The haines sheldon museum will build sustainable collections management capacity through mentoring and training opportunities for staff and volunteers along with improved policies and procedures for…

The Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded the Sheldon Museum & Cultural Center, Inc. $300,476 on September 1, 2026, under the Museums for America program (CFDA 45.301) to build sustainable collections management capacity through mentoring, training, and improved institutional practices.

The recipient will hire a new Collections Manager who will receive mentoring from former museum staff and develop an individual learning plan identifying core competencies, training activities, and project assignments. The Collections Manager will conduct training sessions for staff and volunteers on object handling basics, labeling, and database use. Staff will attend professional conferences to gain skills in collections management, documentation, and best practices implementation. The project will produce updated collections policies and procedures reflecting current standards, increased numbers of inventoried and documented objects rehoused in appropriate storage, and a more knowledgeable workforce better equipped to support long-term care and use of museum collections.

Performance occurs in Haines, Alaska from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2029.

The haines sheldon museum will build sustainable collections management capacity through mentoring and training opportunities for staff and volunteers along with improved policies and procedures for collections management. A new collections manager will receive mentoring from former museum staff and develop an individual learning plan that identifies core competencies, training activities, and project assignments. The collections manager will also help expand organizational capacity for collections care by providing training sessions for staff and volunteers on object handling basics, labeling, and database use. Staff will attend professional conferences to gain the skills needed to manage, document, and implement best practices for the collection. The project will result in updated collections policies and procedures that reflect current standards and are fully utilized across the museum; an increased amount of collections that are inventoried, documented in the database, and appropriately rehoused in storage areas; and staff and volunteers who are more knowledgeable about collections responsibilities and better able to support the long-term care and use of museum collections.