I served as the first diversity officer for the AAM. I was charged with advancing diversity and equity in museum practice at the American Alliance of Museums. I initiated the first Diversity Committee in this role by bringing their voices together.
I began my work with the AAM Accreditation and the Museum Assessment Program (MAP) programs. I was later contracted to coordinate the first hemispheric conference of the Americas. This was in partnership with the International Conference of Museums (ICOM).
The five-day conference, “Museums and Sustainable Communities,” included delegates from Canada, the USA, Mexico, and Central and South America. The meeting was hosted in San José, Costa Rica, on April 15-18, 1998. This hemispheric conference was the first of its kind. It laid the groundwork for what is now a biannual conference of ICOM.
After this successful conference, I continued my work at AAM as the manager for professional education and diversity. In this role, I created the first national coalition of diverse museum professionals. This coalition served as the foundation for the AAM Diversity Committee today.
I began this important work with the help of many museum leaders. I brought together leaders from eight professional associations. These include the African American Association of Museums. They also include the AAM Asian Pacific American Professional Interest Committee. The other committees are the AAM Latino American Professional Interest Committee and the AAM Native American Professional Interest Committee. Additionally, the AAM Gay and Lesbian Professional Interest Committee participated. The AAM AIDS Network, the AAM Committee for ADA Concerns, and the Council of American Jewish Museums were also involved.
These groups joined together to form what is now known as the AAM Diversity Committee. Together they worked to create programming and cross-cultural events. They also developed funding initiatives and a strategic agenda. The AAM Board of Directors participated in these efforts.
Significant accomplishments from that work include:
- The 2000-2001 annual meetings presented over sixty-five sessions focusing on multicultural issues in museums. Coalition members developed most of these professional education panels.
- The coalition also raised more than $10,000 for scholarships. This funding facilitates the participation of ethnic minorities and other under-represented groups in annual meetings. It also supports their involvement in professional education programs of AAM.
- As a result, the association awarded 35 scholarships to museum professionals. These professionals came from diverse backgrounds and interests. They attended the annual meetings and professional education seminars from 2000-2001.
- At the November 2000 AAM board meeting in Washington, D.C., participants from the AAM Board of Directors met with representatives from the AAM Diversity Coalition. They engaged in a two-day strategic planning meeting.
A copy of the report is available. The final AAM Strategic Agenda for Action provides a benchmark. This illustrates what the leaders in the museum field proposed in March of 2001.
“Museums exist to celebrate the richness of the diverse communities that we serve…”
Donald Duckworth, Director, The Bishop Museum, Hawai’i
John and I have had the opportunity to work together on various projects through the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Chiefly, the first-ever Summit of Museums of the Americas and the formation of the AAM’s Diversity Coalition…I can recommend him without reservation for any project having to do with cultural properties, as he is such a well-rounded and skilled individual.
During my tenure, I collaborated on creating “Leadership through Diversity.” It is a national program developed by the AAM. The program was developed in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution Center for Education and Museum Studies. The workshop was presented at six regional museum association conferences and reached over 250 diverse museum professionals.
John and I worked together developing and presenting diversity training workshops for museums professionals around the country. He helped make the workshops fun, engaging, informative, and practical. Feedback from participants was excellent…John’s energy and thinking were invaluable.
Tania Said, Visitor Advocate / Director of Education, David Owsley Museum of Art, Ball State University
