Museum Assessment Program (MAP)
Drop and Reimbursement Policy

What if my museum wants to drop from the program?

Sometimes it is necessary for museums to withdraw from the Museum Assessment Program. The Program’s drop policy and process is outlined below.

MAP Drop Policy

Museums may withdraw from the Museum Assessment Program at any point during their assessment. For Institute of Museum and Library Service grant recipients (asessments prior to 2006), IMLS may involuntarily drop a participating museum from the Program if the museum becomes ineligible for a grant or if the assessment is inactive and the museum’s grant award period has expired. For Flexible Participation program participants, MAP staff may involuntarily drop a museum from the Program if the assessment is inactive for more than one year.

MAP Reimbursement Policy

Museums withdrawing from the Museum Assessment Program will receive a reimbursement appropriate to their place in the process. If a visit has not occurred, all honoraria funds will be returned. Museums will receive a fraction of their administration fee according to how many months have passed since the museum started the Program. For example, if five months have passed since the museum’s start date, 7/12 of the museum’s administration fee will be returned. MAP bases this reimbursement policy on the fact that the majority of MAP staff’s work on your assessment occurs during the first twelve months of the assessment.

How much money do we get back?

If you are an IMLS grant recipient you will return all unused grant funds to IMLS based on the Reimbursement Policy above.  If you are a Flexible Participation program participant, you will receive your Surveyor honoraria funds if a visit has not occurred and a fraction of your administration fee based on the Reimbursement Policy above.

Will we be able to do another MAP in the future?

Museums applying for the same or a different assessment are fully eligible for a MAP assessment beginning with the next annual application cycle.

Procedure:

First contact MAP staff to discuss alternatives to dropping from the Program. If no alternative is available, follow these steps:

IMLS Grant Recipients

• Notify MAP and IMLS in writing of the museum’s intent to drop from the Program – address your letter to your IMLS Program Officer, and copy the MAP Program Coordinator.  Please either mail or fax your letter to IMLS so there is an original signature on the letter;
• IMLS will provide instructions for withdrawing from MAP and closing your grant award;
• MAP staff will begin the reimbursement process according to the Reimbursement Policy outlined above;
• MAP will mail official acknowledgement of the museum’s withdrawal from the Program with a reimbursement check which must be forwarded to IMLS with other award monies in the museum’s possession;
• Once all remaining award monies are received by IMLS, the agency will officially close out the museum’s MAP grant award.

Flexible Participation Program Participants

• Notify MAP in writing of the museum’s intent to drop from the Program;
• MAP staff will begin the reimbursement process according to the Reimbursement Policy outlined above;
• MAP will mail official acknowledgement of the museum’s withdrawal from the Program with a reimbursement check.

Contact Information