June 2020
VAM News
Virginia Re-opening
Virginia Governor Northam has begun to reopen parts of Virginia from the stay at home order. As we navigate these uncharted waters, we will strive to keep you up to date on when museums in the Commonwealth will be included in the opening and what rules or regulations are announced.


VAM Response to the COVID-19 Crisis

Like the rest of the country VAM staff are continuing to work from home. We are available by email if you need to reach one of us. We will continue to provide online content and other programs as long as we are all working remotely.

Remember, VAM is extending all memberships renewal grace periods for three months. If your membership is due, VAM is giving you up to three additional months past your expiration date to pay it. We are also offering a payment plan for some levels of membership if that helps with your limited budget at this time. Let Jennifer or Dan know if you would like to set up a membership payment plan.

Member in Transition
If you have recently been laid off due to the Coronavirus cutbacks, we can offer you a year's individual membership for free. We want you to focus on getting back in the museum workforce and not worry about your membership with VAM. Get all the details here on our Members in Transition page.

Explore VAM’s new member benefit program from Pendella. Individuals can get access to disability, life, and vision insurance, and groups can sign up for money-saving health plans. This program includes rates specially created for VAM’s members, but are being offered by Pendella; this is not a VAM-run health plan. 

Upcoming Events
Join us for the upcoming webinars and VAM chats during the month of June. You can peruse the schedule and register for them here . Upcoming topics include webinars on Summer Camps, Virtual tours, How to reopen your site and a VAM Happy Hour!

Upcoming Virtual Events

June 9 How to Handle Facility Rentals/Events
Member News
Museums are working tirelessly to take their exhibitions, collections, tours and programs online to help educators and families continue learning and to provide a much needed escape during time of isolation. Check out some of the things museums across the Commonwealth have been doing here. VAM is constantly updating the list of museums providing online content to be able to share. Please contact us to be added .


Featured member:
Monticello
Thomas Jefferson's Monticello was recently awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to create programming for the Nation's upcoming 250th anniversary.

NEH has launched a major new initiative, “A More Perfect Union: NEH Special Initiative Advancing Civic Education and Commemorating the Nation’s 250 th Anniversary.” Monticello noted it will use this grant to support the planning and development of a new interpretative visitor experience at Monticello to mark the nation’s 250 th anniversary and the bicentennial of Thomas Jefferson’s death in 2026.

VAMONDE
VAMONDE has temporarily closed their offices during the COVID -19 pandemic. To assist those who are or are thinking about working with VAMONDE, here is a statement from them:

COVID-19 shutdowns have impacted our business at VAMONDE, as they have many of our partners, peers and competitors during COVID-19. As a result, starting June 1st, we will be moving to a reduced operations model. This is how the change will impact you:

  1. If you have already signed up for the platform, you can continue to access the platform, create content and use the other tools for free. If you have questions or requests, please email kartik@vamonde.com

For museums interested in using VAMONDE, you will have two options:

  1. You can sign up for the platform after June 1st, but there will be a fee of $100/month to cover account servicing and allow us to maintain access to the platform.
  2. You can wait until October, when we will most likely resume normal operations and can be a part of your museum association program then.
Resources
VAM is continually monitoring COVID-19 related information and resources of benefit to the museum and nonprofit sector, and is gathering these on our website.

Links to VAM's various resource pages related to COVID-19:

Main Resources Page  https://www.vamuseums.org/events/


Hails & Farewells
Congratulations to Jeffrey Allison , VMFA's Mellon Educator and Manager of Statewide Programs, was named an honoree of the 2019 Richmond Times-Dispatch Person of the Year program. 

Farewell to Stratford Hall President John Bacon who is leaving his position later this year. We wish him the best of luck as he pursues new opportunities.

Congratulations to VAM Board member Andrew Coulomb for being named the new Director of Operations at the Valentine Museum. Andrew started work at the Valentine in late May.
Professional Development Opportunities
AASLH is calling on all history organizations to complete the 2020 National Visitation Survey . The questionnaire should only take about five minutes to complete.  The survey can be found here . Your response is critical for helping the history community better understand national and regional trends.
Funding & Marketing Opportunities
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) announced a new grant for Collections and Reference Resources. This grant will help museums and other sites digitize their collections to enable them to make their collections more broadly available to the general public. Applications are due July 15th. Read more about it here.

IMLS Cares Act Grants for Museums and Libraries
The goal of this grant program is to support the role of museums and libraries in responding to the coronavirus pandemic in ways that meet the immediate and future COVID-19 needs of the communities and audiences they serve. Application date is June 12th. Find our more about it here.
Headlines
No Touch, No Hands-On Learning, for Now, as Museums Try to Reopen
Science and children’s museums are studying how to rethink their many tactile exhibits to keep people safe. Read about it here .


State of the art: How museums are preparing to open amid coronavirus crisis. Spoiler: There will be more Do Not Touch signs!
Read about what some museums are planning as they reopen to the public. Read about it here .
Career Center
Search VAM's Career Center for information on the only museum management certificate offered by a museum association plus resume help and job listings.


  • Museum Interpreter
  • Director of Finance
  • Annual Fund Manager
  • Advancement Director
  • And more!
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Do you have news to share? Contact us at membership@vamuseums.org
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