Its About People: Museums + Families + Communities
Upstate History Alliance
Museum Association of New York
Annual Conference
April 9-11, 2006
Gideon Putman Hotel, Saratoga Springs, New York

³Whatever the reason for focus on audience, museums are seeking ways to
reach a broader public, forge community ties, and compete effectively with
alternative providers of leisure and educational activitiesŠ.In the process,
museum managers and staff are discovering assets and resources which museum
possess and were in the past often overlooked.²

-Neil Kotler and Philip Kotler, Can Museums Be All Things to All People?
Mission, Goals, and Marketing¹s Role, 2000

For generations, museums were considered primarily as repositories for
objects ­ audiences were small and relatively homogeneous.  Over the last
generation however, a major shift has taken place.  New mission and vision
statements put people at the forefront of museum work, and institutions are
increasingly expected to attract new and continuing audiences, as well as
play integral roles in their communities.  At this year's conference, we
will explore this shift, and the impact it is making on both institutions
and the people they serve.

We are currently seeking proposals for conference sessions that discuss or
explore aspects related to our theme of "It's About People."  We are
interested in creating a provocative and diverse program for this
conference, and welcome proposals from museums of every discipline, as well
as from all areas within institutions -- collections, exhibitions,
education/outreach, development, administration, governance.

For more information, please visit
www.upstatehistory.org/services/conferences/proposal.html, or contact Jenny
Rosenzweig, Program Coordinator, at 800.895.1648 or [log in to unmask]