We know that in September, we will wander through the warm winds of summer's wreckage. We will welcome summer's ghost. ~ Henry Rollins



NEWSLETTER

September 15, 2018

Tennessee Valley Railroad, Chattanooga



 


 

 

TAM Conference Only Six Months Away!

Proposals, award nominations, conference info
 


It might still be 2018, but it's time to start thinking about the TAM 2019 conference in Clarksville, Tennessee! This year’s theme is Connect, Cultivate, Sustain. Here's what you need to know so far:

Call for proposals

TAM 2019 will focus on the question: How can museums in Tennessee better cultivate valuable community resources, connect to new audiences in our backyard, and use them to become more sustainable institutions?

In 2019 as we gather near the river in Clarksville, the sessions and evening outings to local museums will allow time to discuss issues related to using our local resources to advance our missions within our communities. You'll be able to get ideas on how to cultivate and connect to your community, which is critical for sustainability for cultural institutions, and you can share successes, learn from failures, and gain valuable information on how to make our institutions critical community assets. If you have a proposal for a conference session within this year's theme, we want to hear your idea  click here to submit your session proposal! The deadline for session proposals is October 15.

Note: This is a new online submission system. You will need to create a user name and password to submit your proposal. You can start it, save it, and go back to it prior to submitting.

TAM Awards

Last month we hopefully put a bug in your ear about the TAM Awards of Excellence! Have you started thinking about what you want to brag about? If so, now is the time to start thinking about TAM Awards!!!

Your Awards Committee is working on some tweaks to the nomination form and guidelines, and we will have those available for you next month. But a couple of things we can tell you about now…

We WILL be doing away with our traditional deadline extension. This is important! We will have a DROP DEAD DEADLINE FOR ALL ENTRIES of JANUARY 25. No exceptions! This is your second notice; we’ll give you plenty of others. We want to make the application process fair across the board, and sticking with one deadline date does that.

Nominations for Volunteers will also change; instead of filling out the form like you would for exhibits or programs, we will be asking you to write a narrative for your nominee, much like what is done for Emerging Museum Professional nominations.

We’re creating a new category, Digital Media, which will include things like web pages, social media, podcasts, and more.

And we are tweaking the guidelines for exhibit entries to take into account exhibits that open at the end of the prior year (for example, November 2017) to take holiday exhibits, and others, into account. It will all be explained in the revamped guidelines coming in October.

The current nomination form is located here for you to work off of for now. But please remember it will change! And watch for examples of good, better, and best nomination forms to help guide you as you craft your own nominations.

Your TAM Awards committee is always available to hear your feedback, thoughts, ideas, and suggestions on the process. Feel free to email Tori Mason, Awards Committee Chair, at tmason@nashvillezoo.org. Good luck to you all as summer winds down and the busy fall season begins! And think: Awards!

Location, Location, Location!

The conference hotel for TAM 2019 is now finalized: the Riverview Inn in Clarksville! The TAM Conference group rate is $98 per night if you make your reservation by February 19, 2019. Call 931-552-3331 for reservations; you must use the group code: TAM Annual Conference to receive the discount. The hotel will require a credit card or deposit to hold the reservation. 

And finally...

The Tennessee Association of Museums is pleased to announce our joint scholarship program with Humanities Tennessee for the 2019 Annual TAM conference. Check out this link to learn more about eligibility, what the scholarships cover, deadlines, and how to apply. 


Bells of Peace

The United States World War One Centennial Commission is calling on communities to participate in Bells of Peace: A World War I Remembrance. This project is encouraging individuals and institutions to mobilize their communities for the national bell tolling on November 11, which honors the centennial of the armistice and acts as a mark of respect for the 4.5 million Americans who answered the call during World War I, prevailing against the forces of tyranny a century ago. For more information about Bells of Peace and to sign up to participate, check out this link


IMLS Grants for Museums

Museums across the United States have six opportunities in the coming months to apply for grants from the nation’s primary source of federal museum funding. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is now accepting applications for five current grant programs, as well as a new opportunity targeted to small museums. 

The museum funding opportunities and their deadlines are:

For more information, go to this link.




    

Featuring Tennessee Institutions and All the Great Stuff They Do!  


With limited space in the TAM newsletter, it's hard to feature all of the great events, exhibits, programs, and achievements of our Tennessee museums, cultural institutions, and historic sites. Therefore, as often as possible, we will use some space to feature the websites and blogs of Tennessee institutions and to offer brief congratulations for specific achievements and awards. This will help members to learn more about each other and enable you to follow the wonderful work these places are doing and go deeper into their content.


This month check out the the website of the Tennessee Valley Railroad, described as a "moving museum"! Not only can you learn more about rail travel and the railroad's equipment, but most importantly you can book several different rides on the trains themselves!  

And CONGRATULATIONS to the Greeneville-Greene County History Museum for earning a StEPs certificate: Stewardship of Collections and Interpretation Gold. 

If your museum or site runs a blog or interesting website that you'd like to see featured in the TAM newsletter, or if you have a specific achievement you'd like to share, please send details to Communications Chair Rene Rodgers at rrodgers@birthplaceofcountrymusic.org

 


 - UPCOMING OPPORTUNITIES -
                                        

 AAM Webinars
 
Recorded webinars:
Did you know that you can access recorded webinars from AAM? With over 70 programs to choose from, their recorded webinars cover a range of topics and offer an affordable, accessible and convenient online learning opportunity for you and your staff. Purchase of each recorded webinar includes access to the archived recording and presentation materials. Programs originally produced after 2009 feature closed-captioning.
    

AASLH Online Courses

September 17November 12, 2018: Leadership and Administration

October 8–December 3, 2018: Museum Education and Outreach

October 15November 16, 2018: Basics of Archives

October 15November 9, 2018: Project Management for History Professionals

October 22December 17, 2018 (Part 1) and January 22March 15, 2019 (Part 2): Developing Exhibitions

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Upcoming Conferences

September 2629: AASLH Annual Meeting 2018, Kansas City, MO

September 2728: AASLH Online Conference

October 810: SEMC, Jackson, MS




 
- More News and Information -

Pamela Joy Johnson 

Pamela Joy Johnson, who was active or worked in numerous arts, cultural and educational institutions in Tennessee including AASLH, Cheekwood, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and Belmont University, passed away on September 10, 2018. Her obituary can be found here.

Amazon Smile and TAM

Did you know that you can support TAM through any shopping you do on Amazon Smile? Amazon Smile will donate 0.5% to the Tennessee Associations of Museums whenever you shop on the site for anything from books to clothes to house goods!

Use this link to set up TAM as your charitable beneficiary on Amazon Smile today!



Current TAM Board Members, including contact details for regional reps:

Ken Mayes, President
Dollie Boyd, President Elect
Brad Kavan, Treasurer
Brooke Mundy, Secretary
Debbie Shaw, State Coordinator
Rene Rodgers, Communications Chair
Bethany Hawkins, Conference Chair
Tori Mason, Awards Chair
Hobart Akin, Professional Program Chair
Melina Ludwig, Technology Chair

Charles Googe, Vice President East TN

Rebecca Price, Vice President Middle TN
Chick History

Vice President – West TN (to be filled)
Have news to share??
Send it to 
tamnewsletter@gmail.com by the 1st of the month for publication around the 15th. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND the following:
  • We will try to include as much submitted information as possible, but have limited space.
  • The primary focus of the newsletter will be announcements, grant and professional opportunities, and news about members and member institutions.  
  • If an event is happening at the beginning of the month, we will need your information the PRECEDING month for it to be included. Events will be listed if space allows.
  • If there is timely information, publication may be earlier than the 15th of the month
  • Photos are welcome and encouraged! 
  • Have something you want to see? Let us know!! This is YOUR newsletter!

 

                      
 
 
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