Businesses across Annapolis and Anne Arundel County are beginning to reopen, which means nonprofits, museums, and other cultural sites should also be planning now for when they’re able to open to the public. In past blog posts we have shared some of the beneficial webinars, publications, and other resources from the American Alliance for State and Local History (AASLH). The below comes straight from them to help you!
To help museums share thinking as they navigate the challenges and uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Alliance is compiling examples of reopening plans from individual institutions. These plans are specific to each museum’s circumstances and are not meant to be definitive guidance for developing your own. Instead, they provide a reference for what other museums are considering as they chart a course toward safely reopening.
First, start with AASLH’s Considerations for Museum Reopenings, then explore these sample plans to see what might work best for your organization:
- Baxter Springs Heritage Center and Kansas Route 66 Visitors Center
- Children’s Museum of Manhattan
- Discovery Park of America
- Everhart Museum
- Japanese Friendship Garden Society of San Diego
- Patuxent River Naval Air Museum Covid-19 Virus Response Plan
- Texas Historical Commission
- Alabama Department of Archives and History
- Idaho State Historical Society
- Montreal-area art museums
- Rancho Los Cerritos reopening plan
- Texas museums and libraries
- Sons of the American Revolution
- Clair County Historical Society
You can also help other museums by sharing your plans and stories. The American Alliance of Museums is interested in learning how you are preparing for reopening in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated financial crisis. Please use their “share your plans and stories form” to provide information about how your institution is planning to reopen. They will contact you in the event that they’d like to share your story with the broader field.
Don’t forget to keep an eye on Maryland’s Back to Business Guide, which provides updates and best practices for Maryland’s companies reopening in correlation with the COVID-19 outbreak. Even if museums are not yet on the list, the guidance to other industries can still help you as you determine best practices to keeping both your staff and the public safe.
If you have a reopening plan you’d be willing to let us share with our partners we’d love to hear from you as well! Send us an email, to [email protected].