Course Overview 

MST 5183 Collections Management will consider the place of collections in the life of a museum; how collections mesh with the museum mission; collections policies and stewardship. It will relate theoretical ideas on collection development and maintenance to the actualities of museum situations.1 

As stewards of the collections they oversee, museums are responsible for all aspects of their management, including legal, social, and ethical obligations that must be met. Such obligations include demonstrating professional standards in the documentation, exhibition, storage, and conservation of the works in their care. Good collection management also involves the oversight of intellectual property rights and legal issues involved with the works in the permanent collection and those on loan. This is accomplished through collections plans and management policies that reflect the museum's mission and meet best practices requirements defined by the American Association of Museums (AAM). A museum, as a steward, is obligated to provide care to ensure that the collections entrusted to them are available for display and research for future generations.2 

Course Learning Objectives3 

• Explain in detail the strategies of managing a collection

• Differentiate between collections planning and collections management

• Draw connections between accessioning, deaccessioning, and the mission of the museum

• Discuss the importance of accountability and the documentation required to provide it

• Realize the legal implications and responsibilities involved in collections management

• Apply concepts of good management, including proactive and reactive conservation methods realized through good environmental controls, safe storage and handling, and secure exhibits

• Distinguish the difference between conservation, maintenance, preservation, and restoration

• Develop a case study based on the collections of an existing museum of choice or an idealized museum

Analysis 

The course gave me a deeper understanding of the development of collection policies and plans, along with greater comprehension of the museum’s mission statement, object acquisitions, accessions and registration, object deaccession and disposal, museum loans, collection care, museum collection risk management, and museum ethics. The most impactful concept of the course was learning about collection policies and how to conduct effective collection management that reflects the museum’s mission and meets the AAM’s professional standards and practices. A course concept that challenged my thinking was learning about the legal aspects of a museum’s collection plan, including the acquisition and deaccession of objects. Before taking this course, I did not know much about collection management, therefore, learning this topic shifted my perspective on how ethics and legality are handled in the museum regarding the authenticity of an object’s provenance, object loans, and importance of accurate record keeping, all of which will assist the institution if there is any call for restitution, like over Nazi era looted art, or if any legal issues may arise. The course structure was well organized, with readings that supported the learning outcomes and helped complete the discussion boards and required assignments. Additionally, the course required me to learn and apply concepts from the Collection Plan and Policies applicable to a real-world document in Collections Management.

The artifact, Project: Course Spanning Task 2 Unit 4, demonstrates my understanding of the course concepts for collection management, as well as ethical accountability and documentation over accessioning and deaccessioning, in relation to the institution’s mission statement, while also aligning with the AAM Collections Stewardship Standards, the AAM Core Standards for Museums, and the ICOM Code of Ethics.6,7,8 When creating this artifact, I analytically applied theoretical concepts from the course over the acquisition and deaccessioning of objects in a museum’s collection, as well as procedures and policies for purchases, loans, and gift guidelines. Moreover, this artifact gave me the knowledge to create policies for a museum’s collection that incorporate ethical stewardship into its operations. The artifact further showcases my growth and progress in developing a Collections Plan and a Collections Management Policy, furthering my understanding of the museum’s functions and operations, as well as ethical standards and legal responsibilities when working with and handling collections in an institution. Therefore, the artifact meets the course objectives by implementing strategies for managing a museum collection, understanding the interrelation between accessioning and deaccessioning with the institution’s mission, and crafting a fictional Collections Management Policy for an existing museum.9 A limitation was keeping my writing as concise as possible to fit the project’s 2-3 page limit. In a real-world setting, it would likely need to be fleshed out further. Additionally, this artifact is just one part of a course-spanning project, so the entire document is not available for you to view. However, the strength of this artifact is that I gained a thorough understanding of collection management, including collection care and handling, as well as ethical stewardship. 

Reflection  

The course impacted me professionally by teaching me how to develop a Collection Management Policy. The artifact introduced me to the museum’s collection management practices and made me aware of provenance and repatriation in relation to objects looted during World War II, deepening my interest in ethical and legal practices of provenance and repatriation in ethnographic institutions, which would later inspire me for assignments in Controversy and the World of the Museum and the Research Methods courses. 

The course was taken during my second semester in the MAMS program. One challenge was that I had never created a collections policy before, and since I was creating my own, I constantly doubted whether I had included all the necessary sections in the document. I overcome this by reviewing policies available on the web for Natural History museums to gain insight into how the document should be organized. Another challenge I experienced was of a personal nature, as I had a severe asthma attack that left me ill for about a month. During this time, it was a bit difficult to balance coursework and ensure I completed my assignments on time, but I used a planner and managed to get them all done.  

Completing the course helped me achieve my Personal Learning Goal (PLG) 1, to develop effective stewardship skills in collections management and curation by strengthening my understanding of collections care,  documentation, object handling, conservation care, ethical standards to ensure object protection, storage, and handling procedures, and understanding collections development policies, as well as meeting Program Learning Outcomes (PLO) 2, 4, and 7. Lastly, the course was highly influential in shaping my understanding of collection stewardship, so I would not change anything if I had to do it again.