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Finding Aids to Records of Professional Societies in the Smithsonian Institution Archives

Record Unit 7295

Museum Education Roundtable

Records, 1970-1982

Repository:Smithsonian Institution Archives, Washington, D.C. Contact us at osiaref@si.edu.
Creator:Museum Education Roundtable
Title:Records
Dates:1970-1982
Quantity:2 cu. ft. (2 record storage boxes)
Collection:Record Unit 7295
Language of Materials:English
Summary:

Historical Note

Education personnel at the Smithsonian Institution founded the Museum Education Roundtable (MER) in 1970 as a consortium of local museum educators. Today MER is an independent, non-profit, educational corporation which seeks to promote communication between museum personnel and local educators, further the use of museums and cultural institutions as educational resources, and develop educational services in museums and other public institutions. Regular meetings supplemented by workshops are also concerned with the creation of cooperative museum-school projects, and improving communication between educators in museums and schools by keeping members informed of programs available in the area, as well as professional museum education staff development. As a volunteer organization, MER seeks financial support through subscriptions to its quarterly newsletter, "Roundtable Reports," and membership dues. Initial funding came from National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities grants.

An elected board of directors governs MER. Their responsibilities include transforming the organization's goals into programs and obtaining funding. Chairs of the MER board have included: Tom Radford, 1971-1973; Sue Hoth, 1973-1975; Donna Ari, 1975-1977; Barbara Fertig, 1977-1979; Kenneth Yellis, 1979-1981; Susan L. Nichols, 1981-1982; and Schroeder J. Cherry, 1982- . Membership information and surveys, minutes of board meetings, and membership materials are included in these MER records, as are workshop materials and funding proposals.

The Museum Education Roundtable promotes communication between the museum and education communities both nationally and locally through its publications. Through "Roundtable Reports" MER provides its members and other subscribers with information about national trends in museum education, recent developments in the profession, and nationally available resources such as other museum education organizations and their seminars, workshops, and committees. A nearly complete set of "Roundtable Reports," 1973, 1975-1980, is part of this record unit.

Another MER publication, the "Directory of Educational Opportunities in the Washington Area," has had three editions, 1971-1973. Through the Directory readers learn about field trips and educational resources in the District of Columbia area. Other flyers and brochures are also part of the MER archives.

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This collection is indexed under the following access terms. These are links to collections with related topics, persons or places.

Name

Subject

Physical Characteristics of Materials in the Collection

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Preferred Citation

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 7295, Museum Education Roundtable, Records

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Container List

Box 1

MER Slides and Script, with Loan Forms, 1978

Box 1 of 2

Slide Show: All About MER

Box 1 of 2

MER Elections, c. 1980

Box 1 of 2

MER Elections: Board Members, 1979

Box 1 of 2

MER Board Meetings, 1979-1980 (4 folders)

Box 1 of 2

Stapp, Carol, 1977

Box 1 of 2

Minutes of Board Meetings, c. 1977-1979

Box 1 of 2

MER Board of Directors, 1970-1973

Box 1 of 2

MER Board of Directors, 1973-1974

Box 1 of 2

MER Board Meetings, 1975-1976 (2 folders)

Box 1 of 2

Meetings of the Board and the Membership Committee, 1971-1977 (2 folders)

Box 1 of 2

MER Program and Administration, 1970-1975 (3 folders)

Box 1 of 2

Board Agendas and Minutes, 1974

Box 1 of 2

Membership Committee: Meetings, Programs, Legal, and Activities, c. 1971-1973

Box 1 of 2

Membership and Institutions and Notices to Members, 1971-1973

Box 1 of 2

Grant Requests and Workshops, 1971-1973

Box 1 of 2

MER Membership, 1970-1973

Box 1 of 2

Membership Correspondence, 1980-1981

Box 1 of 2

Renewal Notices, 1976

Box 1 of 2

Membership Surveys (2 folders)

Box 1 of 2

Membership Meetings: Poll for Service Evaluation, c. 1975

Box 1 of 2

Special Project Evaluation, 1972

Box 1 of 2

Museum Educators Poll: Returns and Blanks

Box 1 of 2

MER Workshop, 1973

Box 1 of 2

MER Energy Meeting, 1974

Box 1 of 2

Slides, c. 1974

Box 1 of 2

Cassette Tape: "Family Mtg"

Box 1 of 2

Box 2

Minutes of the Edit Committee, c. 1978-1980

Box 2 of 2

MER Flyers

Box 2 of 2

MER Roundtable Reports, 1973-1982, Includes the Following Issues: April 1973; June 1973; July1973; August 1973; September 1973; May 1975; July 1975; October (Fall) 1975; January 1976(Winter); Spring 1976; Summer 1976; Fall 1976; Spring 1977; Fall 1977; Winter 1977; Spring1978; Summer/Fall 1978; Winter 1978; Volume 4, Issues 1-4; Volume 5, Issues 1-4; Volume 6,Issues 1-4

Box 2 of 2

MER Directory, c. 1973

Box 2 of 2

Education Plans for A Nation of Nations

Box 2 of 2

ACT Workshop, c. 1978-1979

Box 2 of 2

Handbook of Museum-Based Lesson Plans, 1979

Box 2 of 2

MER Workshop, Self Tours and Guides, 1975

Box 2 of 2

Southern Illinois University, c. 1970-1972 (includes photographs)

Box 2 of 2

Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA), 1979-1980 (2 folders)

Box 2 of 2

ARTS D.C., 1980

Box 2 of 2

Berman, Ronald: MER/National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), c. 1975

Box 2 of 2

MER Publicity, 1972-1973

Box 2 of 2

Manuscripts and Layouts for Roundtable Reports, c. 1970s (4 folders)

Box 2 of 2

ARTS D.C., c. 1978-1981

Box 2 of 2

MER Fundraising and Grants, 1974

Box 2 of 2

Grant Proposals

Box 2 of 2

West, Cathy: A Study of Museum Programs and the Elderly, 1978-1981

Box 2 of 2

MER Workshop Proposal, 1973

Box 2 of 2

Lockwood, Susan

Box 2 of 2

Lansburgh Special Projects, 1978-1979

Box 2 of 2

MER Project on Curriculum Planning and In Service Funding, c. 1974-1976

Box 2 of 2

Cafritz Directory, 1973

Box 2 of 2

Strong Foundation and Directory, 1973

Box 2 of 2

National Education Association, 1973-1974

Box 2 of 2

Zoo Listings

Box 2 of 2

MER Brochures

Box 2 of 2

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