Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Museum Operations topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cowlitz County Museum director briefs commissioners on exhibits, school outreach and volunteers
Summary
Museum staff described current exhibits, partnerships with the Cowlitz County Historical Society, the traveling trunk education program and an expanded spring art show that has increased attendance and brought in new historical society members.
Joe, a member of the museum staff, told commissioners the Cowlitz County Museum is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and that staff are often available six days a week.
"We have a PowerPoint, that'll give you some illustration," Joe said, then summarized recent exhibits, partnerships and education programming. He said the museum’s permanent exhibit opened in 2016 and that rotating and loaned exhibits complement the permanent galleries. Joe said the museum’s current temporary exhibit, "Browsing the Stacks," draws on the museum’s collections and will remain on display through about Thanksgiving.
Why it matters: The museum provides free public exhibits and school outreach across Cowlitz County, including a traveling-trunk program that serves primarily second- through fourth-grade classrooms and sometimes junior-high, high-school and senior programs.
Joe said the museum’s partner, the Cowlitz County Historical Society, provides about 55 percent of operational funding on the most recent calculation, with the remainder supplemented by the county’s general fund. He said the museum’s collection totals roughly "35,000–37,000 artifacts." He highlighted a recent annual spring art show produced in partnership with the Columbia Artists Association that he said has grown about 30 percent over last year and brings new visitors and historical-society members to the site. The museum provides traveling exhibits at no charge to municipalities and public spaces when available.
On education, Joe described an education staff person, Danielle Robbins, who leads the traveling-trunk program that visits schools across the county at no charge; on occasional out-of-county requests the museum charges travel expenses. Joe also noted that internal service billings—about $35,000–$37,000—use most of the museum fund’s budgeted expenses early in the year because those internal charges occur once annually.
Commissioners thanked Joe for the update and asked whether the museum’s school programs serve the whole county; Joe replied, "Yes. We go throughout the county," and added that occasional out-of-county requests are handled with travel charges.
The museum presentation concluded with staff and commissioners expressing appreciation for the partnership between the museum and the historical society and for community volunteers who help staff gallery space during events.
