Conferences and Continuing Education

Sharpen your skills by attending training.

The following list is gathered by the Local History Services team. Please send updates as needed.

Sections
Workshops/Courses
On-Demand Workshops
Continuing Education Resources
Conferences/Meetings

Workshops/Courses

Uncovering and Celebrating Stories Yet Untold: Digging Into LGBTQIA+ Stories Hiding in Plain Sight in Collections, Historic Sites, and Galleries
July 26 @ 11 am to 12:30 pm (CT) - Online: Museum Association of New York - LGBTQIA+ lives are frequently underrepresented in our museum collections and interpretation, as well as in registries of historic sites.  This webinar will explore diverse examples of stories that have been uncovered and how we are documenting them and sharing them with visitors.  Cost: Free. Learn more »

Community Curator Talk
July 27 @ Lunch at 12 pm, Talk at 1 pm - St. Paul: Science Museum of Minnesota - Free lunch and talk at the Science Museum of Minnesota, featuring Community Curator Aaron Johnson-Ortiz and curated artist Anton Vasquez.

Anton is an Indigenous Maya Tzotzil multimedia artist visiting from Chiapas, Mexico. Aaron is the director of (Neo)Muralismos de Mexico and has curated their current display on Maya culture through the history and contemporary use of cotton. Location: Argon Room. Cost: Free. Email Jennings Mergenthal for more information. Register » 

DHPSNY: Building Digital Collections
July 29 @ 1 pm (CT) - Online: Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts - Take an in-depth look at what defines a successful digital collection. Examine current standards and best practices based on examples from New York Heritage Digital Collections and other repositories. This webinar will cover each stage of the digitization process, from selecting materials to creating metadata and digital objects. Cost: Free. Learn more »

DHPSNY: Building Digital Collections
July 29 @ 1 pm (CT) - Online: Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts - Take an in-depth look at what defines a successful digital collection. Drawing on examples from New York Heritage Digital Collections and other repositories, they will examine current standards and best practices. This webinar will cover each stage of the digitization process, from selecting materials to creating metadata and digital objects. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Fundamentals of Nonprofit Budgeting
July 30 @ 9 am to 12 pm (CT) - Online: Propel Nonprofits - Learn to use budgeting as another tool for you to tell the story of your organization’s plans, priorities, and aspirations.  Propel's 10-step budgeting process will also highlight ways to engage your board as well as staff across the organization. Cost: $85. Learn more »

A to Z of HR: HR Compliance
August 1 @ 10 am to 12 pm - Online: Minnesota Council of Nonprofits - Most small and medium-sized nonprofits don’t have the resources to create a human resources department with an experienced HR professional. HR tasks may be done by the executive director, the chief financial officer, a manager or administrative staff – wherever there is a little capacity or a little interest. If this is you, we know the A to Z of Human Resources series can help! Join for one, two or all three workshops in this virtual series. Cost: $50 members/$70 nonmembers. Free. Learn more »

Laws and Collections Management
Beginning August 5 - Online course: Museum Studies - The four-week online course provides an accessible introduction to the ethical principles and legal aspects of managing museum collections by presenting the scope and significance of museum ethics and an introduction to national and international laws and regulations affecting museums. Cost: $400. Learn more »

Next Practices: Discussions on the Future of Interpretation - A Virtual Summit
August 6 & 7 - Online: American Association for State and Local History - Join the AASLH Educators and Interpreters Committee as we investigate new and developing models of history and museum interpretation, considering all sides of the big questions facing our teams and organizations. Representatives from sites across the country will share their successes, tips, and strategies for adapting to our rapidly changing public history landscape. Cost: $60 members/$75 nonmembers. Learn more »

Digitizing Photographic Materials
August 8 @ 1 to 3 pm (CT) - Online: Northeast Document Conservation Center - This webinar provides an in-depth overview of photograph digitization. Digitizing photographic collections can foster research, engage users, and help preserve the original objects, but a one-size-fits-all approach to reformatting will not provide the best results given the variety of photographic formats and processes that exist. Cost: $95.  Learn more »

Building an Effective CEO + Board Chair Partnership
August 8 @ 9 am to 12 pm - Minneapolis: ​Propel Nonprofits​ - The nonprofit’s executive director and board chair should attend this session together to explore their critical relationship and discuss how they will support each other in leading their organization to success. Cost: $85. Learn more »

Safeguarding Collections
August 20 @ 12 to 1 pm (CT) - Online: Connecting to Collections Care -  Has your cultural institution hosted late night events with food and drink? Filmed TV or movie productions? Or perhaps had a motorcycle drive through the building that exhibit or store collections. Safeguarding collections can be a difficult task and determining which risks should be prioritized for mitigation is never easy. Compounding this, it’s becoming more and more commonplace for museums to host myriad events or engage in novel promotional activities. But there are ways collections stewardships can advocate for the safety of our collections while maintaining access. Join this C2C Care program to delve deeper into the type of issues collection stewards and other museum professionals encounter as at small and mid-sized institutions when presented with this type of situation. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Collections Management 100 - Collection Development
August 26 to October 18 - Online Course: American Association for State and Local History - In this eight-week course, participants will learn about the general principles underlying the idea of being a “collecting organization,” and how collections support the mission of a museum or history organization. Students will explore the purpose of a Collection Management Policy and how it relates to other core museum documents, create the Foundational Statements and Collection Development sections of their collections management policy and operationalize those components using example objects. Cost: $215 members/$315 nonmembers. Learn more »

The Academic Museum (Fall 2024) - Online Course
August 26 through October 18 - Online Course: American Association for State and Local History - This new course is tailored for museum professionals in, or collaborating with, academic settings, aiming to enhance operations and address common challenges. Topics include art, natural history, science, history, fundraising, collections management, student engagement, and community outreach. The course equips participants with valuable resources for creating dynamic spaces. Cost: $250 members/$350 nonmembers. Learn more »

Voicing Our Own Value: The New Museum Labor Movement
September 6 @ 11 am to 12:30 pm (CT): Museum Association of New York - In recent years, museums across the country have seen a new wave of unionization efforts. As museum staff have begun to recognize the importance of organizing, these efforts often involve contradictions between new expectations and the “way things have always been done” at our institutions. Can unions provide new energy for cultural organizations rather than pose a threat? Can living wages and protections against toxic workplaces coexist within a vibrant and sustainable museum economic model? Cost: Free. Learn more »

Online Demand Courses

American Association for State and Local History - Arcus Leadership Program Courses
Specifically designed for emerging and mid-level professionals and volunteers, these self-paced courses help participants understand the most critical topics in the history field and incorporate that understanding into their work. Start these courses any time.

Museum Collections Documentation and Data Cleaning
Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) and the Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN) - Provides essential museum documentation information for museum staff with all levels of knowledge. It begins with an introductory overview and ends with specific documentation issues. Learners can take the modules in order or choose a module or two that fits their needs. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Preservation Housekeeping for Heritage Sites and Small Museums
Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) and the Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN) - Covers guidelines, best practices and resources for the regular upkeep of historic interiors and exteriors as well as the contents of historic buildings. This one- to two-hour self-paced course has been designed for those who work or volunteer in small museums or heritage sites and who have little to no training in conservation. Learn more »

Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference Breakout Session Recordings
View conference recordings from the February 26-27 Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference Rochester.

Digital Stewardship Training Courses for Tribal Libraries, Archives, Museums, and Small Public Libraries
OCLC's WebJunction, in partnership with Washington State University's Center for Digital Scholarship and Curation, is creating a series of 10 free online courses for staff at tribal archives, libraries, museums (TALMs), and small public libraries on digital stewardship and community-centered curation of cultural collections. Learn more »

Finding New Sources of Funding in Challenging Times:
National Preservation Institute - This 45-minute on-demand course will help you think beyond traditional sources of financial support to fund cultural resource projects. Learn how to evaluate a cultural resource project for its value in serving broader community needs. Review traditional funding types versus alternative sources that can be redirected to meet project goals. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Document Conservation - Northeast Document Conservation Center has many webinar training programs on paper, books, and similar items and topics. Learn more »

Nonprofit Education - Propel Nonprofits and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits feature local training.

Online continuing education

Interpreting African American History and Culture Resource Kit
The American Association for State and Local History's free "Interpreting African American History and Culture Resource Kit" is made up of AASLH conference sessions, webinars, History News, technical leaflets, and books that address topics such as working with descendant communities, celebrating Juneteenth, interpreting slavery for a variety of audiences, and the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement on museum practice. Check it out »

Free Collections Care webinars
Connecting to Collections Online Community offers a series of free, online courses about the preservation of archival and historical collections. Check their website for dates and upcoming programming.

Planning for Changes in the Archives: 12 steps for undertaking collection relocation
Recorded Webinar: Midwest Archives Conference - The presenter walks through the 12 steps so you’ll have a framework to follow for your project. This framework helps focus your plans and ensures you consider possible options. These steps have been honed through experience moving archives and special collections materials. Watch video »

Webinar Recording: Oral History at a Distance: Conducting Remote Interviews
Oral History Association - This timely webinar addresses the dynamics of conducting remote oral history interviews. It begins with an analysis of the pros and cons of conducting distance oral history interviews, then addresses aspects of interviewing in a distance environment, breaking down the interviewer and narrator experience in these exchanges, and offer direction on best approaches for interviewing at a distance. This session will cover best practices for recording archival-quality oral history interviews, then discuss in depth the tools and techniques available to enable the user to follow best practices in a remote setting. Listen »

Webinar Recording: Insurance 101: Practical Considerations for Protecting Institutional Collections and Loans
Connecting to Collections - This webinar recording is appropriate for all levels of experience from beginner to expert as an introduction and review of collections insurance basics and how they are an integral part of collections care. We will examine loss prevention, loss control and how to protect the collection through good housekeeping, landscaping, managing patrons, and during transport of objects. In addition, examples of recent claims and outcomes to illustrate how insurance responds to loss and damage will be presented. Watch the recording »

A Guide to Approaching Audiovisual Digitization
This paper was written through support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The information discussed in the paper is meant to help collection holders prepare their materials and their technology systems for a digitization initiative, as well as give a brief overview of digitization workflows. There is also a discussion of some of the updates made to the BAVC workflow over the last two years. This section may be of interest to those interested in the technical and procedural aspects of digitization workflows. Download paper »

Community Reflection on Black Lives and Archives
Recorded Webinar: Society of American Archivists - Society of American Archivists’ statement on Black Lives and Archives. The vitality of American archives depends on the safety of archives workers and an explicit commitment to social responsibility, justice, and anti-racism in the work that we do and the organizations we work within. As part of this the SAA Council convened a forum of reflection to move toward healing and understanding, of which a recording of this event is now available. Listen »

'Talking About Race' Is a New Online Resource by the National Museum of African American History
Last week, The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) released a new, online portal discussing race, racism, and racial identity. The new web portal, “Talking About Race,” was launched as a way to help everyone, including families and communities, talk about racism and racial identity and the way these forces shape every aspect of society, from the economy and politics to the broader American culture. Learn more »

Online information for exempt organizations
IRS Exempt Organizations has developed an educational website with an online version of their popular workshop for Small and Mid-Sized 501(c)(3) organizations, plus mini-courses on other topics of interest, including information on the redesigned Form 990.

Reflecting on Museum Labor
A course in the Museum Studies program at University of Illinois at Chicago, centered on public engagement, produced a magazine/newspaper-style publication containing useful information about labor rights, history, and museums/places associated with celebrating labor movements and history. It also has interviews with folks in the field and activities like a custom labor-themed cocktail list. Download PDF »

Cultural Institutions at Times of Social Unrest
Recording of Carla Hayden and Lonnie Bunch discussing the future of their institutions and how they remain accessible and relevant during a period of global pandemic coupled with nationwide protests against injustice. Watch webcast »

History Responds to Crisis Workshops Recordings Now Available
Recordings are now available of online workshops with sessions focused on planning and responding to the unexpected. From planning for massive disruptions in operations to preparing your museum and collection for an extended period of closure to staying in touch with your members. View Recordings »

Free ADA training
Ten free training lessons regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act are available online from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Preservation 101
Northeast Document Conservation Center offers a set of free online courses in the basics of caring for objects.

Conferences

International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection 2024 Annual Conference
June 15 - 19, 2024
InterContinental Hotel Chicago Magnificent Mile, Chicago, IL

Association of Midwest Museums Conference
July 31 - August 3, 2024
Hilton Columbus at Easton, Columbus, OH

ARCHIVES*RECORDS 2024 - Society of American Archivists 
August 14 to 17, 2014
Chicago, IL/Online: 

American Association for State and Local History Annual Conference
September 11 - 14, 2024
Mobile Convention Center, Mobile, AL

Digital Collections Summit - MuseumNext
October 22 & 23, 2024
Online

International Conference of Indigenous Archives, Libraries, and Museums
November 12 - 14, 2024
Renaissance Palm Springs Hotel, Palm Springs, CA