No wrongdoing at Children's Museum

DA: No wrongdoing at Children's Museum

There will be no criminal charges filed against the Children's Museum.

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Elizabeth Cooper

Uticaod

Elizabeth Cooper

Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 3:00 PM
Updated Feb 12, 2015 at 8:36 AM

O-D file photoAn investigation into the Children's Museum has found no evidence of wrongdoing, District Attorney Scott McNamara said today.

Elizabeth Cooper
Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 3:00 PM
Updated Feb 12, 2015 at 8:36 AM

UTICA

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O-D file photoAn investigation into the Children's Museum has found no evidence of wrongdoing, District Attorney Scott McNamara said today.

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Elizabeth Cooper
Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 3:00 PM
Updated Feb 12, 2015 at 8:36 AM

UTICA

There will be no criminal charges filed against the Children’s Museum.

Oneida County District Attorney released the results of a months long investigation into how the museum handled its finances.

“The investigation into the Children’s Museum has been completed and based on our findings, I do not see any viable charges that we can pursue before a grand jury,” DA Scott McNamara write in a release about the report.

McNamara said the investigation involved a “lengthy review of each and every banking transaction” of the Children’s Museum over the past five years.

“While our investigation revealed that there may have been some issues with record keeping and retention, we confirmed that the expenditures from the numerous bank accounts were in fact made on behalf of the museum, McNamara’s report said.

Museum Board Chairwoman Celia Domser said she was not surprised by McNamara’s findings, especially since Brown had put some of her own money into running the museum over the years.

“We knew all along that that’s what the outcome would be,” Domser said. “None of us had any doubt Marlene would be exonerated.”

The Children’s Museum’s troubles began in March of 2014 when it came to light that museum had given its Director Marlene Brown a 60 percent share of the building at 311 Main Street in compensation for back pay.

In May, the museum board split over that and other allegations of Brown’s handling of museum bank accounts and grant funds.

Chris Gordon, a former board member, brought the allegations to McNamara.

Gordon said whether or not there was wrongdoing, Brown needs to go.

“Either way, what she was doing was very unethical and any board in their right mind would terminate her,” he said.

McNamara said there were management practices at the children’s museum that opened the door for wrongdoing, but he is confident that none took place.

The museum had numerous bank accounts, but its board of directors did not have any clear oversight over them. Instead, Brown and a personal friend were signers on many of them.

“A chief executive should not be in charge of the finances,” he said. “They should always be separate people for built-in checks and balances.”

McNamara said his investigators had looked into each transaction, and did find some that initially seemed suspicious. For example, the museum purchased a television and also several gift certificates.

They checked and found a television in use at the museum, and got proof that the gift certificates had been given out at a raffle benefiting the organization.

- See more at: http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150211/NEWS/150219821#sthash.L7Qnz6wB.dpuf

Grants for Museum Advancement

Grants for Museum Advancement
Sponsored by the New York State Council on the Arts,
administered by Museumwise: The Museum Association of New York 

The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) has provided $78,605 for the FY 2013 Grants for Museum Advancement program. These funds will be portioned between January and June and July and December in accordance with previous year's application percentages. We anticipate awarding approximately 8 Get Ready; 14 Get Set; and 40 Go! grants in 2013. 

For more Info. Click Here

Utica gallery wants to attract a broader, more diverse audience

The Utica OD reported on the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute's recent efforts to expand its audience. The article relates:

The mysteries of ancient Egypt still have the power to awe and inspire, and now Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute is hoping they will draw thousands of visitors to the museum this summer.
The exhibit is the third in a series designed to attract a broader audience to the nearly 100-year-old institution and revitalize its relationship with the community it calls home.
“The whole vision is for the institute to become more welcoming, more accessible, for our programs to be broader based, more vibrant and better connected overall to the community,” MWPAI President Anthony Spiridigloizzi said.
The show, “Shadow of the Sphinx, Ancient Egypt and its Influence,” comes on the heels of the “Wedded Perfection” dress exhibit that attracted 14,000 people. An exhibit of photographer Ansel Adams’ works drew 7,000.
The institute also is ramping up its schedule of public programs accompanying exhibits to appeal to people of all ages. School programs also are being expanded.
Spiridigloizzi, who took on the institute’s top spot in December, said the effort to broaden the audience is a fundamental part of its mission.
But it’s also a matter of long-term survival. In today’s tough economic times, even an organization with a large endowment such as Munson-Williams-Proctor must adjust, he said.
“We have no crisis, but if we are not careful, we will jeopardize the future of the organization and its ability to serve the community 25 years from now,” he said.
Though its endowment is about $95 million, that’s close to 40 percent less than it was before the economic crisis hit, and the museum has been taking out more than it should to cover operating costs, Spiridigloizzi said.
Dollars and cents
Spiridigloizzi said $95 million might sound like a lot of money, but in the current economy it shouldn’t be assumed it will be there forever.
Spiridigloizzi said as a general rule, organizations such as his are advised to use no more than 3 to 5 percent of their endowments to fund their operating budgets. If they use more, they will chip away at their capital and might ultimately fail.
Today, the institute is spending on average almost 6 percent of its endowment annually — $6.9 million — to fund more than half of its $12 million annual budget, he said.
“We’ve got a tug-of-war going on between the future and the present,” he said. “The present wants to keep spending, but if we pull too much out, we won’t be here for future generations.”

Under the current budget, only about 5 percent comes from fundraising and the rest comes from tuition from students at Munson-Williams-Proctor’s offshoot of Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute, ticket sales and art shop sales, he said. Spiridigloizzi said he wants to increase the amount generated by fundraising.
The institute employs 182 people, with 106 of those full time. Their salaries and benefits take up about 57 percent of the budget. About 25 percent of the budget goes toward programming and the rest to items including utilities and debt service.
Doug Sauer, CEO of the New York Council of Nonprofits, said many organizations are going though similar stresses.
On hearing the institute’s budget figures, he said it does appear to be taking more out of their endowment than is healthy.
“It’s like raiding your savings,” Sauer said. “Eventually, you are going to run out of savings.”
He also said Spiridigloizzi’s plans made sense.
“Sometimes, when you have an endowment, organizations don’t make the tough decisions,” he said.
Reaching out
The push to draw a broader, more diverse audience is under way on several fronts, Spiridigloizzi said.
In addition to blockbuster exhibits such as “Shadow of the Sphinx,” the institute is working with organizations such as the Utica City School District and Oneida County Tourism.
Oneida County Tourism President Kelly Blazosky said she worked with the museum to promote previous exhibits and is looking forward to doing the same this summer.
“Those have proven to be a tool for us to use in our promotional efforts for the region,” she said.
Such exhibits add one more thing to visitors’ lists of things to do in the area, she said. That means they might stay an extra day and eat a few more meals at local venues, she said.
Utica schools Superintendent Bruce Karam said he had been in talks with Spiridigloizzi about the possibility of enabling high school students to take advanced arts courses that would offer college credits.
He said similar programs with Utica College, Mohawk Valley Community College and Syracuse University had been successful and he had high hopes for a partnership with Munson-Williams-Proctor.
Spiridigloizzi also wants to reach out to the different ethnic communities in Utica as well.
“This is what the Proctors wanted,” Spiridigloizzi said of the family that founded the institute in 1919. “For this to be an artistic, musical and social center for our community.”

MWPAI names Anthony Spiridigloizzi president

The Utica OD reported that Anthony Spiridigloizzi is the newly appointed president of Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute.

“I feel very, very positive about our future here,” he said Tuesday, despite the gloomy weather outside his corner office. “I see it every day looking out this window. I see people coming through this back door and enjoying what we have to offer. It’s about connecting people with art.”

With that in mind, he said, his main goals for MWPAI include improving the visitor experience at the institute’s Museum of Art and strengthening the bonds between the community and the institute as a whole, including its school of art and performing arts program.

Projects under consideration for the future include creating a more welcoming rear entrance for the museum – since 95 percent of visitors come in through the parking lot doors instead of the main entrance on Genesee Street – adding a café, and expanding social events such as docent-led tours and art receptions.

“We want to really create a welcoming environment … to focus on the visitor, provide some better visitor services and additional visitor services” Spiridigloizzi said.

The institute also will continue cultivating its PrattMWP college program, which currently enrolls 100 new students each year, he said.

Moving forward will require an increased focus on fundraising.

“Our challenges, like many nonprofit organizations, particularly cultural organizations, are financial,” Spiridigloizzi said. “This economic environment has really hurt a number of organizations. The institute is stable, but it needs to build a base of support in this community … out of that will come really a much more vibrant, exciting institution.”

Spiridigloizzi started at MWPAI as treasurer in 1982, having previously served as comptroller for the local United Way. After adding vice president of operations to his title in the 1990s, he served as “second in command” under former institute presidents Milton Bloch and Daniel O’Leary, and as acting president after each man’s departure.

He was appointed president by the institute’s board of trustees on Dec. 20, although the decision wasn’t made public until Tuesday.

In a release, MWPAI board Chairman William Locke said Spiridigloizzi’s 29 years of service and dedication were one of the assets that led to his appointment.

“Tony has worked tirelessly to advance the mission of MWPAI and has a clear vision for its future,” Locke said. “I am proud to announce that the decision was easy and unanimous.”

Spiridigloizzi, for his part, said he was “very honored and very excited” to be appointed on a permanent basis. It has not yet been decided how his previous position will be filled.

Unlike O’Leary, who resigned in January 2010 after less than two years as head of the institute, Spiridgloizzi is a native of Oneida County with strong ties to the community. He graduated from Thomas R. Proctor High School in 1969 and Utica College in 1973.

The New Hartford resident said he recognizes that MWPAI has a role to play both here at home and in the national arts scene.

“I think we can serve both,” he said. “We can be community-minded as well as advance the reputation of this museum across the country, and that’s good for the community as well.”

Recent exhibits have been successful at spurring attendance, with more than 14,000 people viewing the “Wedded Perfection” dress exhibit this summer, and more than 7,000 visiting the “Ansel Adams: Masterworks” collection.

Spiridigloizzi said he hopes to “continue the progress we’ve made over the past year” with a diverse array of exhibits in 2012 and beyond. “LitGraphic,” an exhibition of art from graphic novels opening in March, is just one example of what’s to come.

“I think there’ll be a blend, a mix of exhibitions – some that are broad and popular in appeal, but always, always maintaining the quality we’ve been known for,” he said.

Communities working together can save Herkimer

The Little Falls Times reported that the Herkimer Home State Historic Site is closed through at least April 1, and is slated to remain closed not only for the entire 2011 operating season, but permanently.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s 2011-12 budget proposal cuts Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation spending by more than eight percent, from $228 million to $209 million. The proposal does not include any funding for Herkimer Home, which needs roughly $320,000 to remain open.

“It would be a shame to lose the site,” Little Falls Mayor Robert Peters said during a telephone interview on Monday. Peters was one of 40 people to meet at the home of American Revolutionary War hero Gen. Nicholas Herkimer last Wednesday to brainstorm how to keep the site operating. “It’s an important place to our community, and to other surrounding communities as well, and it would be a real tragedy to see it closed. We need to come together and prevent this from happening.”

Peters said he and other city and county officials discussed the matter prior to the Feb. 9 meeting and have continued discussing what they believe can be done to ensure the site will open in 2011.

“The city, should a group come forward and raise the money, or at least a portion of the money, needed to keep the site secure and to maintain it, would be willing to provide 10 hours a week from its Department of Public Works to maintain the building and grounds,” said Peters, who is also president of the Herkimer County Conference of Mayors. “I would hope other communities would follow the city’s lead and would come forward to provide similar services. In addition to maintaining the grounds, the city would also be willing to make any emergency repairs that would be needed.”

In an effort to draw increased attention to the historic home just outside of the city of Little Falls on State Route 169, and to bring in additional tourists, Peters said a “Taste of Little Falls” type event and Victorian fair could take place Labor Day weekend throughout the city and at the site.
“The food event would be held throughout the city on Friday, with the Victorian fair held at Herkimer Home on Saturday and Sunday,” said Peters. “An event like this would bring people to the city who might choose to stay at one of our places in town, eat at one of our restaurants or shop at one our stores. It would also draw people to the site and generate revenue for its operation.”

Assemblyman Marc Butler said during last Wednesday’s brainstorming session visitors to Herkimer Home generated about $6,800 in revenue in 2010, adding $30,000 of the site’s roughly $320,000 budget goes toward operational expenses, with the rest paying for salaries.
Butler also said last week a nonprofit group or surrounding municipality could sign a lease with the state, essentially forcing the local entity to maintain the site while the state maintains ownership.

“The assemblyman said the local group or municipality could then keep any profit generated from the site,” said Peters. “An agreement like that is something the city would be willing to explore with a group or another municipality. The city is also willing to extend water service to the site, which would provide water to a portion of the town of Danube. These are all things the city can do to improve the site and is willing to discuss as we collectively work to keep the site open in the years to come.”

Read more here.

To Preserve and Protect: Security Solutions for New York's Historical

Theft of historical documents plagues records repositories. With careful planning, awareness of warning signs and proactive security solutions, organizations can reduce the window of opportunity for historical record theft. Archival security expert Mimi Bowling will provide an interactive curriculum on archival security, preparing participants to take immediate action to strengthen their local security programs. Participants will receive a certificate upon completion. There is no cost.

Topics include risk awareness; insider theft; facility design and security technology; security of information systems; working with vendors and contractors; research room management and design; developing institutional security policies; procedures and post-theft response; additional topics as requested by participants.

Representatives of NY¹s historical records community, including archives, governments, libraries, museums, historical societies, schools and non-profits will be given first priority. Additional seats are available for security personnel and law enforcement representatives working with these organizations. Out-of-state representatives and others interested in the
topic are also encouraged to register.

September 13, 2010 (Monday)
Ontario County Safety Training Center
Canandaigua, Ontario, NY

September 14, 2010 (Tuesday)
Erie 1 BOCES
West Seneca, Erie, NY

October 4, 2010 (Monday)
Utica Public Library
Utica, Oneida, NY

October 5, 2010 (Tuesday)
Roberson Museum and Science Center
Binghamton, Broome, NY

March 7, 2011 (Monday)
Historic Huguenot Street
New Paltz, Ulster, NY

April 11, 2011 (Monday)
Crandall Public Library
Glens Falls, Warren, NY

April 18, 2011 (Monday)
Town of Massena
Massena, St. Lawrence, NY

Metro NYC Region and
Long Island Region
Spring 2011
TBA

To register, please email Bturner@mail.nysed.gov or call 518-473-0130. Early registration is encouraged and appreciated; only 25 seats available.

Workshop have been made possible by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the New York State Historical Records Advisory Board, and the New York State Archives.


Brittany Turner
Project Assistant
"Lessons from a Theft: Bringing Security Tools and Knowledge to New York's
Historical Records Community"

NYS Archives
CEC, Room 9D58
Albany, NY 12230
(PH) 518-473-0130\
(FX) 518-486-1647

Work begins at expected site of Utica multicultural center

The Utica OD reported about the Neighborhood Investment Association Work Party at 7 Rutger Park.

Though the NIA has not yet taken possession of the four-story, 30,000-square-foot, glass-façade building once occupied by the Teamsters, an outdoor cleanup took place Saturday to begin the site’s renovation.

“We wanted this almost to be an introduction to the neighborhood,” said Megan Fariello, public relations coordinator for the NIA.

So, as high-energy hip hop music blasted from speakers, members of the NIA, the Mohawk Valley Latino Association and volunteers from Colgate University swept, raked, pulled weeds and cleared brush for what is expected to become The Renaissance Center

Transforming the building into a multicultural center is one of the first major undertakings of the NIA, a nonprofit organization established about five years ago by a group of community advocates to address the needs of the Cornhill area.

Read more here. Plans call for a multicultural art and history museum, a video studio, a dance studio, a radio station, office space, a small business incubator, a boardroom, a banquet and ballroom, and a rooftop café.

Oneida and Herkimer Impacted by NYS Parks and Historic Site Closures

The Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) today put forward a recommended list of closures and service reductions in order to achieve its 2010-11 agency savings target and help address the State's historic fiscal difficulties.

Governor David A. Paterson issued the following statement:

"New York faces an historic fiscal crisis of unprecedented magnitude. It has demanded many difficult but necessary decisions to help ensure the fiscal integrity of our State. The unfortunate reality of closing an $8.2 billion deficit is that there is less money available for many worthy services and programs. In an environment when we have to cut funding to schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and social services, no area of State spending, including parks and historic sites, could be exempt from reductions. We cannot mortgage our State's financial future through further gimmicks or avoidance behavior. Spending cuts, however difficult, are needed in order to put New York on the road to fiscal recovery. Going forward through the budget process, I look forward to a productive dialogue with the Legislature on parks and historic sites, as well as other issues."

OPRHP Commissioner Carol Ash issued the following statement:

"The 2010-11 Executive Budget included reductions to every area of State spending. As such, the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation has today put forward proposed closures and service reductions to meet its agency savings target. These actions were not recommended lightly, but they are necessary to address our State's extraordinary fiscal difficulties."

###

A fact sheet on the proposed closures and service reductions is included below:

The Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) today put forward a list of closures and service reductions in order to achieve its proposed 2010-11 agency savings target and help address the State's historic fiscal difficulties. As part of a comprehensive plan to close an $8.2 billion deficit, the 2010-11 Executive Budget included necessary cost reductions to each executive State agency, as well as cuts to education, health care, social services, and every other area of State spending.

OPRHP's plan includes the closure of 41 parks and 14 historic sites, and service reductions at 23 parks and 1 historic site.

The plan also assumes $4 million in park and historic site fee increases that will be identified at a later date, and the use of $5 million in funds from the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) to finance OPRHP operations. These two actions were part of the 21-day amendments to the Executive Budget and are intended to reduce the number of parks and historic sites subject to closures and service reductions.

Specific recommended closures and service reductions are detailed here.

NY State Council on the Arts Announces Important Changes for Fiscal Year 2011

Dear Colleagues,

As we approach the holiday season and the end of another year, I want to take a moment to update you on some important changes that are taking place here at the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).

In Fiscal Year 2011 (calendar year 2010), we will implement a series of changes to NYSCA’s annual application calendar in an effort to further improve our grantmaking process and better serve New York’s cultural community. As a result, a number of important deadlines, including the close of registration, will now shift to earlier points in the calendar year. Given these changes, it is tremendously important that you take careful note of NYSCA’s FY11 calendar, provided below. Please pay particular attention to NYSCA’s registration deadline (January 22, 2010) and first application deadline (February 17, 2010).

I also want to take this opportunity to update you on the latest news regarding NYSCA and the New York State Cultural Data Project (CDP). As you know, NYSCA has been working with a Taskforce of funders and arts organizations throughout the past year to help launch CDP in New York State. Now, NYSCA is prepared to accept CDP Data Profiles as a part of the FY11 grant application process.

The use of CDP will be optional for NYSCA applicants in FY11, but will be required of all applicants in FY12. However, we want to encourage all organizations to begin using this powerful online tool today. To that end, applicants who have completed a CDP Data Profile before NYSCA’s first FY11 application deadline (February 17, 2010) will be able to submit the Data Profile as a substitute for NYSCA’s three-year “Organizational Budget”.

To find out more about CDP, review the information below and visit http://www.nysculturaldata.org/.

If you have any questions about these changes, please do not hesitate to contact a staff person in your funding program so that you can work together to address your concerns.

Sincerely,
Heather Hitchens
Executive Director


NYSCA CALENDAR – FISCAL YEAR 2011
•December 15, 2009
FY11 Application Guidelines Available
•January 4, 2010
Registration Opens
•January 22, 2010
Registration Closes
•February 17, 2010
1st Application Deadline
•February 17, 2010
CDP Data Profile Completion Deadline (optional in FY11—see below)
•April 12, 2010
2nd Application Deadline

5 Ways to Engage Your Legislators

The American Association of Museums offered the following helpful suggestion about ways to engage members of Congress:

1. Invite legislators and district staff to visit your museum. Legislators and their local staff are always looking for new ways to engage the communities they represent. And visiting a local museum is a great way to do that. It can be especially powerful to invite legislators and staff to an educational program at the museum, or for a behind-the-scenes tour of your collections or facilities. Click here to send a letter to your legislators inviting them to visit your museum - and don't forget to call the office to follow up on your request!

2. Ask for a meeting with the Member of Congress and the local staff. Getting to know your local Congressional staff members is an important step in year-round advocacy. "Field Staff are focused on how federal policy initiatives impact constituents and which issues they want the Representative to address. When I meet with constituents, I report back to my whole senior staff about what was discussed and what we could do to help," says Karen Gurmankin, who serves as a Field Representative for Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz (D-PA). Click here to find detailed contact information for your legislators - including contact information for district offices throughout your state and con! gressional district!

3. Go where your legislators will be. It's likely that your legislators have several public events planned for the in-district work period. Check their website or call their office to find out more: Will the Representative be hosting a town-hall meeting? Will they be holding Open Office Hours in your neighborhood? Use our legislator search page to get all the information you need to make the call today!

4. Weigh-in on current issues. Even if you can't meet with your legislators in person next week, letting them know how federal legislative issues impact your museum can make a huge difference in their position on these issues. There are now eight different draft letters available in the Contact Congress section of AAM's advocacy website that you can use to communicate directly to your representatives in Congress - and it just takes a few clicks!

5. Develop your "elevator speech." Just like you would have this ready to go for a potential donor, it's important to be prepared to tell your elected officials about your museum - in just a minute or two. If you run into your Member of Congress at the grocery store or the post office and have just a minute of their time, what do you want them to most know about your museum? You can focus on how you are providing community service, how you are using federal grant dollars or a program that they can witness first-hand, or you can simply thank them for their past support on an issue you care about. It's always nice to be appreciated!

Utica Children's Museum Opens New Exhibit and More

The OD reported on the Children’s Museum recently installed lighted PlayDance Floor, which is part of an interactive exhibit that allows children to play games, make music and create light shows.

The LED-lit, pressure-sensitive light floor detects players’ location and movement during games and activities. Children can stomp on brightly colored “ants” and jump over the “dodge ball” or create music by dancing on LED piano keys. The floor was funded by a grant from The Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties.

With the light floor recently completed, Executive Director Marlene Brown is already looking ahead toward generating funding for the museum’s next big projects. The museum has applied for federal stimulus money to complete a project that would place solar panels and wind turbines on one-third of the museum’s roof. A green garden would cover another third and the final third would be left open as an observatory with tables, benches and telescopes. There are also plans to add bathrooms to the third floor, replace carpeting on the second floor and to create an observatory in the fifth floor. Read the full article here.

Daniel E. O’Leary Named New President of MWPAI

Daniel E. O’Leary, Ph.D., director of the Winslow Homer Studio Project in Scarborough, Maine, has been named president of Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute by a unanimous vote of the MWPAI board of trustees.

O’Leary will begin his duties April 6, 2009. He succeeds Milton Bloch who retired at the end of 2008 after 18 years at the Institute.

O’Leary was chosen after an extensive national search which began in spring 2008. John Stetson, MWPAI board of trustees member and chairman of the search committee, said nine candidates were interviewed before O’Leary was chosen. Stetson cited O’Leary’s successful work at other art institutions, particularly in the area of development. “He has all of the experience and qualifications we were seeking,” Stetson said. “He is the perfect fit for our staff, the community and all the constituencies we serve.”

O’Leary said he was drawn to the position by the diversity and scope of the Institute’s programming and resources. “The chance to play a role in Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute's future represents an opportunity that comes only once in a lifetime,” he said. “There are very few places in America where one cultural institution achieves such a full and diverse mission.”

O’Leary has more than 24 years experience managing arts institutions. He is currently pursuing completion of an $8.3 million campaign to acquire, preserve, and interpret the studio and home of Winslow Homer at Prouts Neck, Maine.

Prior to that, he served 15 years leading the Portland Museum of Art in Maine. Over his tenure he strengthened staff and increased the endowment significantly. He raised $13 million for the restoration of two of the Museum’s historic buildings.

As assistant director of the Minneapolis Institute of the Arts, he coordinated a four-year effort that increased annual attendance from 280,000 to 575,000 and completed a major capital campaign. While serving as director of Artrain USA in Ann Arbor Michigan, he raised corporate donations 250% and doubled national attendance.

“This is an exciting time for the Institute,” Michael Cominsky, chairman of the MWPAI board of trustees, said. “Dan has a long history of successes and we look forward to what his many strengths will bring to us.”

“MWPAI offers extraordinary opportunities for many thousands of people,” O’Leary added. “I look forward to finding ways that these great assets can be even more widely shared and celebrated.”

After exploring the greater Utica region with his wife, artist Kathy Bouchard, O’Leary became enthusiastic about the area. “In addition to the cultural resources of MWPAI and the extensive natural resources of the area, we have found the warmth and appeal of the people here to be extraordinary,” he said. “We look forward to becoming very active and caring members of this community."

O’Leary holds a Ph.D. in history of art from the University of Michigan; an M.B.A. in marketing and management, an M.A. in history of art and an M.A. in English literature, all from the University of Michigan; and a B.A. in history of art from Princeton University.

American Association of Museums Legislative Update

The following info is provided by the American Association of Museums.

Congress Finalizes FY09 Funding Levels
On Wednesday, March 11, President Barack Obama signed into law H.R. 1105, finalizing the funding levels for federal agencies for the fiscal year 2009, which began October 1, 2008. The $410 billion measure represents the culmination of more than a year of work on 9 annual spending bills that fund nearly all areas of the government. Several of these spending bills were held up by political wrangling and in the fall, Congress passed a temporary measure to level fund most of the government until this bill could be finalized.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services' (IMLS) Office of Museum Services - which supports our nation's 17,500 museums through a variety of competitive grant programs - will get a $3.7 million increase over FY08 levels.

Here are the levels that will go into effect for the remainder of the fiscal year 2009:

• IMLS' Office of Museum Services: $35 million, a $3.7 million increase over the previous year.
• National Endowment for the Humanities: $155 million, a $10 million increase over the previous year.
• National Endowment for the Arts: $155 million, a $10 million increase over the previous year.
• Arts in Education programs at the Department of Education: $38.16 million, a $660,000 increase over the previous year.
• Teaching American History grants at the Department of Education: $118.9 million, a $1 million increase over the previous year.
• National Science Foundation educational programs: $845.26 million. These funds support informal learning experiences designed to increase interest and engagement in the understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
• National Park Service's Historic Preservation Fund: $69.5 million, including $20 million for
• Save America's Treasures. These funds support the preservation of nationally significant sites, structures, and artifacts.

You can read the complete text of the bill HERE.

House Votes to Protect Historic Battlefields

On March 3, the House passed two bills to protect historic battlefields. The Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Battlefield Protection Act (H.R. 146), introduced by Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ), would establish a battlefield acquisition grant program for the acquisition and protection of nationally significant battlefields and associated sites of the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act of 2009 (H.R. 548), introduced by Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA), would assist citizens, public and private institutions, and governments at all levels in planning, interpreting and protecting sites where historic battles were fought on American soil during the armed conflicts that shaped the growth and development of the United States. Both bills passed the House by an overwhelming margin.

The OD Guest View: Nonprofits strengthen community

The Observer-Dispatch Guest View recently featured Brian Howard, executive director of the Oneida County Historical Society. Read the full article here. Below is an excerpt about the impact of nonprofits:

Seems like each morning my e-mail brings dire messages from one museum organization or another, reporting on state or federal funding cuts, facility closings, and event postponements or cancellations. Indeed, tough times create significant challenges for organizations like ours, demanding a creative, flexible approach to doing business to ensure not just our survival, but the continuance of our mission.

Nonprofits do not manufacture goods; their “products” are less tangible. However, the Oneida County Historical Society and other nonprofit organizations in the Mohawk Valley perform vital, necessary services, around which the community can sustain or build its quality of life. They sell services, provide care and education, and foster a sense of community. They are the safety net, the keepers of culture, the caregivers, the helping hand, the smiling face.

Over the last year, more than 3,000 people have attended lectures and presentations at the Oneida County Historical Society. We also worked hand-in-hand with our local school districts, providing “non-traditional” educational opportunities for more than 500 elementary and middle school-age students. Schoolchildren toured our galleries and participated in a valuable summer education program. More recently, the society took one of our Civil War battle flags to Adirondack Middle School to help celebrate the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth.

However, perhaps because the impact of activities like these cannot be easily measured in dollars and cents, a “return on investment” cannot be easily calculated or quantified, either. From there it is often a short jump for contributors to target their charitable contributions for cuts when finances are tight. But cutting funding entirely, a wholesale end to giving, would be a terrible mistake.

It is incumbent upon our nonprofit leaders to operate their organizations efficiently and effectively, and to be good stewards of the money still coming in to them. Yes funding is down, but staying positive, mission-focused, and community-minded can go a long way toward navigating through these tough times.

Times are tight, on that point there is no debate. In these times we all must buckle down and work together to ensure a positive future. Just as it is important for each business and private citizen to consider their charitable contributions, it is incumbent upon our local nonprofits to be fiscally responsible. Also, to remain focused on providing services, perhaps at a reduced level, but to provide them nonetheless, to the citizens of the Mohawk Valley.

Yes, it is not easy, but nonprofits not only require the support of the communities they serve; they also deserve it. Inspiration, education, entertainment — these are the intangibles that make life in this or any region worth living.

Outcry Over a Plan to Sell Museum’s Holdings

The NY Times featured an article about Brandeis University’s surprise decision to sell off the entire holdings of its Rose Art Museum, one of the most important collections of postwar art in New England. Is this really a good solution for operating deficits? Should nonprofits be allowed to liquidate assets that our core to their mission in order to stay in business?

American Association of Museums Advocacy Efforts

The American Association of Museums (AAM) is planning a Museums Advocacy Day. They are inviting museum professionals and advocates from around the country to Washington , DC on February 23-24. AAM is also calling for a response to the $825 billion economic recovery package Congress is proposing to create or save jobs and strengthen the nation's infrastructure. The bill proposed in the House Appropriations Committee - http://appropriations.house.gov/ -has a provision to prohibit any funds in the bill from going to zoos or aquariums. The bill states: "None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available in this Act may be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, or swimming pool."


AAM believes that this is a misunderstanding of the vital role that zoos and aquariums - and other museums and historic sites - play in our society, and the role they will play in the economic recovery of states and localities. They are calling for supporters to contact their legislators. Info is available here.