MINUTES

MASC ANNUAL MEETING AND LUNCHEON

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF MUSEUMS CONFERENCE

LOS ANGELES

MAY 25, 2010

The meeting was called to order at 12:45 p.m. by chairman, Danny McDaniel. Also attending were: Patricia Miller (MASC secretary), Jenny Benjamin (SMAC), David Potter, Karen Franklin, Deborah Freeland, Christine Maasdam, and Galen Lee.

A list of sessions sponsored and cosponsored at the conference by MASC and a brief financial report are attached.

The main discussion centered on the current status and future of the committee. MASC has no Web site and little support from AAM in this regard. The need for a Web site in order to get out information was stressed. The committee has ample material that could be useful if posted on the Internet. A question was raised about the possibility of interfacing with Homeland Security in some way.

Sessions sponsored by MASC have an excellent reputation. It was suggested that MASC might combine forces with others. However, the idea of security professionals linking with facility managers was soundly rejected.

The possibility of a new name for the committee was posed, with something that had a broader meaning, such as emergency protection. It was noted that the committee is targeted more towards individuals than institutions. This should be changed.

A suggestion was made that we need to define the mission of MASC and also the audience. Who are the current people on the MASC committee? Who do we serve? How do we serve them? We primarily serve through the AAM sessions. Could we do more? MASC was started by security professionals and has been directed towards them. That is a limited audience. We might add risk management to our name.

Danny McDaniel noted that there will be a meeting of the SPC Council in August, which will be critical for the future of the SPCs. It’s possible that AAM will do away with vetting of the session proposals by the SPCs. The SPCs focus entirely on the AAM annual meeting. AAM needs more of a year-round agenda. What can the SPCs do year-round?

Security is not included in the evaluations for accreditation, except for emergency/disaster plans. There should be more on background checks, access control, opening and closing, tracking collections, and standardization of security procedures. Accreditation only measures minimum standards; it does not foster excellence. Security personnel should be a larger part of the accreditation process, and should be tied into facilities reports and UL listings. Accredited museums should have to follow facilities reports.

AAM depends on the annual meeting and on advocacy. The SPCs used to be represented on the AAM board, but without a vote. They currently are somewhat disenfranchised. It would help to formalize the relationship and encourage AAM to incorporate nonprofit management procedures.

Security personnel make sure that everything is safe. About 70% of museum operations relate to security – protection is preservation.

The conversation returned to the committee name. It was agreed that security by itself has a bad connotation. We need to convey more about risk management, protection, disaster planning. And we need to get attention at higher levels of museum administration.

There was general agreement that AAM needs to provide more support for SPCs, especially in assisting with a Web site. We have data. We need a way to disseminate it. Another question was, what is the status of independent professionals in AAM?

Questions to ask the MASC membership are: What is the business at hand? What is the mission? Who do we serve? What is our audience? Where do AAM members go for security information?

The meeting was adjourned at 1:45 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Patricia L. Miller

Secretary

AND LUNCHEON, HILTON AMERICAS

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF MUSEUMS CONFERENCE

HOUSTON, TEXAS

MAY 24, 2011

The meeting was called to order at 1:00 p.m. by chairman, Danny McDaniel. Also attending were: Patricia Miller (MASC secretary), Steve Keller, Peggy Schaller, Margaret Thomas, and Galen Lee.

The minutes from the MASC meeting, May 24, 2010, were approved.

Officers elected for a two year period were: Steven R. Keller, Chair; Robert Whitman, Vice Chair; and Robert Carotenuto, Secretary. Danny McDaniel will serve as Past Chair.

Danny McDaniel reported on proposed changes to the AAM Standing Professional Committees, which have been under discussion since August 2010. Building on AAM’s strategic plan, the “Spark,” which includes a goal of building AAM membership, the SPCs have been studying the possibility of allowing AAM members to pick membership in as many SPCs as desired with no extra fee. This would be similar to the ICOM model. The benefits to the SPCs vary. One question is without membership dues, how would the SPCs be funded? Both NAME (National Association of Museum Exhibitors) and RC-AAM (Registrar’s Committee of AAM) have sizable treasuries. The council of SPCs voted to send the proposal to the AAM board for approval next summer. The proposal included a two tier arrangement with NAME and RC-AAM retaining autonomy.

Another aspect of the new structure would be that all information from the SPCs would be restricted to AAM members. In some situations this would inhibit the flow of information that some SPCs might want to make freely available to all (such as on a website, which could affect MASC). The process is expected to take approximately two years. SPCs will need to be proactive in reaching out to make connections with members. 

The advantage to MASC would probably be in an increased number of committee members. Currently the committee has fifty-one members and less than twenty of them are security professionals.

It was suggested that election as MASC officers might serve as a means of preliminary service for later election to the ASIS (American Society for Industrial Security) Cultural Property Protection Council.

Another change affecting SPCs is that the current practice of allowing each SPC to protect three session proposals will probably be reduced to one session unless the topic has broad interest and gets support from other SPCs.

The new security website was discussed. It will offer information on many security-related topics, including power points that could be used for training. There could be opportunities for train-the-trainer sessions at the Smithsonian conference, and possibly some sessions at regional museum conferences.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Patricia L. Miller

Secretary