Association of Academic Museums and Galleries

AAMG’s 2022–25 strategy intends to strengthen the professionalism, educational and scholarly contributions, and overall impact of the academic museum field, within the academy and throughout the larger community. It also aims to strengthen AAMG’s position as the leading national organization representing academic museums, galleries, and collections. The AAMG Board has identified four strategic priorities for aggressive focus over the next three years and beyond. And we shall, as stated succinctly in our motto, continue to promote the belief that “Great universities have great museums.”

Professional development and peer community building: To establish opportunities for current and future members to engage and learn from each other and related experts, share insights and challenges, explore professional and career development, and create lasting professional communities.

Advocacy: To provide content, context, and field-wide representation in support of academic museums in their interactions with campus administrators, faculty, and other constituencies. To promote the adoption of professional standards and, when needed, deploy the Task Force for the Protection of University Collections in support of institutions whose collections are placed at risk of inappropriate deaccession, monetization, or other mismanagement.

Professional practices: To establish and disseminate AAMG-endorsed guidelines for the activities and obligations of an academic museum, gallery, or collection, as well as for the professionals, volunteers, governance structures, and campus users and administrators who supervise those entities and engage with those resources.

Organizational sustainability: To develop systems, structures, and financial opportunities for sustaining AAMG operations and effectiveness. To attract and retain more members across a greater diversity of museums. To attract additional funders and revenue-generating opportunities. To understand the issues of our current and potential member base.

For thirty-five years, the Association of Academic Museums and Galleries has flourished as the only national organization dedicated to supporting academic museums, galleries, and collections* and the people committed to their success. AAMG’s membership, capacity, and impact have grown dramatically, particularly over the past half-dozen years.

Among its accomplishments, this all-volunteer organization has received 501(c)3 status; produced a comprehensive and broadly accepted set of professional standards that accelerate the wise stewardship and use of our irreplaceable cultural and educational assets; increased the attendance, duration, and programmatic offerings of the annual conference; and become a respected voice for the field. These and other activities align with AAMG’s ongoing ambition and imperative to be the leading proponent and resource for our members and others in the field.

In the past five years, AAMG has accomplished a number of key initiatives: an independent conference that has more than doubled in size, the hiring of external support to ensure day to day operations, and the publication of key best practices documents for members. All of this has been accomplished by a working board of full time academic museum professionals.