Thursday, November 11, 2010

New to the Field? Want to Attend the AAM Annual Meeting for Free?


Since I posted my "how I got here" post earlier this week, I've received lots of emails and comments from museum professionals, old and (mostly) young, about their own paths and struggles to get into the museum field.

As a followup, I want to note that there are at least six ways to attend the American Association of Museums annual meeting in Houston May 22-25, 2011 for free. AAM is the granddaddy of American museum conferences, bringing together several thousand practitioners to share, learn, argue, and socialize. While at first I found it a bit overwhelming and corporate, it has become my favorite museum conference both for the breadth of content and the volume of leaders present from whom I love to learn.

I'm a member of the board of NAME--the National Association for Museum Exhibition--and we're offering three fellowships to attend the conference in 2011. EdCom--the Education Committee--offers three fellowships as well. Here are the specifics on these fellowships.

NAME student fellowship (2):
  • WHAT YOU GET: conference registration, $500 for travel/hotel, free tickets to NAME events, and a NAME mentor to hang out with you during the conference.
  • YOU MUST BE: a full-time graduate student in an exhibition-related course of study.
  • ALSO, YOU MUST: not have attended the AAM annual meeting before.
  • TO APPLY: send me one email titled "NAME Fellowship" with the following attachments: a cover letter (1-2 pages) about why you want to go to the meeting and why you need the money, your resume, and a letter of recommendation from an academic advisor or professional supervisor. More info here.
  • APPLICATIONS ARE DUE FEB. 18, 2011. Recipients will be notified by March 22.
NAME new museum professional fellowship (1):
  • WHAT YOU GET: conference registration, $500 for travel/hotel, free tickets to NAME events, and a NAME mentor to hang out with you during the conference.
  • YOU MUST BE: working or trying to work in the museum field with less than five years of museum experience.
  • ALSO, YOU MUST: not have attended the AAM annual meeting before.
  • TO APPLY: send me one email titled "NAME Fellowship" with the following attachments: a cover letter (1-2 pages) about why you want to go to the meeting and why you need the money, your resume, and a letter of recommendation from a professional supervisor or mentor. More info here.
  • APPLICATIONS ARE DUE FEB. 18, 2011. Recipients will be notified by March 22.
EdCom diversity fellowship (3):
  • WHAT YOU GET: conference registration, one-year EdCom membership, free tickets to EdCom events, and a EdCom mentor to hang out with you during the conference.
  • YOU MUST BE: a full-time graduate student in museum studies/education or new museum professional (3 or fewer years experience).
  • ALSO, YOU MUST: be a person of color.
  • TO APPLY: fill out this form, provide a resume, and a letter of endorsement. More info here.
  • APPLICATIONS ARE DUE JAN. 14, 2011. Recipients will be notified by February.

Hope to see you in Houston!
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