In April 2002, John Suau become the executive director of the Mid-Atlantic Association of Museums (MAAM). One of six regional museum associations in the US, MAAM is one of the oldest and represents the most densely populated museum community in the world, arguably. The regional association includes museums in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.
When John Suau took the helm of the organization, it was just over 50 years old and experiencing a mid-life crisis. With the region’s museum population, the region holds the most collections, employs the most museum professionals, and educates the most university students in the country.
Each year, the Mid-Atlantic Association of Museums presented a conference in one of the region’s cities, including Albany, Newark, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. These three-day programs included professional development sessions for museum professionals from all types and sizes of institutions.
As one of six regional museum associations, MAAM is the country’s oldest.
John immediately began to update the organization’s website and was a pioneer user of mass email newsletters to help reinvigorate the organization and raise the group’s profile in the museum community. His work included redesigning the association’s logo, which is still used today.
Early in his tenure, John was inspired to create Building Museums, a three-day symposium about the expansion of existing and the creation of new museum facilities. Based on the community interest in a short workshop, John worked with the presenters to create a program that raised the profile of MAAM on both a national and an international level. That program is still in existence, some 15 years after the workshop in Albany.
During his tenure, John watched the Mid-Atlantic Association of Museums membership grow exponentially with over 2,000 members at his departure. John’s work served as a template for other museum association’s educational programs nationally and internationally.
The Building Museums program has produced two books by the content experts since the inception of this conference.
John led MAAM with enormous creative energy and enthusiasm, expanding it’s offerings to membership and launching a major new set of conference initiatives that took the regional association into national a platform for information. His integrity and follow through delivered everything he promised time after time.
Walt Crimm, Principal, Walt Crimm Associates
