I graduated with the UW Museology Class of 2015 and have been working for small museums ever since. I really stumbled into the world of small museums more than I sought it out deliberately, but through experience I’ve found that the environment of a smaller institution suits me personally and can be a great step in the career trajectory of an emerging professional. My first job out of grad school was at the Jefferson County Museum, a local history museum…
Category: Blog
Training Students for the Future of Museums – Community Engagement (Course Highlight)
In Fall Quarter 2019, the University of Washington Museology Graduate Program was pleased to offer our Community Engagement course for the second time, taught by Dr. Meena Selvakumar. Meena has a long history with community engagement. “The very first project that I led and for which I received a federal grant was to develop a community engagement model for our local science museum,” Meena said. “While I have gained expertise in other areas of museum work, community engagement is one…
Mounting “Stories in Every Stitch” at Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
I have in my wallet a rectangle of wallpaper, perhaps two inches by four inches. Everyone on the team for this year’s Directed Fieldwork in Exhibit Installation course got one, handed to us by our instructor after a weekend of work installing Stories in Every Stitch at the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. As he divvied up these scraps of wallpaper, he explained their meaning: “I want you to hold onto these, and whenever you think something’s going to…
Taking Technology to New Heights – Peder Nelson (Alumni Spotlight)
Earlier this quarter, students in the Museology Program’s Museums & Technology course had the opportunity to visit the Museum of Flight to get a firsthand look at the exciting work being done there with virtual and augmented reality. The person taking the lead on that work is none other than program alumnus Peder Nelson (Class of 2012). We followed up with Peder about his work and how his experiences in the Museology Program have shaped his career. Peder’s combination of…
Paid Internship Pilot: Thank you for a great first year
As we start our second full year of the Museology program’s paid internship pilot, we would like to thank all of our partner organizations that have made this work possible. Together, we are working towards a more dynamic, inclusive, and equitable museum field. Our pilot program currently works with 25 local organizations to host paid internships for Museology students, each of whom is eligible for up to 180 hours paid. Through this paid internship program, the Museology program hopes to…
Curating “Capability”: Taking Risks and Finding Voice Through the Emerging Curator Initiative (ECI)
Author: Maggie DeFranco, Class of 2019 I came into the Museology program as an assistant curator and educator. I also came into the Museology program as a person who was attempting to leave the community trauma of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting about 3,000 miles behind me. These two aspects of my life, the professional and the personal, were ones that I had attempted to keep separated as an undergraduate arts management student. As a graduate student, I had the…
Community Spotlight – Renton History Museum
Author: Sarah Samson, Renton History Museum Curator of Collections & Exhibitions, Museology class of 2005 “Full-circle.” This was how one of my students described the opening of a student-curated exhibit at Renton History Museum (RHM) this May. A group was attending to support one of their fellow M.A. candidates. I first met them one Monday afternoon during their very first quarter. They were all taking my collections history lab, the class I teach for the Museology Graduate Program, which for some…
“Doing Work for the People that I Love” – Josephine Lee (Alumni Spotlight)
Josie Lee (Class of 2013) has her dream job. As Director of the new Ho-Chunk Nation Museum and Cultural Center (opening Summer 2019), Josie puts her Museology degree to use “doing work for the people that I love, utilizing culture, language, traditions, community, and environment all wrapped into one.” In fact, Josie’s desire to serve her community is what initially inspired her to pursue a degree in Museology. She says, “when I started out, I had an idea that I…
“Hero’s Feast: Finding Community through Dungeons and Dragons” (Student Exhibit)
There’s a lot of buzz going around about the fantasy-themed exhibit guest curated by Museology student Allison Moore (class of 2019). Hero’s Feast: Finding Community through Dungeons and Dragons, currently on display at the Renton History Museum, explores the history and impact of the popular game. Moore appeared alongside Sarah Samson, Curator of Collections & Exhibitions at Renton History Museum, on King 5’s New Day Northwest to talk about the inspiration for the exhibit. Moore wanted to connect with the community of…
Count your theses: 31 ways our students are helping us improve our practice
Every year, in the first few weeks of spring quarter, our second-year students pull themselves out of the writing, data collecting, project planning, and analysis to share their thesis work in five minute lightning-style presentations. These thesis preview presentations are a chance for first-year students, staff and faculty to get an early indication of what they have learned at this point in their research or projects. It’s also an opportunity to see the breadth and depth of topics our students cover each year,…