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Museum Advancement Program
Mission Statement
The mission of the Historical and Cultural Museum Advancement Program is to promote excellence in all aspects of the management, programming, and maintenance of Maryland's historical and cultural museums. It assists the museums in making their collections and public programs available to all citizens. The program reflects the Maryland Department of Planning (MDP) policy objectives to: a) promote growth that fosters vibrant, livable communities, b) preserve and protect the environment, and c) make efficient use of State resources.
Specific Goals
Support the care, interpretation, documentation, display and research of Maryland's cultural museum collections. Sustain museum programming to ensure broad public access to Maryland's cultural heritage museums. Identify, assess, and promote Maryland's cultural heritage museums in order to encourage public awareness of these unique resources. Assist with maintaining and preserving these significant assets to ensure their survival for the benefit of future generations. Foster professionalism and excellence within these museums, historical societies and historic sites.
Background
The State of Maryland is fortunate to be home to over 220 heritage museums which are located in every county throughout the state. In an effort to encourage the important contributions these institutions make to the state's education, cultural research and conservation, tourism, and energizing of our communities, the General Assembly established the “Historical and Cultural Museum Assistance Program” in July 1990. This program is designed to assist Maryland's heritage museums by providing: Technical Assistance and Financial Assistance through grants to help these institutions to serve the public and to achieve excellence in museum practices.
Technical Assistance
Program staff will be available to visit museums on a first-come, first-served basis (financial resources permitting) and will offer program assistance including linkage to other museums, networking to museum professionals, state and national level service organizations, and other resources.
Program Grants
Museum Grants are administered through the Historical and Cultural Museum Advancement Program. These grants are available to museums, nonprofit organizations and local jurisdictions that have been open to the public on a regular basis for three years. Museum Education and Planning Grants assist museums, historical societies, and historic sites in creating organizational plans to guide their programming and institutional development. Museum Challenge Project Grants provide support to museums for a wide range of projects from public interpretation to collections management. These grants are designed to encourage excellence in museum practices. Museum Enhancement Challenge Grants support flagship museums across the state that represent significant historical collections and offer quality public programs. Both of the “Challenge” grants require significant non-state support to match requested state funds.
For further information, contact Mary Alexander, Director, Museum Advancement Program, at (410) 514-7622.
Last updated: November 6, 2007
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