Report to the Florida Association of Museum
From FAM President Sara Van Arsdel
September 13, 2006 Hilton University of Florida, Gainesville

To the Membership
2004-2006 Year

In the fall of 2004 when the Florida Association of Museums was scheduled to meet in Naples for their annual conference, Florida was in the middle of the worst year on record for hurricanes, with hurricanes Charley, Francis, Ivan and Jeanne striking the state and surrounding gulf states, which devastated our towns, communities, museums, botanical gardens and changed our way of life forever. We also faced the first cancellation ever of the annual conference, and early in 2005, the passing of a beloved colleague and friend, John P. Daniels. Perhaps because of or in spite of these serious and often heartbreaking challenges, the Florida museum community showed its resilience, helping those museums who needed aid, sharing compassion for our friends and colleagues, and providing a “Can Do” spirit which lives on in our institutions and in our dealings with each other. Our spirit of reaching out to our communities and museums has brought about tangible results (for those of you who measure such things) in the form of greater visibility, support and community recognition.

One of the most important legacies of that period was the creation of the John Daniels Mentorship Program Endowment, by the FAM and FAM Foundation Boards of Directors, which reflects the spirit of collegial mentorship John so much believed in and provides a way helping those new to the museum field. I am so pleased to announce that we now have over $25,000 raised for this program. I would like to recognize those who are here today who have benefited from this program. Please stand and be recognized. We also returned to Naples last year, and had a record number of attendees and programs. In fact, Naples and the Hyatt Regency want us back (in a few years)…

The FAM and FAM Foundation Board also decided to hold their 2005 annual June retreat in one of the areas hit hardest by Hurricane Charley, Sanibel Island, where we saw first hand the damage caused by the storm, and we also saw how the area and surrounding communities were working hard on their recovery. This included the hotel where we stayed, the room in which we met, had lost nearly its entire roof. Seeing this was an inspiration to us all, as we began the work on revitalizing the FAM and FAM Foundation strategic plan which serves to guide this organization for the future. I want to recognize G. Donald Adams and Wit Ostrenko for their efforts in leading the group. Some of our goals were to examine what had been accomplished in the nearly 20 years of FAM, as well as identify areas where we would like to see our organization grow in the next five years. I am pleased to share with you the 20 most significant accomplishments of the Florida Association of Museums which (is being distributed…) We have accomplished much, even in the short span of two years since the unforgettable year of 2004. These include:

1. Continuing to provide professional development and training to the field, through our annual conference, regional and local workshops and other core business responsibilities.
2. We also will continue to provide data and trained, new models and best practices to enable FAM and its members to obtain more museum resources. This strategic objective has been advanced with the joining of the Florida Art Museum Directors Association officially joining forces with FAM. I want to recognize and welcome the FAMDA members who are with us today, and ask that they stand and be recognized. The Florida Art Museums are significant cultural jewels among the crown that makes up our museum community, and we all can learn so much from art museum leadership, as well as providing creative ways for us all to work together, collaborate and providing even better museums for the changing communities in which we serve.
3. FAM also continues to be a leader in advocacy, focusing on cultivating relationships and strategic alliances with other cultural organizations to maintain, and even increase the funding support from the state of Florida, and nationally to all our museums. If we look backwards for a moment to 1986, who would have guessed that the grants program support for museums would be at the all time levels we see today for our museums? Who knew? I don’t know about you, but these grant programs have allowed my institution to grow, professionalize and do a much better job at serving my community. These programs have provided the fertilizer for us all to flourish and grow to heights not even dreamed of 20 years ago. FAM and the FAM Leadership have made this possible.

There are so many other areas where we have much work to do:

1. We recognize our need for strengthening Florida’s Museum and FAM Leadership. As the boomer generation looks longingly at retirement, we need to look at ourselves and our leaders, identifying the next generation of leaders for the organization. Leadership development should be part of the annual conference where a leadership track can be offered to those who are and those who want to become museum leaders. There are future leaders of FAM out there. We all invite you to become more active in FAM, which I promise you, from personal experience, has enriched my museum, and personal and professional friendships.
2. We have identified as an objective the establishment an Emeritus Board to have experienced retirees in FAM serve in a continuing supportive role. Just because you rotated off the board doesn’t mean you can sit in your museums and watch the exhibits. Note to all of you who have plans after you quit your day job: we will still look to you to continue to impart your wisdom which has been built on hard work, sometimes on hard knocks and learned from the school of experience. I am sure the last thing we would want is to have our institutions wither and fade or fail after the departure of a leader. Thriving and flourishing—serving our communities is the best legacy that can be left.
3. Our advocacy successes for the year can never be counted as continuing for the next legislative session and year. This is especially true because of term limits. This requires a constant vigilance and continuing education of our community leaders and legislative representatives, from the school board member to the mayor to the county commissioner, all the way up to the governor and our legislative delegates. This is a never ending labor which requires our vigilance and efforts. We all play a role in these efforts as we should and must continue to educate, inform and share our good works with our elected officials on all levels: from the elected homeowners association president, to our mayors, school board representatives, to our state and national officials, including our governor and senators.
4. One area of great concern for many of the smaller museums is the issue of adequate health care. Enough cannot be said about this serious and important need. This is one we won’t solve by ourselves, but requires us to join forces with other institutions, organizations and businesses to solve this most serious problem. And we can do much in collaborating and joining with these other groups, such as the Florida Chamber, AARP, the League of Cities and other groups for programming, promotion and mutual support.

As we look to the future, there are other topics that are under constant scrutiny: more programming, more services, better networking and communication, more financial support from governmental agencies—both state and federal. Capacity building. And our member satisfaction is equally important. What can we provide or do better? We ask this at every conference, and I know the FAM Foundation looks at every comment and suggestion in planning the educational sessions for the next conference. I encourage all of you to share your thoughts on how FAM can better serve the field and its needs.

We know the strength of our organization is due to our membership and the support you provide through personal and institutional dues. Insuring our fiscal viability allows the organization to survive and to thrive. If your museum is not an institutional member, please join. And if you are, thank you, and we look forward to your continued support.

I want to recognize both the Florida Association of Museums Board and Foundation Board, by asking them to stand and be recognized. You could not ask for better representation by a group who is focused on providing the very best for the field. And I am honored to have served with them, for them and for you.

Finally, I want to thank Malinda Horton, who is the glue that holds this organization together. We are all busy in our own museums, pursuing our own agendas, and the time that we do spend on issues impacting the field is never enough. Malinda is our fearless leader, the one we look to when things get bad and icky in Tallahassee, and the one we look to, to give us the real skinny on what’s happening—on both the state and national levels. Also, she is usually the one who knows where the next major “thing” is going to happen. I truly believe FAM could not and cannot accomplish all that we do without such a dynamic and dedicated person who is devoted to museum people and museums themselves. We are so lucky.

I want to thank all of you for your support and your continued dedication to museums and what we bring to the state. You are why museums work. Thank you.