AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF MUSEUMS
ACT NOW Museum Advocacy Alert

House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Museums and Libraries
On Thursday, September 11, 2008 the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities held a hearing examining how museums and libraries help to strengthen communities. Witnesses included Dr. Anne-Imelda M. Radice, Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services; Ms. Suzanne LeBlanc, Executive Director of the Long Island Children’s Museum in New York; Ms. Mary Clare Zales, Deputy Secretary of Education and Commissioner for Libraries in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Ms. Annabelle Núñez, Executive Director of the Arizona Health Science Library at the University of Arizona in Tucson; and Dr. Eric Jolly, President of the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Witness testimony highlighted programs at museums and libraries that address societal issues such as engaging all youth in math and science and attracting diverse Hispanic and Native American populations to library sciences. Several subcommittee members attended the hearing and made comments for the record, including compliments for the presentations of the witnesses and their own local museums and libraries.

After attending the hearing on Thursday morning AAM President Ford Bell noted, “This was an exciting day for museums on Capitol Hill. The Subcommittee heard today about how museums are working with local partners - from child welfare agencies and the family court system to minority communities and local school districts - to solve community problems. I encourage every museum to share with their representatives in Congress the work they do to engage all members of their communities.”

Thank Your Representatives on the Subcommittee
If your representative is a member of the subcommittee, now is the time to thank them for their support of museums in your community! Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-225-3121 and ask for your representative’s office. Let the staff you reach know that you are simply calling to thank your Member of Congress for participating in Thursday’s subcommittee hearing on museums and libraries. Email AAM’s grassroots manager Ember Farber at efarber@aam-us.org for help contacting your representatives.

Additional Information:
See AAM President Ford Bell’s Statement
Watch the webcast and read the witness testimony
Click here to invite your members of Congress to visit your museum

Visit the AAM website at www.aam-us.org today!