March 2010 Update

Renewal Contracts

Renewal contracts were due on January 31^st.  If you haven’t sent yours in yet, it is absolutely imperative that you do so immediately.  Without a valid contract, services and support will not be delivered.  New sites are now coming on board, so don’t risk losing your spot to someone on the waiting list.

ANSM Spring Conference - April 22-24

The annual ANSM spring conference is fast-approaching.  The early bird deadline for registration is April 8^th (envelopes postmarked by the 8th qualify as early bird).  This year we’ll be in Pork Hawkesbury at the Civic Centre, with the theme of sustainability.  There will be a variety of sessions, including community partnerships, the provincial heritage strategy, and operation of heritage buildings.  There will be several networking opportunities as well, which are covered by the registration cost when you register for the full conference.  Check out the website for more information.

Remember too that the ITCMAC’s dinner meeting will be held prior to the Wine & Cheese on Thursday at 5pm at the Maritime Inn.  If you would like to attend please let me know.

ANSM Website – Resources Section

The database manuals and appendices are now online.  Sample forms, policies and other documentation will be available by the end of April.  If you are in need of a specific piece of documentation please let me know and I will do my best to get one into template format for the website.

CHIN/CCI Provincial & Territorial Association Meetings

Anita and Karin spent a week in Ottawa meeting with CHIN, CCI, CMA, and provincial/territorial museum association representatives.  This gives ANSM staff a chance to sit down face to face with our funders, stakeholders, and peers from across the country and discuss a wide variety of museum-related issues.  The PMA follow-up report will be posted on the blog by the end of the week, so be sure to check back for a review of the sessions.


New Site
March also saw the arrival of our newest member, the Mount Hanley and District Schoolhouse Museum.  Located just outside of Middleton, the community was the home of Joshua Slocum prior to his family's move to Brier Island.  Another noteworthy student was Clara Belle Marshall, who in 1884 became the first woman to graduate from Acadia University.  Entirely volunteer-run, the museum has evolved from a school to a family-operated museum to the community museum it is today.  The group is very excited about becoming more active in the Nova Scotia museum community, and look forward to meeting their colleagues at the upcoming southwest regional meeting in Liverpool.

Artefacts Canada Tally

Instead of mentioning the actual numbers this month, I am issuing a challenge to 3 regions.  The Southwest region has held the top spot for quite awhile now.  So, I hereby challenge the Cape Breton, Central, and Northeast regions to redouble their uploading efforts and catch up with the Southwest.


Regional Meetings / Equipment Delivery

Don't forget about the upcoming regional meetings.  For those of you who will be receiving webcams, I am bringing these to the regional meetings so that you will be set up for Skype before the summer season.

Cape Breton - St. Peter's, April 10th
Southwest - Liverpool, April 16th
Central - Dartmouth, May 7th
Northeast - TBA

Blog Polls

As previously mentioned, the next ITCMAC meeting is on April 22^nd, which means the blog poll will be closing on the 21^st in order for results to be discussed at the meeting.  We’ve had very few people weigh in on this issue, and this information is needed to complete the Online Marketing Report & Recommendations as part of our SDI deliverables, so it is absolutely imperative that you vote in this poll.  Scroll to the bottom of the page to vote, and remember that you should check off all applicable responses.