March 13, 2008

ACM NEWS

ACM Partners with Sotheby's
ACM is partnering with Sotheby's to include children's museums in the Sotheby's MasterCard Museum Program. Children's museums are invited to participate in the program, which offers free admission to Sotheby's MasterCard holders and up to three guests. Sotheby's will reimburse museums for the admissions at the highest admission fee charged by the museum. Additionally, museums will receive marketing exposure in Preview magazine and on Sotheby's Web site, with a dedicated Web page for each museum and a link back to the museum's Web site.

Sotheby's MasterCard Museum Program representatives will be in the InterActivity MarketPlace (Booth 54) on April 25, 2008, in Denver to explain the program. Additionally, all ACM member museums will receive a letter from Sotheby's announcing the program and providing details as well as an opt-in form. For more information on the Sotheby's MasterCard Museum Program, visit www.SothebysMasterCard.com and click "Museum Program."

Media Opportunity with PBS KIDS Sprout: "Let's Go Show" Discoveries
WHAT: Work with ACM to create scientific explanations for preschoolers on a variety of "Let's Go Show" Season Two topics. See ACM museums featured on Season One of the "Let's Go Show."
WHO: All ACM open museum members are welcome to apply.
WHEN: Respond by March 17, 2008
WHY: This is a great media and branding opportunity. If selected, your museum will be featured on the Sprout site, which averages 20,000 visitors per month. Your museum's scientific explanation will be credited and your museum's logo, exhibit/activity images and Web hyperlink will be included on the"Let's Go Show" microsite.
HOW: If your museum would like apply as a "Let's Go Show" Discovery Expert, please complete an online form on ACM's Web site by Monday, March 17.

ACM Discounts for InterActivity 2008
ACM has negotiated discounts on flights, ground transportation and lodging. Before heading to Denver, snare a deal by visiting the InterActivity logistics page.

IA Advance Registration Deadline: April 4, 2008
Save up to $30 per person by registering for InterActivity at the reduced Advanced Registration Rate for ACM Members. Full three day conference rate before April 4: $420. Onsite registration: $450. It pays to pre-register!

Showcase Your Museum's Diversity in Action
We've extended the deadline for museum's to apply for InterActivity's Diversity in Action Showcase to Tuesday, April 1. The showcase is a great opportunity to share how diversity is in action at your institution with your colleagues. Whether it is through creative programming, community outreach, specialized exhibits or staff support and/or recruitment, we want to see how your museum integrates and supports diversity in the broadest and most inclusive sense of the word, in its mission and daily operations. To learn more and submit materials online visit:
www.childrensmuseums.org/programs/awardapplication.htm#DIAShow

MEMBER NEWS

Wonderscope Children's Museum (Shawnee, KS) and The Children's Museum of Kansas City (KS), have joined forces to create a new children's museum in their community. Emerging as a new museum with a new name, Wonderscope Children's Museum of Kansas City, both museums will remain open until a new space is found.

Congratulations to AHA! A Hand's On Adventure (Lancaster, OH), which had its grand opening to the public on March 2. The 4,000-sq. ft. facility features more than 15 exhibits and activities geared toward children ages 7 and younger. The museum is part of a downtown revitalization project that includes four other museums.

Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine gathered with more than 30 children from a local Head Start program at the Children's Museum of Richmond (VA) to read the Dr. Seuss favorite, "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish." The event marked the National Education Association's Read Across America Day, which aims to promote reading as fun for young children as well as to encourage parents to read to their children. Read the new issue of ACMForum to find out which other museums participated in Read Across America events.

OPPORTUNITIES

Target Local Store Grants
The Local Store Grants program offers grant amounts typically ranging from $1,000-$3,000 for programs in three areas: arts, early childhood reading and family violence prevention. Each of the three areas has its own online application form. Applications are being accepted through May 31, 2008, for programs that will take place between October 1, 2008, and September 30, 2009. Apply online at www.target.com/grants

ACM Ally Events
Take advantage of hosting a community event tied to an ACM allied organization. All allies offer online resources to help you plan a successful event, including media relations support. Additionally, email ACM to let us know if you are hosting an event in conjunction with any of these organizations.

April 13-19: Week of the Young Child
Event Resources: www.naeyc.org/about/woyc/

April 21-27: TV Turn Off Week
Event Resources: www.tvturnoff.org/

April 25-27: National Youth Service Day
Event Resources: http://ysa.org/NatlGYSD/tabid/59/Default.aspx

All Kids Can: A National Call for Art
VSA arts and CVS Caremark All Kids Can seek artwork created by children for "All Kids Can… CREATE!," an exhibition encouraging learning through creative expression. All children ages 5-15 living in the US are eligible to apply. One representative artwork from each state and the District of Columbia will be selected for display during May 2008 in Washington, DC. Ten of the selected young artists will be invited to Washington to be honored in a congressional reception. For more information, including entry instructions, please visit www.vsarts.org/allkidscan or contact Jennifer Wexler, visual arts manager, at jcwexler@vsarts.org.

Fundraising Summit
The Center for Nonprofit Success is pleased to invite you to the Fundraising Summit, bringing together a group of experts in an interactive format to discuss the latest developments in grant-making and fundraising. Since attendance for this event is limited, early registration is strongly encouraged. The Summit takes place in Atlanta, GA, on March 18-19. For more information please visit: http://www.cfnps.org/atlanta2008.aspx

Afterschool for All Challenge 2008
Afterschool Alliance and advocates from across the United States are meeting in Washington, DC, May 13-14 to help grow support for afterschool programs. The program will feature two full days of activities, including a Youth Advocacy track, training and networking sessions, events meetings with members of Congress and staff. City officials, superintendents, school board members and afterschool providers will have the chance to share ideas and strategies for ensuring the growth of quality afterschool programs.

More information is available at www.AfterschoolAlliance.org. Call 202-347-2030 or email challenge@afterschoolalliance.org with any questions.

BRIDGES: A Museum/Community Partnership Conference
The Franklin Institute (Philadelphia, PA) will bring together museum and community pairs from 25 partnerships to explore best practices for developing and sustaining a shared vision of engaging underserved families in science enrichment activities. BRIDGES is specifically designed for programs whose primary audience is family groups.

BRIDGES will provide opportunities for participants to share triumphs and tragedies and build an ongoing community of practice. A dynamic keynote speaker, poster sessions and breakout discussions will form the basis for building a new museum/community network for science programs that serve families. Apply by May 1, 2008 at www.fi.edu/BRIDGES.

Communicating the Museum Conference
The Communicating the Museum Conference will explore the following areas: Audience Research and Development, Advertising, Programming and New Media. Each area will be broken down into keynote speeches and interactive sessions, with the goal of deconstructing success stories so that museums may apply them to future communication strategies.

The conference will take place June 25-28 in Venice, Italy. For registration and other information, please visit: www.CommunicatingTheMuseum.com/registration.html

CLASSIFIED

There are 10 grant and award opportunties on the National Grants and Awards Calendar. Here are some upcoming deadlines:
Institute of Museum and Library Services - 21st Century Museum Professionals - March 15
World of Children - World of Children Awards - April 30

There are 20 openings on the ACM Museum Jobs section. Here are some of the latest postings:
Boston Children's Museum [Vice President, Development] (Boston, MA)
Gallery Manager [Virginia Discovery Museum] (Charlottesville, VA)
Skirball Cultural Center [Noah's Ark Shift Supervisor/Gallery Educator] (Los Angeles, CA)

There are 66 exhibits on the ACM Exhibits Marketplace. Here are some of the latest postings:
"Learning Lounge: Smart Moves with Food and Fitness" - 300 sq. ft.
"Sonic Sensation" - 1,500 sq. ft.
"Mother Goose Math: Rhyme & Arithmetic" - 1,500 sq. ft.

All E-Updates are available online. We welcome member contributions: press clippings, exhibit information, major announcements. Please forward all materials for the E-Update and ACMForum to acm@ChildrensMuseums.org.