Since the first 16 museums were accredited in 1971, the AAM Museum Accreditation Program has worked to build stronger museums and museum profession by promoting standards and best practices through a self-regulating program of quality assurance and accountability. The program had its genesis in the mid-1960s, arising from a desire by museums to define attainable professional standards for cultural and educational service before some other group or the government imposed standards upon them. More...

1996 Article: AAM Accreditation Celebrates 25 Years

The First Accreditation Commission Members

Listen to an audio clip called Museums and Standards (the 1971 entry for AAM's Centennial timeline)

Timeline