FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Arlington, VA – The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, today announced seven new museum accreditation awards and 15 reaccreditations made at the February 2019 meeting of the Accreditation Commission.  Of the nation’s estimated 33,000 museums, 1,072 are currently accredited.

Through a rigorous process of self-assessment and review by their peers, these museums have demonstrated they meet standards and best practices and are educational entities that are appropriate stewards of the collections and resources they hold in the public trust.

Recognized as the field’s gold standard for museum excellence for nearly 50 years, AAM accreditation signifies a museum’s quality and credibility to the entire museum community, to governments and outside agencies, and to the museum-going public.  The Accreditation Program helps to ensure the integrity and accessibility of museum collections, reinforce the educational and public service roles of museums and promote good governance practices and ethical behavior.

According to Accreditation Commission Chair Amy Bartow-Melia, “This particular group of accredited museums is notable for the number of smaller institutions—showing that size is not a barrier to accreditation. Over a quarter of the museums we granted accreditation to last month have three or fewer staff, including three of the first-time awardees and three reaccreditations. In fact, one newly accredited museum has only one full-time staff person. They, along with the rest of the museums on this list, are an inspiration to our field and vital assets to the communities they serve.”

The following museums were accredited for the first time:

• Art Museum, University of Saint Joseph, West Hartford, CT
• Fort Nisqually Living History Museum, Tacoma, WA
• Mayborn Museum Complex, Baylor University, Waco, TX
• John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, WI
• Star Spangled Banner Flag House and 1812 Museum, Baltimore, MD
• The George Washington University Museum & The Textile Museum*, Washington, DC
  (first-time accreditation as a combined entity; Textile Museum previously accredited)
• Tulsa Children’s Museum, Tulsa, OK

The following museums were reaccredited:

• Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan, Alpena, MI
• Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA
• Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
• Heritage Frederick, Frederick, MD
• High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA
• Idaho State Museum, Boise, ID
• Illinois State Museum, Springfield, IL
• Laumeier Sculpture Park, Saint Louis, MO
• Michigan State University Museum, East Lansing, MI
• Noah Webster House & West Hartford Historical Society, West Hartford, CT
• Piedmont Arts Association, Martinsville, VA
• San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, San Francisco, CA
• Schiele Museum of Natural History, Gastonia, NC
• South Carolina State Museum, Columbia, SC
• Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, Santa Fe, NM

To earn accreditation, a museum submits a self-study questionnaire and key operational documents for evaluation, then undergoes a site visit by a two-person team of peer reviewers which produces a report for the Accreditation Commission. The Commission uses these materials and its collective expertise to determine whether to grant accreditation.

Read more about the Alliance’s Accreditation program.

About the American Alliance of Museums

The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community.  For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.

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Press Contact:

David Harrison

Harrison Communications

410-804-1728

david@harrisoncommunications.net

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