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I am a little unclear about your program committee. Is
this a committee of the board of directors or a
committee of the administration?

It sounds like a committee of the board of directors,
as you say
< At the
> current time, this committee pretty much just hears
> about the programs and
> exhibits we are planning and rubber stamps them. The
> committee meets
> quarterly right before board meetings.

If it is a committee of the board of directors, are
you the chair of the committee, or are you the
administration liasion to the committee?

Most large institutions would have a similar board
committee. And, regrettably, most are similar to
yours: they just hear about the programs and exhibits
and rubber stamp them.

Having served on a library board, I understand the
rationale. Most board members are not experts in the
field and rely [too much, I think] on the expertise
and opinions of the staff. And, regrettably, some of
these board members are (understandably) busy with
their own affairs and do not want to spend the time to
really learn about the museum business. They just want
to attend the quarterly meetings and be done with it.

Perhaps you could try to find the board members who
are interested and are willing to spend more time
learning about the operations of your institution and
the museum business in general. Then you could suggest
that they get more involved with the museum's
operations, so they can learn and have a more informed
perspective when making board decisions.

gaw

--- Martha Griffin <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Date: Tue, 27 Sep 2005 13:07:55 -0500 
From: "Martha Griffin" <[log in to unmask]> 
Subject: education or program committees 
To: [log in to unmask] 

> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of
> Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums
> and related institutions.
>
*****************************************************************************
> 
> I have a program committee that reports to our board
> of directors. At the
> current time, this committee pretty much just hears
> about the programs and
> exhibits we are planning and rubber stamps them. The
> committee meets
> quarterly right before board meetings. There is
> always some discussion that
> somewhat impacts the direction of programs, but not
> significantly. 
>  
> Do any of you have a similar committee? Are you
> satisfied with the way it
> functions? I would really like for this committee to
> be as useful and
> purposeful as possible, so any insights and tips
> would be greatly
> appreciated!
>  
> Thanks,
> Martha 
>  
> 
> Martha Griffin 
> Associate Director of Education and Programs
> John P. McGovern Museum
> of Health & Medical Science
> 1515 Hermann Drive
> Houston, TX 77004
> 713-942-7054 x119
> fax: 713-942-7055

gaw

Glenn A. Walsh
Electronic Mail - < [log in to unmask] > 
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
* Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh: 
  < http://www.planetarium.cc > 
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago: 
  < http://adlerplanetarium.tripod.com >
* Astronomer & Optician John A. Brashear: 
  < http://johnbrashear.tripod.com > 
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries: 
  < http://www.andrewcarnegie.cc > 
* Duquesne Incline cable-car railway, Pittsburgh: 
  < http://www.incline.cc >

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