Online classes at Northern States Conservation Center

Starting Tuesday after Labor Day Northern States Conservation Center
offers six courses covering Collections Policies, Museum Management,
Volunteer Program Fundamentals, Museum Cleaning, Disaster Plan
Writing, and Storage Facilities.  There is still room in these
courses for students interested in building their skills in each of
these areas.  All are available at

    <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

Instructors:

  Karin Hostetter
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#kh>

  Sue Near
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#sn>

  Helen Alten
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#helen>

  Terri Schindel
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#terri>

  Bill Tompkins
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#bt>

  Gretchen Anderson
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#ga>

  Terri Schindel
  <URL:http://museumclasses.org/training/trolinstructors.html#terri>

September Online Classes: Please sign up and pay at
<URL:http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html>.  If you have
trouble, please contact

    Helen Alten
    651-659-9420
    helen<-a t->collectioncare< . >org

MS 108: Fundamentals of Museum Volunteer Programs  (new)
Instructor: Karin Hostetter
Sept. 2-26, 2008
Cost: $425
Location: <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    Volunteers are essential for most non-profit institutions. But
    even though they don't get paychecks, it takes time and money to
    have effective volunteers. Fundamentals of Museum Volunteer
    Programs, new for 2008, is designed to teach the basics of a
    strong volunteer program.  Topics include recruiting, training,
    and rewarding volunteers, as well as preparing staff.
    Instruction continues through firing and liabilities.
    Participants will end up with custom forms tailored to their
    institutions, an understanding of liability issues and a
    nine-step process to troubleshoot an existing volunteer program
    or create the best one for a particular institution.

    Course Outline
    Week One

        Introduction
        Laying the Foundation: preparing staff, job descriptions
        Determining Program Structure: who's in charge

    Week Two
        Recruiting Volunteers
        Selecting Volunteers

    Week Three
        Training Volunteers
        Evaluating Volunteers
        Saying "Thank You"

    Week Four
        Keeping Records
        Communicating Information: including handling change
        Liability
        Conclusion

    Logistics: Participants in Fundamentals of Museum Volunteer
    Programs work at their own pace through sections and interact
    through online chats. Instructor Karin Hostetter is available at
    scheduled times during the course for email support.
    Fundamentals of Museum Volunteer Programs includes online
    literature and student-teacher/group-teacher dialog. The course
    is limited to 20 participants.

MS 109:  Museum Management
Instructor: Susan Near
Sep 2 - 26, 2008
Price: $425
Location:  <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    Is your museum well run? Maybe, but few museums are so well run
    they don't need help. And a museum manager who needs no
    improvement is a rare commodity. Museum Management helps current
    managers improve and gives a good foundation to those who want
    to enter management. Participants learn requirements for museum
    administration and processes used to run a successful museum
    efficiently and effectively. Sound business practices and public
    accountability are key. Class discussions cover current
    concerns, such as how the changing cultural climate may effect
    museum operations. Discussions solidify concepts and help
    participants apply them to their own situations. Class
    discussions also build a peer support network that extends
    beyond the course.

    Course Outline

        Introduction
        Legal and Planning Documents
        Staff Responsibilities, Organization, and Personnel
        Management
        Strategic Planning
        Budget Management and Accountability
        Collections Management
        Facilities Management
        Marketing and Community Relations
        Development and Membership
        Public Programs and Evaluation
        Overview  Future Trends

    Logistics: Participants in Museum Management work through
    sections on their own. Instructor Susan Near is available for
    scheduled email support. Materials and resources include online
    literature and references, slide lectures, dialog between
    students and online chats led by the instructor.

    The course is limited to 20 participants.
    Museum Management runs four weeks.

    Course Book: Museum Administration: An Introduction By Hugh H.
    Genoways (University of Nebraska State Museum) and Lynne M.
    Ireland (Nebraska State Historical Society), Series: American
    Association for State and Local History, AltaMira Press, 2003

MS202: Museum Storage Facilities and Furniture
Instructor: Helen Alten
Sep 2-26, 2008
Cost: $425
Location: <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    Museum Storage Facilities and Furniture concentrates on building
    systems and furniture for storing and protecting collections.
    Topics include environmental controls, insulation, floor
    coatings and predicting space requirements. Museum Storage also
    compares commercial and homemade furniture and provides a
    blueprint for planning the redesign of your facility. Storage
    philosophy, construction requirements, safety and security and
    planning. A new unit details how commercial museum-quality
    cabinetry is constructed. Blueprints are provided for
    high-quality, homemade cabinets.

    Course Outline:

        Storage Philosophy
        Agents of Deterioration and Preservation Planning
        Storage Facilities
        Storage Furniture
        Conclusion

    Logistics: Participants in Museum Storage Facilities and
    Furniture work at individual paces through five sections.
    Instructor Helen Alten is available at scheduled times during
    the course for email support. Resources include forums and
    scheduled online chats, PowerPoint lectures, reading materials
    and lecture notes and links to relevant web sites.

MS205/6: Disaster Plan Research and Writing
Instructor: Terri Schindel
Sep 2 - Oct 10, 2008
Price: $475
Location: <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    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:

        Introduction to Disaster Planning
        Disaster Team
        Risk Assessment and Management
        Health and Safety
        Insurance
        Documentation
        Prioritizing Collections
        Writing the Disaster Preparedness Plan
        Emergency Procedures
        Disaster Response
        Emergency Procedures Recovery
        Emergency Procedures Salvage
        Emergency Procedures - Salvage Techniques and Guidelines
        Emergency supplies and location of regional resources
        Appendices:  What to put in them
        Next steps: planning drills and further resources
        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. The course is limited to 20 participants.

    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 <URL:http://www.collectioncare.org/tas/tas.html>.

MS209: Collections Management Policies
Instructor: William (Bill) Tompkins
Sept 2 - Nov 14, 2008
Price: $425
Location:  <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.

    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

    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

    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.

MS 217:  Museum Cleaning Basics (new)
Instructor: Gretchen Anderson
Sep 2 - 26, 2008 (may run longer)
Price: $425
Location:  <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    Museum Cleaning Basics explores everything you need to know
    about cleaning your collections. Participants learn when to
    clean  and when not to clean.  They also learn how to make those
    decisions.  Topics range from basic housekeeping to specific
    techniques for specific objects. You will learn why cleaning is
    important and how to prevent damage when cleaning. We will look
    at specific techniques that minimize damage while getting the
    work done. And we will discuss when to call in a specialist,
    such as a conservator.  Students will create a housekeeping
    manual for their institution.

    Course Outline

        Introduction
        Agents of Deterioration
        Health and safety for the object and for you
        Equipment and supplies
        Cleaning techniques
        Documentation
        Spring Cleaning: Housekeeping Manual
        Conclusion

    Logistics: Participants in Museum Cleaning Basics work through
    sections at their own pace. Instructor Gretchen Anderson is
    available for scheduled email support. Materials and resources
    include online literature, slide lectures and dialog between
    students and online chats led by the instructor. The course is
    limited to 20 participants.

MS 002:  Collection Protection  Are You Prepared?
Instructor: Terri Schindel
September 22-26, 2008
Price: $75
Location: <URL:http://www.museumclasses.org>

    Disaster planning is overwhelming.  Where do you start? Talk to
    Terri about how to get going. Use her check list to determine
    your level of preparedness.  What do you already have in place?
    Are you somewhat prepared?  What can you do next? Participants
    in Collection Protection will read literature and complete a
    checklist before joining two one-hour chats to discuss disaster
    preparedness at their institutions. This is a short seminar and
    takes no more than 10 hours of a student's time.


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 22:13
                 Distributed: Monday, September 1, 2008
                       Message Id: cdl-22-13-005
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