Collections Stewardship
Preservation Services and Training for the Intermountain West!
Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Regional Heritage Stewardship Program (RHSP) is an initiative of the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts (CCAHA) that brings vital preservation services to regions of the country with limited access to conservators and preservation expertise. Conducted in partnership with Utah field services providers, the Utah Division of Arts & Museums’ Office of Museum Services (UA&M) and Utah Humanities (UH), the 2019-2020 RHSP Intermountain West project will bring in-person workshops, webinars, and preservation needs assessments to collecting institutions in under-served parts of Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. Learn more about the program here and contact Emily Johnson at UA&M (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) with questions.
2019-2020 Workshop Series
These series of workshops are delivered as two full-day sessions taught back-to-back. Each series is offered twice – once in the southwestern region of Utah and the second in the Four Corners region of Utah and Colorado. Please note that days and locations may be subject to change. Registering is the best way to stay apprised of updates.
Series One: Preservation Best Practices & Fundraising for Collections Care
- June 3 & 4, 2019 in St. George, Utah at the McQuarrie Memorial DUP Museum - REGISTER HERE
- June 6 & 7, 2019 in Green River, Utah at the John Wesley Powell River History Museum - REGISTER HERE
Series Two: Collections Management Policies, Procedures, & Risk Assessment
- October 14 & 15, 2019 in Cortez, Colorado at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
- October 17 & 18, 2019 in St. George, Utah at the McQuarrie Memorial DUP Museum
Series Three: Preservation Planning, Environmental Management, & Disaster Preparedness
- May 4 & 5, 2020 in Moab, Utah at the Moab Museum
- May 7 & 8, 2020 in St. George, Utah at the McQuarrie Memorial DUP Museum
Cost & Registration
Workshops are $20 per day or $35 for the 2-day series per person. If you are affiliated with a Utah museum, you may be eligible for a scholarship to offset your registration and travel costs. Please read guidelines and apply here.
Presenters
Workshops will be taught by conservators and preservation experts from the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts, as well as regional specialists as required.
StEPs-Utah Pilot
Work together to build on your organization’s strengths!
Utah Humanities (UH), the Utah Division of Arts & Museums (UDAM), and the Utah Division of State History (USH) are partnering to pilot a program based on the American Association for State & Local History’s (AASLH) Standards and Excellence Program for History Organizations (StEPs) that will offer seven Utah history museums a two-year enrichment opportunity designed to help them achieve success in six areas of institutional practice. Space is limited and by competitive application - applications for the 2018-2020 program are now closed. Learn more about the program here and if you have questions, please contact Jennifer Ortiz at UDAM (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or Megan van Frank at UH (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
“StEPs has helped our organization to achieve basic standards of practice in many areas. Without the program and the support of the other participants and our mentor, I am not sure this would have been possible. We have come together in an amazing way and have a renewed enthusiasm in the future.”
- StEPs-CT program participant
Upcoming Workshops
The StEPS-Utah pilot project commenced with 4-month modules in July 2018 and will continue through June 2020. Each module is comprised of hands-on workshops, an onsite project, and mentor support. Monthly workshops will be held in Salt Lake City. During the course of the program, a cohort of participating organizations will complete all six modules (modules are not available separately).
Cost & Registration
Participation in the pilot is by competitive application - please note that applications for 2018-2020 are now closed. Program fees are $150 per organization per module = $900 per organization for the 2-year program. See schedule, benefits, and requirements here.
Presenters
Workshops will be taught by instructors who are experts in the designated area of focus. The program will pair participating organizations with an experienced mentor to help individualize content to the organization’s current needs.
Museum Interpretation
Tell the Stories of Your Collections & Communities!
Learn how to research, design, and create interpretive exhibits and educational activities. This series of five full-day linked workshops offers staff and volunteers working in Utah’s small museums hands-on learning in curatorial practice and exhibit development. Participants attend the entire series and complete a small exhibit project at their own museum. The program includes reading and project-related assignments, as well as a small stipend to support exhibit development. Museum Interpretation Workshops are presented in partnership with the Utah Division of Arts & Museums.
I appreciate the congenial atmosphere and encouragement, the sharing of ideas, and helping each other on actual projects and not just hypotheticals.
The workshops have been the most valuable thing we have ever participated in. The information was clear, well presented, and easy to understand and get excited about.
– Workshop Participants
Workshop Series - Check Back for 2019 Dates
This series is held over five consecutive months. Participation in all five full-day workshops and completion of a small on-site exhibit project is required:
- Month 1: Telling Our Stories: Introduction to Museum Interpretation
- Month 2: Finding Our Stories: Researching Collections & Communities
- Month 3: Designing Our Stories: Well Structured Exhibits
- Month 4: Writing Our Stories: Exhibit Labels
- Month 5: Teaching Our Stories: Museum Education
Participants can access Sample Workshop Materials here.
Cost & Registration
Training and materials are free, but workshop space is limited and by competitive application. For details or questions, contact Megan van Frank at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 801.359.9670 x110.
Presenters
Megan van Frank (Utah Humanities), Lisa Thompson (Natural History Museum of Utah), and Virginia Catherall (Utah Museum of Fine Arts).
Oral History
Interested in oral history? This workshop is a great place to begin!
Oral History is a powerful tool to understand your family stories and community history. This workshop will provide a focused introduction to the art and craft of oral history: to the philosophical underpinnings of the discipline — what it can, and cannot, tell us about the past — to the nuts and bolts of executing a successful oral history project. Participants will find out more about funding sources for oral history projects. Oral History workshops are presented jointly by Utah Humanities and the Utah Division of State History.
Well organized, informative, upbeat, inspiring... Lots of great ideas and resources... A broad range of information presented in a very digestible way.... I feel prepared to apply this information!
– Workshop Attendees, Salt Lake City
Upcoming Workshops
To schedule a workshop in your community, please contact Megan van Frank at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 801.359.9670 x110.
Cost & Registration
These half-day workshops are free but registration is requested.
Presenters
Jedediah Rogers is a Senior State Historian at the Utah Division of State History and co-managing editor of the Utah Historical Quarterly. Megan van Frank directs community history and museum programming for Utah Humanities.
