Online course on collections management

MS209: Collections Management Policies for Museums and Related
    Institutions
Instructor: William G. Tompkins
Dates: (Available twice in 2007)

    March 19 - April 13, 2007
    September 3 - 28, 2007

Price: $425
Location: online at <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

The Northern States Conservation Center
<URL: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
<URL:http://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. The
course is limited to 20 participants.

Please sign up at <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org> and pay for the
course at <URL:http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html> . If you
have trouble with either, please contact Helen Alten
<helen [at] collectioncare__org>.

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
    <URL:http://www.aam-us.org/bookstore/detail.cfm?id=721>

Course Outline

    The Principles of Collections Management
    Collections Stewardship: The Role of a Collections Management
        Policy
    Policy Versus Procedure
    Issues to Consider When Developing a Collections Management
        Policy
    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

      Monitoring and Revision
      Potential Problems
      Emerging Issues
      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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                  Conservation DistList Instance 20:42
                  Distributed: Saturday, March 3, 2007
                       Message Id: cdl-20-42-010
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