Pennsylvania Federation of Museums and Historical Organizations

PFMHO SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
2010 NOMINATIONS

PENNSYLVANIA MUSEUMS ARE AMAZING,
AND WE WANT EVERYONE TO KNOW IT!
Nomination Deadline: June 1, 2010

Each year, PFMHO recognizes the special achievements of museums and historical organizations in Pennsylvania. This is your invitation to submit a nomination for a project, process, or individual that you know is exemplary.

A PFMHO Special Achievement Award distinguishes your organization by:

Serving as public recognition of staff or volunteers and providing an incentive to continue developing new and exciting projects;
Encouraging your staff to establish and maintain standards of excellence in your institution;
Providing a vehicle to promote your institution through media news releases and membership and fundraising campaigns;
Reinforcing your case for the quality of your programs in grant or sponsorship proposals; and
Publicly honoring awardees before peers and invited guests at a special awards ceremony.

Last year, 120 museum and public history professionals gathered to honor awardees representing large and small organizations from across the Commonwealth. (Click here to read about previous winners.) Doesn’t your organization deserve to be there in 2010?

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ELIGIBILITY

A nominee for an institutional award must be an institutional member of PFMHO; an individual nominee must be affiliated with an institutional member or be an individual member him or herself.
Anyone may submit a nomination, including staff of the nominated organization.
Nominations for joint projects may be submitted if all major partners are PFMHO members.
PFMHO business affiliate members and individual members who are full-time consultants are eligible for an award when the project has benefited a PFMHO institutional member and has been submitted jointly with that member.
Groups of volunteers are not eligible for individual achievement awards.
Membership information and applications can be found at www.pamuseums.org or by contacting Rusty Baker at PFMHO, 717-909-4951.

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AWARD CATEGORIES

Institutional Award of Merit

The Award of Merit recognizes outstanding and innovative projects that have provided an exemplary contribution to the museum or public history field in Pennsylvania. A nomination may be made for any project or best practice that serves to raise the bar of excellence in the field.

Some examples are:

An exhibit and the related programming that present an event/topic or tell a story in an innovative and compelling fashion; or
A successful heritage tourism program with marketing and media components that resulted in community development and collaboration.

Or, a nomination could be presented for:

A publication or a school program that reaches a previously underserved audience;
A model earned-income program that has strengthened fiscal independence; or
A web site providing greater public access to your programs and collection.

A best practice may be:

An exemplary or new housekeeping routine;
A state-of-the-art volunteer or docent-training program; or
An innovative collections conservation or interpretive plan.

Individual Achievement Awards

Leadership Award This award recognizes exceptional leadership of a PFMHO institutional member at the board or community level.

Professional Award This award recognizes excellence in professional accomplishments and service by a salaried employee to a PFMHO institutional member. Individual PFMHO members are also eligible for this award for their overall service to the museum and public history field.

Heart and Soul Award This award recognizes outstanding or long-term, hands-on volunteer activities that have benefited a PFMHO institutional member.

Special Award Categories

S. K. Stevens Memorial Award The S. K. Stevens Memorial Award recognizes outstanding institutional accomplishments in the field of Pennsylvania state and local history. The winner of this prestigious award receives a certificate and a cash prize funded by an endowment established by the Historical Foundation of Pennsylvania. To qualify, an institution must: a) be a current member of PFMHO; b) have previously won an award from PFMHO; and, c) have been nationally recognized by an award from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH). No nomination is required for this award; winners will be notified.

Carol Wickkiser Memorial Award This $500 award recognizes exceptional promise and potential for leadership in an entering professional in the field. It is to be used for continuing education to enhance his or her expertise, promoting collegial connections, and inspiring excellence and continued dedication to service to museums or historical organizations.

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JUDGING CRITERIA

Institutional Award of Merit

A project or practice will be judged on its overall excellence as well as three key criteria, as appropriate to the specific nomination:

How has the project benefited the public? Judges favor projects with ambitious outreach over those that are intended mainly to benefit the members of the organization. Nominations should consider what audiences were targeted and reached, how did the project enrich the institution’s community, improved or increased access to the institutions exhibits, programs, or collections.

How has the project enhanced the professionalism of the organization and improved its ability to serve the public? Projects will be evaluated on the basis of relevance to the organization’s mission, and potential for increased institutional capacity. Nominations should consider how a project increased an organization’s capacity to meet its mission goals and how it influenced the organization’s reach and professional influence in its community and in the larger field.

Is the project an outstanding example? Judges look for projects that are innovative and feature new ideas that will provide inspiration for creative development by other institutions. Nominations should consider how the project or practice can be emulated and possibly improved upon by other institutions, thus moving the field as a whole forward.

Primary consideration will be given to projects completed within 18 months before the June 1, 2010 deadline. However, the judges may also consider nominations for exceptional programs or individual volunteer activities extending over a longer period of time.

Pennsylvania is privileged to have over 1,100 museums and historical organizations of all sizes and disciplines. Projects are judged on their merits within the context of an organization’s own institutional capacity.

Individual Achievement Awards

Leadership Award
Presented for outstanding leadership at the board or community level over an extended period of time. Such leadership shall be illustrated by the growth and development of an organization or specific program, which was a direct result of the nominee’s influence and work.

Professional Award
Presented for professional excellence within an institution by a member of the paid staff. Criteria include meritorious service and exceptional accomplishment. The nomination should include evidence of outstanding work beyond the satisfactory fulfillment of expected functions.

Heart and Soul Award
Presented in recognition of either long term or outstanding hands-on volunteer activities within an organization. Recognizable activities include docent/guide service, collections management, restoration activities, etc.

Carol Wickkiser Award
Presented in recognition of exceptional leadership potential in an entering professional in the museum or history field. The nominee must be currently employed by a PFMHO institutional member and must be working in the field for five years or fewer.

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NOMINATION PROCEDURES

Nominations must be postmarked no later than June 1, 2010. Submitted materials become the property of PFMHO unless return is requested at the time of submission with postage-paid shipping labels for the return.

Six (6) copies of the nomination package must be submitted; awards are judged by a committee of five museum professionals, each of whom receives a complete nomination package to review. Nominations will be evaluated solely on the materials provided.

The nomination should be submitted in a tabbed, 3-ring binder, not to exceed 2” in width.

Institutional nomination binders should include and be tabbed as follows:

The Nomination Abstract Face Sheet (see below).
Mission Statement of the institution.
Project Description Narrative, not to exceed 1,500 words (about three single-spaced pages), explaining the development, implementation, and results of the project. Include examples illustrating:
* How the project has made a positive impact on the community;
* How it has improved the institution’s capacity to serve its constituency; and,
* What new ideas were developed that provide a model for the museum or public history field.
Project Budget and sources of funding, including in-kind support and staff time.
Letters of Support from at least two independent professionals who were not involved in the development of the project.
Supporting Materials, which could include press releases, promotional materials, newspaper articles, reviews, activity pages or worksheets, teachers’ guides, pre- or post-visit materials, audience evaluations (in summary form), or letters from participants and visitors. Choose your best materials; it must fit in the 2” binder.
Outside Reviews required for books, exhibits, and video productions.
Photographs, audio recordings, or video footage (as applicable) can be submitted on CD or DVD. Digital photographs may be accompanied by paper images, but it is not necessary.
The Publication, if applicable.

Individual nomination binders should include and be tabbed as follows:

The Nomination Abstract Face Sheet (see below).
Narrative, not to exceed 1,500 words (about three single-spaced pages) describing:
* The accomplishments of the individual and how they relate to the particular award;
* How the individual has had an impact on the organization, the community, and the museum or public history field; and,
* Detailed examples describing how these accomplishments were exceptional and exceeded routine functions.
Letters of support from museum or history professionals, community leaders, or those who have benefited from the individual’s efforts.
Curriculum Vitae, resume, or list of accomplishments as appropriate to the nomination.
Supporting Materials that attest to the outstanding accomplishments of the nominee, which may include press releases, newspaper articles, citations in professional publications or newsletters.

Nomination Abstract Face Sheet

1. Name of the project or individual being nominated

2. The name of the award sought by the nomination

3. Nominee Information

For an institutional nomination

Name, address, phone number and website URL of the member institution
Pennsylvania legislative district and US Congressional district of the institution
Name of the executive director of the institution with email address and phone number
Name and title of person who will accept the award

For an individual nomination

Name, address, phone number and email address of the nominee
Pennsylvania legislative district and US Congressional district of the nominee
Name, address, phone number and website URL of his/her affiliated organization

4. Nominator Information

Name, title, phone number and email address of person making the nomination
Name, address, phone number and website of his/her affiliated organization

5. Abstract of project or individual accomplishments

Summary of Achievement. To be used to write award citation. (Confine this summary to 100 words; provide detailed information in the nomination narrative.)
Impact Summary of project or individual accomplishments. (Confine this summary to 100 words; provide detailed information in the nomination narrative.)

6. For institutional awards only:

Annual operating budget of institution
Date project completed

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Winners will be notified by August 31, 2010. Formal recognition will be given on the PFMHO website, in Tapestry, and at an awards ceremony in the Fall. Winners are encouraged to invite staff, board members, their members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, civic leaders from their community, and their local press representative to attend the awards ceremony.

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Mail nominations to:

PFMHO
234 North Third Street, 3rd Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17101

Deadline: June 1, 2010

Questions can be directed to Janet MacGregor at PFMHO, 717-909-3995, or click here for email.

This program is made possible in part through a grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.