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Museum Education Division Column: Feb/Mar 2022

NAEA News Feb/Mar 2022

The columns for this issue of NAEA News were written prior to the 2022 National Convention. As such, you may find information about Convention sessions and references to past occurrences in the future tense.


Advocacy in Action: Museum Educators as Change Makers

Building on the Division’s collective work from the 2021 Preconvention, join museum educators from the United States and beyond on Thursday, February 10, 12:00 pm EST–7:00 pm EST, to explore how to build more equitable, inclusive spaces through the lenses of advocacy and resilience. We will spend the day learning from one another. Also, we will explore ways in which to champion our colleagues, audiences, and ourselves on both micro and macro scales. How can our collective actions contribute to a more resilient future for museum educators while leading the field toward justice?

Preconvention will feature a keynote presentation by Jeanette McCune and multiple small-group (30 people or less) sessions where we can connect with others to discuss the super-practical to the theoretical, and everything in between. Participants will have the opportunity to gather by programming areas (K–12, docents, family, etc.), number of years in the field, and size/location of the institution. We will also have a strong focus on advocacy efforts for diversity, equity, accessibility, inclusion, and antiracist practices. Join your colleagues to reconnect, share ideas, and learn new approaches for advocacy.

Keynote Spotlight. Image provided by Jeanette McCune.

Keynote speaker Jeanette McCune, director of school and community programs at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, will begin the day sharing her ideas of the power of collective partnership for positive change.

Jeanette McCune, director of school and community programs at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, is the lead for Kennedy Center’s preK–12 local and national art education partnerships in school and community settings. McCune serves as the strategic leader and visionary for the portfolio of school and community programs, which include DC School and Community Initiatives, Changing Education Through the Arts, Turnaround Arts, Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child, and Partners in Education. Prior to her appointment as the lead for school and community programs, McCune served as director of DC School and Community Initiatives from 2001 to 2017. In this role, she led Kennedy Center’s partnerships and alliances with Washington, DC, public and charter schools and local community collaborators, and was lead for the former Dance Theatre of Harlem residency at Kennedy Center and Musicals in Schools. McCune’s current program portfolio, in addition to oversight of all school and community programs, includes directing the comprehensive partnership with DCPS and DC charter schools, Any Given Child, Partners in Education, and the Kennedy Center Youth Council, which she founded. As an appointed member of the Kennedy Center’s social impact task force, McCune contributes to vision and planning for the REACH campus expansion and collaborative programming with the DC arts community. She serves as president of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts Partnership (DESAP) board of directors, and additionally serves on the board of directors of the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative. Prior to joining the Kennedy Center staff, McCune served as director of community and education programs at the Choral Arts Society of Washington and marketing manager at American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. McCune earned both a BA in music with a minor in business and an MBA from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.

Museum Development Committee Updates
There are two position updates within the Museum Education Division. Denise Gonzalez has moved into the Regional Representative position for the Western Division. Allie Rodgers Andreen is the Western Division Representative-Elect for 2021–2023.


MUSEUM DIVISION RESOURCES

Peer2Peer (aka P2P) was restarted over summer 2020 as a series of weekly casual virtual chats. Meetings are regular, and topics change frequently. Please check our social media channels (listed below) for the next date and topic. Kylee Crook, past Southeastern Representative, is leading the P2P program, so please connect with her to get more involved.

Viewfinder is the Museum Education Division’s online publication about the intersection of museum education and social justice. Viewfinder aims to engage colleagues in ongoing dialogues about socially engaged museum education work and is a resource dedicated to documenting the value of rigorous reflection. Contact Viewfinder’s editor in chief, Kabir Singh, if you’d like to be involved. We’re looking for authors, editors, and ideas for topics or themes.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Our social media team posts on Twitter (@NAEAMusEd) and Facebook (@NAEAMuseumEdDiv) weekly, often a combination of Museum Education Division announcements along with other resources we find helpful, inspiring, and thought provoking. This team is led by Jessica Fuentes and Allie Rogers Andreen. Join the online conversation and make new connections.



Natalie C. Jones, Division Director
Director of Learning, Harvey B. Gantt Center of Arts and African-American Culture, Charlotte, NC. Tel: 704-547-3764.
Email: rusticauracards@gmail.com

Elect:
Jennifer Beradino, Senior Manager, Object-Based Learning, Department of Learning and Interpretation, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX.

Regional Directors:
Eastern: Stephanie Stern, sstern@barnesfoundation.org
Southeastern: Celeste Fetta, celeste.fetta@vmfa.museum
Western: Jessica Fuentes, jessicaf@cartermuseum.org
Pacific: Gwendolyn Fernandez, gwendolyn.fernandez@gmail.com

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