Washington Museum Association:Annual Conference

Washington Museum Association
2003 Annual Conference
Spokane, Washington
June 18 - 20, 2003

RISKY BUSINESS - Adventuring Outside the Box
Preliminary Schedule ~ Click Here
Download Registration Form (Adobe Acrobat)

Staff at the MAC (Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture) is actively planning your visit to Spokane for the 2003 WMA conference, June 18-20, titled "RISKY BUSINESS - Adventuring Outside the Box." Here are a few highlights:

On Wednesday, June 18, the MAC is negotiating a pre-conference workshop: "From Buttonhooks to Nintendo: Adventures in Collecting and Preserving the Past and Recent Past."

The conference opens on Wednesday evening with a downtown Spokane "immersion" event, coordinated around the MAC's Art @ Work gallery and Riverfront Park's Carrousel. The event offers informal opportunities to mingle with friends and staff of several Spokane museums; to meet "Lewis & Clark" at the IMAX; to enjoy ice cream sundaes and rides on the restored Nat Park carrousel; and if your stamina allows, to spend the late evening on a "pub crawl."

Conference sessions start Thursday morning, June 19, in the Early Bird Room of the freshly-restored 1914 Davenport Hotel. We have a special inspirational speaker at lunch who is guaranteed to lift your spirits to the ceiling. Don't miss the breakout sessions,lunch, and tours that provide more glimpses of this grand hotel. (We also have special incentives for WMA members who book early at the Davenport Hotel's reduced WMA rate!)

On Thursday evening, the WMA takes over the MAC! Enjoy regional foods and drinks within the warm glass-and-wood atmosphere of the new Museum; desserts in the restored 1898 Campbell House; entertainment; behind-the-scenes tours; and leisurely time for visiting and wandering the park-like setting of the Museum and Campbell House.

The conference concludes at the MAC on Friday, June 20, with a variety of inspiring sessions presented by museums, tribes, artists, historians, and community members. The conference "box" theme appears once again at the WMA auction and lunch.

Special WMA rates are available at the historic Davenport Hotel, designed by architect Kirtland Cutter. This is a special opportunity to enjoy the hospitality of one of the nation's most elegant and meticulously restored hotels which in the past hosted Presidents, celebrities, and just "plain folks." PLEASE PLAN TO BOOK EARLY...there are several other conferences occurring in Spokane at the same time.

Conference Scholarships
The WMA provides three scholarships to its annual conference. The conference, Risky Business: Adventuring Outside the Box, will be held at the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture in Spokane, Washington, on June 18^th — 20^th, 2003. Each of the three scholarships consists of gratis conference registration including meals and events connected with registration, a $200.00 stipend, which can be used to defray travel and lodging costs, and a one-year complimentary membership in the WMA. Scholarship recipients must attend the conference to receive the stipend and the complimentary membership. One need not be a WMA member to apply for a scholarship. The 2003 scholarship program is partially underwritten by a generous monetary contribution from Artech Fine Arts Services in Seattle, and by the WMA Silent Auction. The three scholarships include:

The Ellen Ferguson Student Scholarship: To be eligible, an applicant must be a current student in a college or university pursuing training in the museum or heritage fields or have a sincere interest in those fields. The applicant must explain his/her student status, his/her reasons for attending the conference, and his/her reasons for desiring a scholarship.

The Gus Norwood Volunteer Scholarship: To be eligible, an applicant must be a volunteer in any position at a museum of any size. The applicant must explain his/her volunteer position, his/her reasons for attending the conference, and his/her reasons for desiring a scholarship.

The WMA Working Professional Scholarship: To be eligible, an applicant must be a museum professional working in a museum of any size, that otherwise would not be able to attend the conference because of financial constraints. The applicant must explain his/her current status as a working professional, his/her reasons for attending the conference, the museum’s reasons for the applicant to attend the conference, and the applicant’s reasons for desiring a scholarship.

Each scholarship recipient will be requested to write about his/her experiences at the 2003 Annual WMA Conference or to write about a conference session they attended. This will be published in a future WMA newsletter. More detailed information will be provided upon receipt of the scholarship.

To download a scholarship application, select the appropriate format
Microsoft Word • Adobe Acrobat

Award of Excellence
The WMA recognizes outstanding achievement in the field of museum work by awarding up to eight Awards of Excellence annually. The award year runs from January through December 2002. To be eligible, the nominee must have exhibited the ability to set standards of leadership through outstanding service, established precedent, fulfilled mission and purpose, showed marked improvement, and to have provided an extended level of service to the community served. The recipients of the awards will be honored during a special presentation at the 2003 Annual WMA Conference, Risky Business: Adventuring Outside the Box, to be held at the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture in Spokane, Washington, on June 18^th - 20^th, 2003.

To download an Award of Excellence Nomination Form, select the appropriate format
Microsoft Word • Adobe Acrobat