Community Enhancing Role of Children's Museums Explored at 2003 InterActivity Conference

Washington, D.C. - Children's museums are the fastest growing type of cultural institution in America, and they are increasing their role in building strong community partnerships for learning. In the ninth annual survey of its museum members, the Association of Children's Museums (ACM) found that, despite a dip in attendance this year and last, business is brisk and that children's museums continue their active involvement with communities to foster lifelong learning.

Children's museums have proven remarkably resilient and stable as safe places for children to grow and learn in these troubling times. Janet Rice Elman, Executive Director of the Association of Children's Museums, said, "Children's museums are unique in how they bring communities together and serve as positive places for children and families to learn and play together. From after school programming, to outreach to at-risk families, to youth service learning, children's museums contribute to the value of their communities. ACM celebrates children's museums' role as a new kind of town square where play inspires lifelong learning."

Such community building efforts will be the focus of a meeting of more than 400 children's museum professionals, educators and researchers in Houston, Texas, from May 1- 3, 2003. InterActivity 2003, the annual conference of the Association of Children's Museums (ACM), will draw children's museum professionals from around the world to discuss the latest trends in the children's museum field. Speakers include Former First Lady Barbara Pierce Bush and experts in early childhood learning and development.

A Growth Spurt for Children's Museums

Children's museums represent the fastest growing segment of the museum field. Last year more than 27 million children and families visited children's museums. While the figure is slightly less than the 31million reported the year before, it reflects a decade of extraordinary growth. Attendance at children's museums has more than tripled since 1991, when ACM member museums reported overall attendance at eight million. In addition, more than 100 children's museums have opened to the public since 1990 and 55 are currently conducting capital campaigns for new buildings or expansions. ACM currently has 212 museum members, as well as 80 emerging museums not yet open to the public.

The past year has been a milestone year for children's museums with the award of a groundbreaking $7 million grant from the Freeman Foundation of Vermont. The funding will be used by children's museums to develop seven interactive traveling exhibits that promote better understanding of Asian cultures. The Association of Children's Museums is administering the grants, which will also enable the exhibits to travel to 70 hosting museums across the U.S. The award comes at a time when global understanding is at a premium and children's museums are well positioned to cultivate a cultural awareness in families.

Conference Highlights

InterActivity 2003 will spotlight the ways children's museums continue to grow and set the standards for informal learning through play. Keynote speakers will expand on this theme.

• Former First Lady Barbara Pierce Bush will accept the Great Friend to Kids Award and present a keynote address on the importance of families as children's first teachers. [May 1, 10:15 am]
  
• Bruce Perry, M.D., Ph.D., Senior Fellow, ChildTrauma Academy will give a keynote on how early life experiences shape child and culture. [May 2, 9:00 am]
  
• Charlotte Brantley, Senior Director, Ready to Learn, PBS, will accept the Kids' Voices Award and will address the role of public service media in the lives of today's children. [May 3, 7:30 am]

Former First Lady Barbara Pierce Bush will receive the 2003 Great Friend to Kids Award. This award was initiated in 1991 by ACM to honor individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions toward strengthening education and improving the lives of children. Mrs. Bush has used her public profile to benefit many causes, most notably: family literacy. The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy she helped create in 1990 works to support family literacy programs across the U.S., break the intergenerational cycle of illiteracy and establish literacy as a value for every American family.

In addition to recognizing lifetime achievement though the Great Friend to Kids Award, ACM also presents the Kids' Voices Award, paying tribute to other individuals or organizations that forged and nurtured opportunities for kids' voices to be heard and valued. The award recognizes journalists, commentators, authors and others who have cultivated a vital forum for giving voice to children and the issues they face in contemporary society. This year's recipient is PBS, the private, non-profit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation's 349 public television stations. A trusted community resource, PBS uses the power of non-commercial television, the Internet and other media to enrich the lives of all Americans through quality programs and education services that inform, inspire and delight.

Three children's museums will be honored for their innovative programming and management practices that define the role of children's museums in the community in unique and meaningful ways. The MetLife Foundation and Association of Children's Museums Promising Practice Awards will be presented in a ceremony on May 2.

The conference will conclude with a Tribute to Fred Rogers with remarks by John Hesse, General Manager, KUHT/Houston PBS, and a performance of the Roberts Elementary School Choir.

InterActivity 2003 is supported by Civil Society Institute, The Children's Museum of Houston Board of Directors, Ketchum, Studio Displays, Inc., as well as The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, the Children's Museum of Manhattan, the Children's Museum of Richmond, and Please Touch Museum®.

ACM is the professional service organization that endeavors to expand the capacity and further the vision of children's museums around the world. ACM's vision is to bring children and families together in a new kind of town square where play inspires lifelong learning. Founded in 1962 as a support group for directors, ACM has broadened its services and purpose as an international association with over 400 members.