Reception Marks Museum Studies' 10 Years of Preparing Future Curators

The Museum Studies Program, housed out of the Department of Anthropology, is welcoming its 10th year with an explosion in growth and interest. And, of course, cupcakes.

A reception to mark the 10th anniversary of the Museum Studies program will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18, at the Museum of Anthropology, Room 252, Old Main. Cupcakes and other light refreshments will be available. The event, like the museum itself, is free.

Molly Cannon, the museum’s director and curator, said the Museum Studies program was launched in 2006 with the introduction of an area studies certificate.

Growth and interest in the program has heightened in recent years, with the current enrollment of more than 70 students nearly doubling the number of those who earned received certificates prior to 2015, said Cannon.

The increasing focus on the program “means we’ve done a good job of getting the message out that we have the certificate program,” said Cannon. “It shows a little of both awareness and interest.”

The Museum Studies program is open to students in all disciplines. A certificate itself is more intense than a minor as it requires additional coursework and an internship. Students learn not only museum administration but archiving, preserving artifacts, educational outreach and more.

The program’s mission statement said the program seeks to “provide USU graduate and undergraduate students with a strong theoretical and experiential foundation for 1) graduate work in the field of Museum Studies, and 2) paid jobs in museum settings and/or voluntary service at Utah’s more than 250 museums.”

Museum Studies is housed in the Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology.

For more information:
Molly Cannon, molly.cannon@usu.edu, (435) 797- 7545
http://anthropology.usu.edu/museum/museumstudies