Category Archives: Resources

Free Webinar on the Hispanic Traveler on Feb. 10

If you are trying to reach an Hispanic or Latino audience, Laura Mandala of Mandala Research, LLC is leading a webinar on “Understanding the U. S. Hispanic Traveler” on February 10, 2012 at 2:00 pm Eastern. Produced in conjunction with Longwoods Travel USA, she’ll be providing comprehensive data and analysis on the U.S. Hispanic Traveler, including spending, activities, social media usage, mode of transport, trip purpose, trip planning, booking, destinations for both day and overnight stays, and much more.  Cost is $299 and pre-registration is required.  For more details, visit mandalaresearch.com.

If you’re not familiar with Laura Mandala, she  one of the leading research and analysis firms specializing in leisure travel (that includes those of us who work in museums and historic sites).  I became familiar with her study of heritage and cultural travelers at the National Trust.  Her website offers several free reports including the use of social media by travelers, behaviors of leisure travelers who drive, and culinary cultural travelers (foodies!).  If you’re a member of the American Association of Museums, you can receive the Cultural and Heritage Traveler Study for 50% off.

Will iBooks Textbooks Extend the Reach of Historic Sites?

iBook textbook on an iPad. Image courtesy of Apple, Inc.

Today at the historic Guggenheim Museum in New York, Apple announced an expansion of their iBooks app to include textbooks for their iPads.  Students will no longer have to lug around heavy books, content will be always be current, and it will cost less.  As Apple describes it:

A Multi-Touch textbook on iPad is a gorgeous, full-screen experience full of interactive diagrams, photos, and videos. No longer limited to static pictures to illustrate the text, now students can dive into an image with interactive captions, rotate a 3D object, or have the answer spring to life in a chapter review. They can flip through a book by simply sliding a finger along the bottom of the screen. Highlighting text, taking notes, searching for content, and finding definitions in the glossary are just as easy. And with all their books on a single iPad, students will have no problem carrying them wherever they go.

They’ve already partnered with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Pearson, and McGraw Hill to produce textbooks on math and science.  With the big publishers in play, what’s in it for historic sites and history organizations? A lot. Continue reading →

2012 Compact Calendar for Engaging Places Available

Detail from the Compact Calendar

Much of my work revolves around managing complex projects and programs, which requires checking in on a regular schedule, looking months ahead, or planning backwards from a deadline.  A typical monthly calendar doesn’t work very well–I need to see the entire year on one page so I can envision it all at one time, preferably as a single stream so I can more accurately see the distance between days (having been tripped up by months with five Mondays, for example).   I also need to know about major holidays and events so I don’t make the inadvertent mistake of scheduling a meeting on Memorial Day or Yom Kippur, dates that move around from year to year.

I’ve found a great solution from David Seah, an “investigative designer” who has this insatiable desire for Continue reading →

Learn How the Museum Assessment Program Can Help Your Site

The Museum Assessment Program is one of those program that’s been a major benefit to the field for decades, but unless you’ve participated, it’s a mystery.  You may have heard how it can transform an organization, move it to the next level of development, or solve a vexing situation.  It sounds dramatic, but I’ve seen it happen at both large and small museums who have gone through the process.

So how does this happen?  You can find out at a free webinar about MAP on Thursday, November 10 at 3pm Eastern Standard Time presented by the American Association of Museums and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.  Registration isn’t required but Continue reading →

Best Practices for Community Engagement and Interpretation Available

For your convenience, I’ve pulled together in one page the various standards and best practices for community engagement, public education, and historical interpretation at historic places and by historical organizations, including scholarship, curriculum development, visitor research, and staff training, as well as the broad range of public programs presented by historic sites, from tours and exhibits to publications and the Internet.  You’ll find “Best Practices” as a topic on the navigation bar on EngagingPlaces.net.

These resources can be used to: Continue reading →

The Best Resources on HistoricSites.WordPress.com

Although it’s unclear if the blog I formerly managed will continue after the reorganization at the National Trust, I would encourage you to download and copy the many free resources that are available now while you have a chance.  My recommendations are: