Small Museum
Association Conference Feb. 2013
Tuesday, Session Two
with Colleen Walter
Evil Nemesis or Grand Alliance: Exploring the Effect of Volunteers on Museum Professionals
The Premise:
This is my third year attending the SMA conference, and my
first as a speaker. During this time, I
have transitioned from student to museum professional. This experience raised in my mind many
questions about the value of history education in the job market and the
devaluation of the work of professional historians. Positions once considered ideal for a newly
minted historian are now highly competitive and graduates find themselves
competing against colleagues with years more education and experience for entry
level positions. Many of these new
professionals opt to volunteer at local institutions in the meanwhile, gaining
work experience and waiting out the recession.
For some, this strategy ultimately secures them a paid position within
the institution. But what about the
rest? By willing to work for no pay, are
new professionals doing themselves a disservice? Are they unintentionally devaluing the years
of training and expense spent to earn the title of historian?
Small museums thrive on the time and work of dedicated
volunteers or docents. Without the
efforts of those individuals vital programming, events, education, and outreach
would never be accomplished. Clearly,
volunteers are a valuable asset to the small museum. And so a catch-22 emerges. How can we, as museum professionals, make the
best use of our volunteers without writing ourselves out of a job? What role do volunteers play at your
museum?
Discussion Outline
·
Understanding Your Volunteers
o
What roles do they serve at your site?
§
Examples from my work experience, in no
particular order: Docents, board members, assistance with educational programs,
basic archival processing, grounds (ie hiking trails and farmstead site)
development and maintenance, gardening/ farming, seed preservation, participation
in living history events, heritage textile arts (Stitch in Time= traditional
wool processing), FoodWays colonial cooking and food preparation, costume
manufacturer, and many more.
§
Consider these roles. Are volunteers effective? Why or why not? What do you consider to be an effective use
of a volunteer?
§
What unique skills or qualities does a volunteer
bring to their role?
o
Demographics- Who are your volunteers?
§
Retired people, stay-at-home parents,
non-earning spouse in a single-income household, individuals with a devoted
interest in the history of YOUR site, they generally live locally
·
Understanding the New Professional
o
What skills/ training do they possess that is
unique?
o
Academic degree, training in standards of
research and interpretation, comprehension of the field overall, professional
accreditation, knowledge of current research and case studies in a specific
field
o
With that in mind, what roles could they serve
on site that is different from those listed above for the volunteers?
o
Do YOU think that the use of volunteers devalues
the work done by New Professionals?
·
An Effective Transition- How Can Your
Institution Help?
o
For many New Professionals, the answer to
finding work in the field is simple- be a volunteer until a paid position opens
up. Hopefully this comes in the form of
an internship. But post graduation and
without gainful employment, many turn to volunteering as a way to continue to
be active in the field and do the work they are passionate for. A constructive position ideally builds on the
knowledge the individual brings to that role, facilitating their growth as a
museum professional and segue ways into a permanent, paid position.
o
What opportunities does your institution offer
to facilitate this transition?
§
Small museums generally mean a small, dedicated
staff. As such, many times there are
simply not positions available to offer to a volunteer, regardless of their
qualifications. Should/ could you turn
first to volunteers when conducting a search to fill a vacancy?
§
Do not discount the value of a trained
professional when deciding whether or not to fill a vacancy.
·
Closing Thoughts
o
What can we take away from this discussion?
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment