2006 Annual Conference:
Call for Posters and Papers

The Small Museums Association (SMA) is planning its 22nd Annual Winter Conference in Ocean City, Maryland on February 26 - 28, 2006. This conference brings together more than 200 museum professionals from a wide range of institutions each year, primarily from the Mid-Atlantic region. The conference aims towards improving professionalism within the small museum community by providing a unique and comfortable environment for individuals and institutions with diverse experiences to meet and learn from each other. Conference sessions typically provide practical, relevant discussions, and examples for small museums and institutions with limited budgets.

This year, the Winter Conference seeks to recognize the changing face of the Small Museum through the theme of "Learning Large in the Small Museum." This topic addresses the need for museums to reach beyond normal comfort zones, look outside the box, and develop new and exciting educational programs, long range plans, collections policies and more. Information and ideas will be disseminated through workshops, panel discussions, and speakers.

As small museums work diligently to meet daily challenges, resources within the larger community can be overlooked. One of the goals of the Winter Conference is to give professionals and volunteers practicing at small museums the necessary tools to form strong community relationships and to mine the wealth of unsuspected resources available. Strong partnerships can lead to increased capacity for small museums and increased awareness of the needs of the surrounding community.

Papers:

We invite proposals for conference sessions surrounding the following subjects, in two tracks, a "nuts and bolts" track and an advanced track:

• Educational Programming for Adult Learners, Teens, Family Audiences, Holiday Programs
• Traditional & Nontraditional Fundraising
• Display of Archaeological Collections
• Cleaning & Preparing Historic Interiors
• Creating Living History Programs
• How's and What's of Appraising Your Collection
• Developing a Mailing List
• Reaching Teachers Who Are Forced to Teach "To the Test"

Individuals from the museum/historic preservation and related supporting communities who would like to present at this dynamic and friendly conference are invited to submit proposals to the address below by July 1, 2005.

Posters:

We invite proposals for poster sessions, based on original research. This is an excellent opportunity for undergraduate, Masters, and PhD students to showcase studies on which their thesis is based. Posters can be based on a number of topics, including, but not limited to:

• Educational Programming and Evaluation
• The Role of the Museum in the Community
• NAGPRA and its surrounding issues
• New Approaches to Exhibit Design
• The Visitor
• State and Federal Education Guidelines
• Aspects of Collection Management
• History, Science, or Art Education
• Anthropological Theory in the Museum
• Museums and the Internet, Distance Learning

Time will be provided to conference participants to visit the "Poster Hall" to discuss your research with you. Posters need to be staffed on Sunday, February 26th from 4-6 pm and Monday from 10:00 to 11:30 am. You may leave your poster up for the remainder of the conference.

Individuals bringing posters will be required to provide their own easels.

Individuals from the museum/historic preservation and related supporting communities who would like to present at this dynamic and friendly conference are invited to submit proposals to the address below by November 1, 2005 . You will be notified by December 1, 2005 if your poster has been selected.

Printable Application Form (37 KB PDF)

Marianne Della Croce, SMA Speakers Coordinator
Coe Hall, Planting Fields Foundation
PO Box 660
Oyster Bay, NY 11771

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