mingalone (Berkshire Museum), and Jennifer DePrizio (Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum). Budget issues, changing volunteer demographics and heightened expectations from visitors require many museum education departments to rethink the traditional model of providing tours and programs. But is it better for your museum to have a large group of volunteers or a small number of paid educators? And what are the hidden costs of volunteers and staff? Each panelist will discuss her experience with different models and will provide suggestions of how to determine the best fit for your museum. I will provide insight from my own experience as Director of Education at Fuller Craft Museum where I managed and trained up to 40 volunteer Museum Educators.

I hope to see you in Nashua!