December 9, 2008

ACM NEWS

InterActivity 2009 Registration is Live!
Registration for InterActivity 2009 is LIVE!  Register at the Early Bird Rate to maximize savings. Need help with registration? Check out these simple instructions to breeze through the online process.

Hotel Room Reservations
The official hotel for InterActivity 2009, Sheraton Philadelphia City Center, is currently taking reservations from conference attendees. Lock in discounted room rates before April 4, 2009. Rooms sell out quickly, reserve today.

InterActivity Small Museum Financial Aid Program
Sponsored by Jack Rouse Associates
The goal of the program is to offset professional development expenses for museum staff at open children's museums with annual budgets under $500,000, who would otherwise be unable to attend InterActivity. Recipients receive complimentary registration to InterActivity 2009 and tickets to two evening events.
Apply Online Deadline is February 6, 2009.

American Association of Museums FREE Crisis Guide
Visit American Association of Museums' online resources about weathering financially difficult times. Finding Calm in Crisis: A Museum Survival Guide.

2008 Children’s Museums Metrics Reports
ACM has added a new FREE member service that provides access to ACM’s comprehensive children’s museum data, the 2008 Children’s Museums Metrics Reports. Designed for institutional benchmarking and planning, reports feature more than 100 charts of compiled data drawn from the most recent Museum Membership Survey and analyzed by outside consulting firm AWP Research.

ACM/Nickelodeon Children’s Museum Promotion Report
Results from the ACM/Nickelodeon GoCityKids Promotion in the Bulletin Board section of the Members Only Web site. Special Note: The Children’s Museum of Phoenix (AZ) was the museum with the highest number of redemptions (54 coupons). Highly successful promotions also occurred at Schoolhouse Children's Museum (Boynton Beach, FL) with 43 coupon redemptions and Impression 5 Science Center (Lansing, MI) with 38 coupon redemptions.

Get Your Hands on the Latest Hand to Hand
Read the lead article in the fall issue of Hand to Hand, “The Landscape of Children’s Museums Around the World” by Leigh-Anne Stradeski, Eureka! The National Children’s Museum. Hard copy of Hand to Hand was mailed to members in November.

ACM’s 2009 Award: All Applications Due by Jan 19, 2009
Have an outstanding promising practice or strategy for incorporating universal design? ACM is here to recognize member’s achievements with three award opportunities totaling $60,000.

> Universal Design for Learning Award Award amount: $10,000

> Promising Practice Award Award amount: $7,500

> Promising Practice Replication Award Award amount: $10,000

Questions? Contact Korie Twiggs, Program Officer, Education.

Promising Practice Award Survey
Have an idea on how to improve the Promising Practice Award program? Tell us! Complete the brief 10-15 minute survey by December 18.

ACM MarketPlace Filling Rapidly
Take a sneak peek at which organizations have locked into 2009 ACM MarketPlace locations. With just 9 tabletops and 40 booths available, Declare Your Impact today by registering for the ACM MarketPlace. Contact Program Manager, Events, Joy Jump with questions.

MEMBER NEWS

As a gift to the community, the Phelps Youth Pavilion/Waterloo Center for the Arts (IA) will be hosting Holiday Dollar Days every Sunday during the month of December in conjunction with the larger “We Give to You, You Give to Others, We all Give Thanks” promotion. Admission to the Pavilion will be $1 plus an item for the Northeast Iowa Food Bank.

Every year one-of-a-kind ornaments are made by ordinary Americans to hang on 56 trees — one for every U.S. state, territory and the District of Columbia – that surround the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse in Washington, DC. This year three ACM member museums —Louisiana Children’s Museum, New Orleans; Omaha Children’s Museum, NE; Discovery Place Kids, Charlotte, NC —  have given their time and talents to design and create tree ornaments that symbolize the history, heritage and culture of their home states. Check out their creations: http://www.thenationaltree.org/visit-santa/pathway-of-peace/

OPPORTUNITIES

Noyce Leadership Institute Application Deadline: Jan. 5, 2009
The Noyce Leadership Fellows Program assists leaders of science centers and related institutions to move forward with greater effectiveness and public impact in the 21st century. Fellows navigate real-life issues through insights and solutions from faculty, executive coaches, other program advisors and their peers. Three residential retreats provide an opportunity to meet leading experts in leadership, strategy, governance, organizational change, nonprofit management and fundraising. Apply online:
http://www.noycefdn.org/leadershipinstitute/NLIT-SP1.html

Growing IN Place
Marbles Kids Museum (Raleigh, NC) will host the Sustainable Urban Design for Children & Families Conference in conjunction with The Natural Learning Initiative and NC State University, College of Design Urban Design, on February 20, 2009. The symposium will stimulate discussion about how planners and designers can enhance the wellbeing of urban families. Learn more at:
http://www.naturalearning.org/training/gip09/about.html

Getty Professional Development Opportunity
Deadline: January 13, 2009
The program is open to highly committed museum directors and senior executives who influence policy, effect change and typically have had a minimum of five years of challenging work experience in museums. Admission is competitive. Tuition: $5,500 per participant. Apply online:www.getty.edu/leadership/programs/mli/ 

Just Playing? Conference January 14, 2009
Conference host Eureka! The Museum For Children (Halifax, West Yorkshire, U.K.) will examine the role of play in children’s lives. Can children learn through play? Should adults take part in child’s play? Can digital technology enhance play? These questions and others will be asked at the conference — a first for the United Kingdom’s leading children’s museum — that will bring together different parts of the play and learning sectors with playworkers, early years practitioners and teachers attending. Learn more at www.eureka.org.uk/justplaying.

General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids Grants
Deadline: January 15, 2009
Every year, the General Mills Foundation awards fifty, $10,000 grants to community-based groups that develop creative ways to help youth adopt a balanced diet and physically active lifestyle. Apply online at: http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/commitment/champions.aspx

Coming Up Taller Awards Nomination Deadline: January 30, 2009
The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities is inviting nominations for the 2009 Coming Up Taller Awards.  The program, recognizes the accomplishments of exceptional after-school and out-of-school arts and humanities programs. Coming Up Taller finalists receive $10,000, an individualized plaque and an invitation to attend the Coming Up Taller Leadership Enhancement Conference. Apply online at: www.cominguptaller.org.

Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities Initiative Proposal
Deadline: February 3, 2009  
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has launched Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (HKHC,) a $44-million, five-year initiative. HKHC will focus on systems, policies and environmental strategies to support healthy eating and active living, especially among children who are at greatest risk of obesity. Learn more at: http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/

CLASSIFIED

Opportunities on the National Grants and Awards Calendar, including:
> National Endowment for the Humanities,
We the People: Family and Youth Programs January 28
> Institute of Museum and Library Services,
National Leadership Grants for Museums and Libraries — February 17
> Smithsonian Institution,
Smithsonian Fellowships in Museum Practice — February 15

There are 9 openings on ACM Museum Jobs, including:
> Wonderscope Children’s Museum of Kansas City
[Director of Development] (Shawnee, KS)
> Project Exploration [Director of Youth Programs] (Chicago, IL)
> Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota
[Executive Director] (Mankato)

There are 70 exhibits available for sale and rent on ACM Exhibits MarketPlace, including:
> “Adventures of Riley: Biome Trek” — 5,000 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.