Kudos Affiliates!! November 2020

Congratulations to these Affiliates on their recent accomplishments! Do you have kudos to share? Please send potential entries to Aaron Glavas, GlavasC@si.edu.

FUNDING

Mystic Seaport Museum (Mystic, CT) received a $1,572 grant from Connecticut Humanities to hold a free online lecture series related to its new exhibition, Sailor Made: Folk Art of the Sea.

Whale's Tooth

Whale’s tooth with carving in color – “Battle of Lake Erie Perry’s Victory”. Com. Oliver H. Perry N.S.M. One of a pair; other 1941.412. Brought home by Capt. Butts aboard bark BRAMIN. Sailed from New Bedford, 1847. Attributed to Nathaniel Sylvester Finney.

Framingham State University (Framingham, MA) received a $7,500 grant from the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) issued by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners. The funds will be used for producing podcasts and videos engaging students in civic issues, creating a student photo exhibit exploring current political issues, lectures and panel discussions on the state of democracy in America, and racial healing training.

The Dubuque Museum of Art (Dubuque, IA) is one of 11 community organizations to receive a grant from Mediacom Communications. The $5,000 grant will be used to host a series of free Saturday events, featuring performing and visual arts programs.

Cardinals Care will distribute over $160,000 in grant money to 82 area nonprofit groups including the Saint Louis Science Center (Saint Louis, MO). The grants will be used to fund tangible items, one-time capital expenses, and special supplies or purchases that directly benefit local children.

The Ford Foundation named 20 organizations “America’s Cultural Treasures” and will award funding to each. Arab American National Museum (Dearborn, MI), Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, CA), Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico (Santurce, Puerto Rico), and Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience (Seattle, WA) are among the recipients. This year’s grants are the first part of a two-part commitment to help fund Black, Latinx, Asian, and Indigenous arts organizations that have had financial challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The national grants will range from $1 million to $6 million and cover portions of each group’s operating budget. Each group also will receive up to $100,000 for organizational capacity building in areas like digital strategies.

Durham Museum (Omaha, NE) received a grant as part of the Union Pacific Railroad’s Community Ties Giving Program to address needs related to the COVID-19 pandemic including general operating support.

LEADERSHIP

Gary Stoppelman, newly hired Executive Director of the Dubuque Museum of Art
Credit: Dubuque Museum of Art

The Dubuque Museum of Art (Dubuque, IA) welcomes Gary Stoppelman as its next Executive Director. During his 25-year career, Stoppelman has worked for The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and he led the re-branding project for the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

Coming up in Affiliateland in Fall 2020

We’ve made it to November! Affiliates continue to produce amazing events and we’re excited to share what is happening in Affiliate communities. Did we miss a Smithsonian collaboration in your community? Email affiliates@si.edu to let us know.

North Carolina

The Cape Fear Museum in Wilmington hosts a virtual talk with Dr. Krewasky A. Salter, former military subject matter expert at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. Dr. Salter will speak on African American Citizenship and Service, 11.4 at 4 p.m. Eastern Time.

Iowa
The National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque will be hosting several screenings of Smithsonian Channel programs including America’s Mississippi: The Headwaters; The Heartland; and The Bayou in December.

Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Historical Society in Oklahoma City will screen the Smithsonian Channel programs Soul of a People: Writing America’s Story and The Pacific War in Color in December.

…and from Affiliations in Washington D.C.
What’s Next for Museums and Cultural Institutions? Join our final block of the Smithsonian Affiliations Virtual Conference, November 9-10. Register here.

A Legacy of Healing, Rebirth, and Leadership, our final Virtual Scholars Talk of 2020 with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center and two Affiliates—the Japanese American National Museum and the Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience, 11.19 at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. Email your National Outreach Manager for details.