CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF NAPLES PARTICIPATES IN THE AMERICAN ALLIANCE OF MUSEUMS 2023 MUSEUM ASSESSMENT PROGRAM

NAPLES, Florida (April 10, 2023) – The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, recently selected a new cohort of 79 museums to participate in its 2023 Museum Assessment Program, including the Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples (CMON).

Since its inception in 1981, the Museum Assessment Program (MAP) has helped more than 5,000 small and mid-sized museums of all types strengthen operations, plan for the future, and meet standards. With 5 types of assessments available, over 60% of AAM-accredited museums have participated in the program.

To participate in the Museum Assessment Program, museums choose from one of five institutional assessment types: Organizational, Collections Stewardship, Education & Interpretation, Community & Audience Engagement, or Board Leadership. All five assessment types are grounded in AAM’s Core Standards; are inclusive of Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion (DEAI) issues as they relate to the assessment focus; help museums look at both functional and strategic aspects of their operations, and present focused learning modules and action plans for the museum to progress through; and include a peer-reviewed site visit. Over one-third of participating museums found the experience so valuable that they returned to participate another time in the Museum Assessment Program.

“CMON is honored to be accepted by AAM to undertake a Collections Stewardship Assessment as part of the 2023 cohort of MAP museums,” said CMON’s Chief Operations and Education Officer, Bonnie Thayer. “We have a wonderful collection of artwork and cultural artifacts and we believe this assessment will identify our strengths and weaknesses in caretaking of our collection.  We hope to implement changes to our caretaking procedures, so that we can continue to exhibit current and future acquisitions of artwork and artifacts for our community to enjoy for years to come.”

The benefits of participating in MAP are clear. Museums often gain clarity on an institutional roadmap or strategic plan, see positive impacts to their visitor experience or community response to their museum, grow in their ability to identify their strengths and challenges, or gain valuable assistance with updating museum policy, successes in fundraising, and other benefits.

MAP is supported through a cooperative agreement between the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the American Alliance of Museums. Read more about the Alliance’s Museum Assessment Program and Continuum of Excellence.