MidWinter 2019 eNews of Note
2019 NYSCA/GHHN Conservation Treatment Grant
Portal is NOW OPEN!

The NYSCA/GHHN Conservation Treatment Grant Program is a partnership of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and Greater Hudson Heritage Network (GHHN) that provides support for treatment procedures by professional conservators to aid in stabilizing and preserving objects in collections of museums, historical and cultural organizations in New York State. The Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation has provided additional dedicated support for conservation treatment projects in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. 
The program provides support for treatment procedures by professional conservators to aid in stabilizing and preserving objects in collections of museums, historical, and cultural organizations in New York State.

Click "Learn More" for guidelines and a NEW informational slideshow detailing the application process.

What We Fund: Support of up to $7500 is available for conservation treatment of paintings, works on paper, textiles, furniture, and decorative objects owned by eligible organizations. Funding is also available for treatment costs for supports, frames, stands, and mounts that are integral to the treatment of the object.

What We Do Not Fund: Grant will not support the treatment of archival collections. Grant will not support staff salaries. Funds are not available for preventative care, re-housing or re-formatting of objects, purchases of storage furniture, or upgrading environmental systems.

Application Deadline: June 3, 2019
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The NYSCA/GHHN Conservation Treatment Grant Program is made possible with funds from the  New York State Council on the Arts,  with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.  ​​The Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation has provided additional dedicated support for conservation treatment projects in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
Behind the Scenes Networking Event
An In-Depth Look at Conservation Practice
March 29, 2019
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
ArtsWestcher Gallery

Curious about conservation? This is your chance to learn more! Join us at a very special Behind-the-Scenes on Friday, March 29. A panel of conservators - specializing in objects, paintings, and paper- will explain what conservation is, what a conservator does, and the conservation process (including examination, documentation, what goes into a condition report, understanding a treatment proposal, and how price quotes are reached). The panel of conservators includes:

  • Rachael Arenstein, Object conservator
  • Ann Baldwin, Paper conservator
  • Michele Kay, Painting conservator 
  • Anne King, Object conservator
  • Kerith Koss Schrager Paper conservator
  • Eugenie Milroy, Object conservator 

Afterwards, we will have a special tour of the AM Art Conservation studio - and always, there will be time for questions, wine, hors d'oeuvres, and conversation! 
We will also have the chance to view ArtsWestchester's newly opened " Modern Families " exhibit - and a representative from ArtsWestchester will be on hand to discuss their available funding opportunities. Space is very limited! Don't miss out!

We hope to see you there!
Thank you to ArtsWestchester for hosting us!
Harnessing the Power of Stories: A Workshop/Webinar Series
Three sessions:
April 2, June 25, July 23

Boscobel House & Gardens
1601 9D, Garrison, NY
9:30 AM - 4:00 PM

Workshop Fee: GHHN Members: $45 NonMembers: $55
Museums are all about stories! In order to best serve our current and potential audiences, heritage organizations need creative tools for interpretation and communication to build local capacity and sustainability while strengthening connections within its community. Museums are often seen as places of learning associated with the presentation of historical dates, facts and figures. However, they are also places where curiosity is invoked and where wondrous things can be discovered. The museum experience should engage visitors with hands-on and minds-on activities, storytelling, employ historical imagery, and evoke the spirit of historical persons from the past.  GHHN is excited to offer these programs in partnership with the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area /Hudson River Valley Greenway (HRVNHA/HRVG).

Psst ...Sign up for all three workshop sessions and save!
GHHN Members--$120/pp for all three / NonMembers--$145/pp for all three

Full-day workshops include lite breakfast, luncheon, afternoon coffee break, and reference materials. 
Interpreters as Storytellers:  
Shaping the Narrative,
Sharing the Story
with Tom Lee, Consultant
Educator and Storyteller 
April 2, 2019
Connecting Collections and Audience: The Theater-Artists' Approach to Telling the
Story of the Objects in the
Collection with Sean McNall,
Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival
June 25, 2019
Make History Live! Character Development with Kandie Carle, Artistic Director East Haddam Stage Company and Living History Performance Artist
July 23, 2019
greenway

The Harnessing the Power of Stories Workshop/Webinar Series is made possible by funding from the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.
Historic Housekeeping:
Preservation and Management of Historic Interiors

Guided by GHHN’s collection care professionals, participants will learn the proper hands-on methodology of collections care by working directly with collections at two locations on Long Island. Through our train-the-trainer focus, this full-day workshop will equip attendees with the knowledge and skill sets necessary for cleaning, handling, and storing collections along with the tools to teach their volunteer base these critical skills.
Tuesday, April 16, 2019
Sagtikos Manor, Bay Shore
Workshop Fee: $25
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

OR

Monday, July 15, 2019
Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, Mansion & Planetarium, Centerport
Workshop Fee: $25
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

This workshop is presented by GHHN and made possible through generous funding from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation.
Announcing the 2019 Collections Needs Assessment Program!

The NYSCA/GHHN Collection Needs Assessment Program is a NYSCA/GHHN Grant partnership program which provides two opportunities for museums across New York State. 
Site Assessment Program
The grant will support professional services for a collections consultant who will come to your organization for a half-day site visit focusing on a collections related topic. The consultant will discuss various areas of stewardship with the site including identifying your specific collections issues, suggesting and prioritizing basic steps to improve care of your collections. A written report will follow the consultation.  Maximum award: $650

Supplies Program
Applicants who have consulted with an appropriate professional may request funds to purchase collections management supplies. Supplies may include, but are not limited to: storage boxes, acid-free tissue paper, artifact trays, dividers, UV filtering film, Tyvek sheeting, tape, tags, labels, and environmental monitors. Supply requests for archival or library collections will not be supported.  Maximum award: $500 .

Portal Opens May 20, 2019. Applications Due June 3, 2019
The NYSCA/GHHN Conservation Treatment Grant Program is made possible with funds from the  New York State Council on the Arts,  with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. 
Free Poster Exhibit: Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow

New-York Historical Society is pleased to make available a compelling 8-piece poster exhibit that recounts the dramatic, national story of the struggle for black equality after the end of slavery. Exploring the years from the Civil War through World War I, the posters draw from our timely exhibition  Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow , on view at N-YHS until March 3, 2019.
 
Now, you can bring this story to your organization free of charge! N-YHS will send you the digital files for the eight posters (40” x 30”)—you decide how to print and where to mount them. They have also created an accompanying school curriculum, which you can download for free  here.  
 
Need funding for printing? Tax-exempt organizations with budgets of less than $250K annually may apply for a Humanities New York Quick Grant of $500 to cover the cost of printing exhibit panels. Quick Grants require a 1:1 match of cash and/or in-kind sources of support. For more information or to request a phone appointment, click  Here.   

Contact historyexhibits@nyhistory.org  with questions or to receive the hi-res files.
SAVE THE DATE!
GHHN Annual Conference - September 24, 2019
Bear Mountain Inn & Conference Center
We are experimenting with history! Consider the 2019 GHHN Annual Conference as a field guide to find new ways to connect with science at your heritage organization - from injecting a historic prospective into STEM* programs at your site; to analyzing how visitation at museums and historic sites can impact health and well-being; to exploring the many ways that science can help us understand our collections better - through conservation, forensics, and imaging technology. 

Join us on Tuesday, September 24 at the Bear Mountain Inn & Conference Center  to discover strategies and find inspiration for exploring how to connect with science at your heritage organization.

The Annual Conference will once again feature the extremely popular "Follow the Speaker" conference format - designed to help sites engage at a more direct level with our presenters. The conference will be a full day of learning, conversation, networking with your peers, office hours opportunities with grant funding organizations as well as a lite breakfast, networking luncheon, full-day exhibit hall, the  Awards for Excellence  ceremony and poster session, and more!  

Watch your email inbox for our call for presenters and the Awards for Excellence nominations. For more information on exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities, click here.
Register Your 2019 Path Through History Weekend Events Today!

In 2012, Governor Cuomo unveiled New York State's "Path Through History," a statewide initiative that links historically and culturally significant sites, locations and events throughout New York State. This effort to highlight our rich heritage aims to not only showcase the state's history and cultural significance, but also promote tourism and economic development in communities across the state.

Path Through History Weekends will be held this year in two seasons: 

Spring - on Father's Day weekend
(June 15 - 16, 2019) 

Fall - on Columbus Day weekend
(October 12 - 14, 2019)

Host sites can participate in one or both of the weekends; there is no obligation to participate in both.
If your organization is holding an event during these time frames that connects with New York State history, we encourage you to participate so
we can include it in our promotional efforts.

Sites that sign up will receive a variety of promotional materials to distribute, including rack cards, brochures, lawns signs, and stickers for a social media contest.

We hope you'll join us in celebrating New York State's history - click on the button below to register your event!
Preserve New York
The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and the Preservation League of New York State are pleased to offer the Preserve New York grant program. Launched in 1993, Preserve New York makes grants for historic structure reports, building condition reports, cultural landscape reports, and cultural resource surveys.   The  Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation  has provided additional support for projects in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
Applications Are Now Available for Preserve New York and Technical Assistance Grants from the Preservation League of New York!

Technical Assistance Grant
Grants of up to $3,000, with a required $500 match from each applicant, are available to non-profit groups and municipalities that manage historic sites, museums, arts facilities and other important institutions that serve an arts or cultural purpose and are open to the public.
The Technical Assistance Grant Program is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. The Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area has provided generous additional support for Technical Assistance Grant projects in the Heritage Area. 
 NYSCA/GHHN Creativity Incubator: Northern NY Session
May 1, 2019
Adirondack History Museum, Elizabethtown, NY
Museum Maverick: Rainey Tisdale

The NYSCA/GHHN Creativity Incubator is back for more sessions in 2019!
The CI workshop series invites staff in museums to test out experimental interpretive approaches. Each workshop session is completely different! The end goal of the program is to open our eyes to new possibilities and encourage museums to think more imaginatively about the interpretation of their collections and the visitor experience. We're very excited to bring this unique opportunity to museums around our great state - and hope you'll join us on our journey to think more creatively. We can't wait to see what ideas hatch!   

Registration will open in mid-March - and if you're interested, register ASAP - space is limited and these sessions sell out quickly! To learn more about this session's Museum Maverick Rainey Tisdale, click here.
"Great puzzle game; fun and challenging"
Feedback from GHHN's session at NEMA
In November 2018, GHHN Program Director Kerry Sclafani presented ‘The Case of the Livingston Silver’, the escape box experience created using reproduction archival materials from the collections at Bard College/Montgomery Place at the New England Museum Association (NEMA) Conference. The room was full to capacity - and the participants thoroughly enjoyed following the clues and solving the puzzles to locate the stolen silver! Teams raced against the clock - and each other - and the winners were even surprised with tiny 'golden' trophies! The evaluations are in - and according to NEMA staff, the session had some of the most enthusiastic comments on the evaluation forms, with one of the highest percentage rates of forms returned per session attendees.
Comments included:
  • "Spot on, insightful, engaging, fun, practical ideas I can bring back to my museum" 
  • "This content was amazing; great info on how to do this at your own institution"  
  • "The interactive nature of the session was fantastic"
  • "(presenter was) Engaging, informative, and hilarious!" 
Later this month, Kerry will be presenting the escape box experience at History Camp in Boston on March 16! And if you're a LIMA member, you'll have your chance to try your hand at the escape box when GHHN presents at their meeting on December 9, 2019 - details TBA!
National Park Service Accepting Proposals for Historic Revitalization Subgrants in Rural Communities
The Historic Revitalization Subgrant Program (HRSP) is a new Historic Preservation Fund grant program created in fiscal year 2018 that supports the rehabilitation of historic properties and fosters economic development of rural communities. This program funds physical preservation projects for historic sites, including architectural and engineering services through subgrants to communities determined rural by the US Bureau of the Census.

Eligible properties must be listed in the National Register of Historic Places or determined eligible for listing at the National, State, or local level of significance and located within rural (non-urban) communities with populations less than 50,000. States, Tribes, Certified Local Governments, and non-profits will apply for funding that will in turn be subgranted to rural communities in their jurisdictions.
Under this program, eligible grantees (nonprofits, Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, State Historic Preservation Offices, or Certified Local Governments) will receive funds to be subgranted to organizations within their jurisdictions to undertake project work. Applications must come from eligible grantees; these applications will describe the proposed subgrant(s).

Applications will be accepted via Grants.gov through April 1, 2019.
New York State Council on the Arts Applications Open!
NYSCA is currently accepting applications for FY2020 funding through our 15 Programs in the visual, performing, literary and media arts. Support through these programs reaches all 62 New York State counties, and includes dedicated funding for arts education, individual artists and programs reaching underserved communities.

NYSCA's Program Guidelines have been developed for FY2020 and may contain clarifications or substantive changes from the prior funding year. Applicants should carefully review ALL INSTRUCTIONS.

Application Deadline: March 28 at 4PM.

If you have questions about applying to NYSCA, please contact the following:
  • For questions specific to a particular program or grant request, contact the appropriate NYSCA Program Staff
  • For Prequalification questions, contact grantsgateway@its.ny.gov
  • For technical (computer) questions on the NYSCA-CFA online application, contact the CFA helpdesk at CFA-tech@ny.gov
  • For all other questions, contact the NYSCA Help Desk at Help@arts.ny.gov
Friday, April 5
9:30 AM -3:45 PM
Southeastern Conference Room, Highland, NY
SENY-Con is an annual conference to highlight the unique talents and skills that are held by the library professionals in the Southeastern region. This event is made possible due to an outpouring of enthusiasm from the region, and the event is free for all Southeastern members.
  • Members (Southeastern, MHLS, RCLS, BOCES, ESLN) are free!
  • Members with lunch: $11
  • Non-members: $10
  • Non-members with lunch: $22

Lunch will be catered by The Cake Artist in New Paltz, NY, and includes a drink and chips. You are also welcome to bring your own food.
MANY Conference in Cooperstown, NY
Access & Identity
April 7-9, 2019
Cooperstown, NY

During a time in which identities are being used to create separation and define difference, museums are in a powerful position to create inclusive environments where individuals of all identities can come together.  

Join MANY in Cooperstown to explore the ways in which we can strengthen and grow our museums  as community anchors and economic engines, as well as investigate the ways in which we can preserve our  cultural heritage and share all of our stories. 
Pssst...if you're heading to MANY , make sure to stop by GHHN's table in the Exhibit Hall and say hi! We'll also be participating in Office Hours - your chance to pick our brains about any of our available grants or other programming we do! We'll see you in Cooperstown!