Since 1992
Print and digital marketing
AUGUSTA – Museum professionals from across Maine are joining legislators and government officials at the State House in Augusta for Maine Museums Day on Monday, March 20.
The event begins with a free advocacy training at 11 a.m. for museum staff and volunteers hosted by staff from the New England Museum Association, according to a news release from the Association of Maine Archives & Museums in Portland. Attendees are then free to visit with their legislators until the reception in the Hall of Flags at 2 p.m.
“It’s a great opportunity for folks involved with museums in Maine to hone their skills at communicating with policymakers and to network with colleagues,” said Dugan Murphy, executive director of the AMAM in the release.
Museums from around the state will display objects and information in the Hall of Flags in an effort to raise awareness about Maine’s cultural heritage and the major role museums play in the state’s economic development and quality of life at the 2 p.m. reception, the release said.
Museum and government officials scheduled to speak include Murphy, New England Museum Association Executive Director Dan Yaeger, and Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap, among others.
Museums in Maine contribute $158.4 million in economic impact, employ more than 2,200 people, and serve hundreds of thousands of school children on educational visits each year, the release said. Museums are part of the state’s creative economy — more than 17 percent of Maine’s nonprofit community is dedicated to arts and education. These more than 1,100 collecting institutions (museums, archives, and historic sites & societies) that make the state a more appealing place to live, work, and create, according to the release.
Maine Museums Day is organized by the Association of Maine Archives and Museums in collaboration with the New England Museum Association and sponsored by HistoryIT. Other sponsors include Seal Cove Auto Museum, Tuckerbrook Conservation, and the Maine Arts Commission.
For more information on the Association of Maine Archives and Museums, visit www.MaineMuseums.org. For more information about the New England Museum Association, visit www.nemanet.org.
