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Southeastern Museums Conference
BIENVENUE A BATON ROUGE!

Laissez les bon temps rouler!  “Let the good times roll!” as we say in Louisiana. The Louisiana Association of Museums welcomes you to a cultural experience like no other.  And October is one of our best weather months of the year!  Please join us at the 2010 SEMC conference in Baton Rouge on the Mississippi River!  You will not only learn a lot but you will “pass a good time too.”  Good food is in the program--jambalaya, etouffee’, red  beans and rice, and you don’t even have to ask for the Tabasco here.  You will have an opportunity to see sugar country or take a swamp tour. Baton Rouge has a host of museums-all waiting to add to your experience.  Don’t hesitate…register now!  What better way to visit south Louisiana?  See you in October!

Louisiana Association of Museums and the SEMC 2010 Host Committee


RE-INVENT, RE-INVIGORATE, & RE-VITALIZE WITH SEMC

As we all know, working in a museum during the Great Recession has not been easy. Continuing challenges include dealing with budget cuts and staff layoffs, finding creative ways to connect with our communities, forging new partnerships and seeking new sources of support. SEMC’s Program Committee invites you to join us in Baton Rouge to share our problems and our success stories, use the past to create new visions for the future, and network with the most congenial and supportive group of museum professionals in the nation.

We’ll ponder questions of sustainability in “Will Your Museum Be Open in 2020?” and “Extreme Makeover – Museum Goes Green,” consider the synergy of “Fundraising, Membership & Marketing,” and learn about the 21st century volunteer in “Maximizing Your Greatest Resource.”  “Collaborations that Make National Heritage Areas” will expand your definition of partnerships, while “I Just Need Some Pretty Pictures!” will address the intersection of design, fundraising and project management.

We’ll learn about collections planning, discuss “Collecting Ethics in the Real World”, and explore how museums can work with private and corporate collections in “Private Collections/Public Museums.”  Educators will enjoy “Cheap but Good: Programs that Make Money for Museums,” and “Reinventing the Visitor Experience Through New Technology.”  

Nationally recognized security management expert Stevan P. Layne will prove that cultural property protection is not just for large museums in “We Just Don’t Have the Money! Best Practices for Improving Security with Reduced Staff and Budgets,” while Capitol Inclusion advocate Barbara Burton will present a double session on marketing to and serving potential visitors with disabilities in “Museum Inclusion: Dollars and Sense.”

Perennial SEMC favorites will return, including a new edition of John Wetenhall’s “Half-Day MBA,” and a new set of curatorial research presentations. We’ll also explore current topics, including “Museums & Social Media,” “Art + Design = Interactive Galleries,” as well as best practices for excellence in operations in “No Dirty Laundry Here!”

For those interested in career development (and who isn’t?), “Reinforce Your Work Style,” “Reinforce Your New Career Through Networking,” and “Emergency Tool Kit for Unintended Job Shifts” will fill the bill.  Learn about SEMC’s nationally acclaimed Jekyll Island Management Institute in “What is JIMI and What Can It Do For You?” and how serving as a MAP or Accreditation Peer Review can make you a better museum professional in “A Re-Invigorating View of Peer Review.”  You can also browse current job announcements and sign up for a resume review at SEMC’s Career Center.

Networking and information-sharing opportunities of all varieties will abound – from the wealth of information and expertise represented by our corporate partners in the Resource
Expo to meals, receptions, and projects sponsored by standing professional committees and affinity groups, there will be something for everyone!  So join us in Baton Rouge this October for a mind-expanding, career-building and spirit-lifting experience.  Registration materials will be available at http://www.SEMCdirect.net beginning July 15.


DISCOVER BATON ROUGE!

Baton Rouge is a city with a rich history, vibrant mix of cultures, and a large and thriving museum community. Not only is Baton Rouge the capital city of Louisiana, it also serves as a major cultural hub where Creole, Cajun, Spanish and Caribbean influences remain strong. Although the city carefully maintains its past, it is also one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the U.S. We invite Annual Meeting participants to experience this unique city by visiting some of its many museums, sampling Creole and Cajun cuisine, touring a sugar plantation, exploring a swamp, or learning about a Baton Rouge landmark.
SEMC’s Annual Meeting will be held in such a landmark. Built in 1927, the Heidelberg Hotel was one of the favorite haunts of legendary Louisiana politician Huey Long. In 1931, the Heidelberg briefly served as the Louisiana Capitol. Newly elected U.S. Senator Long refused to relinquish his duties as governor and move out of the state capitol, so Lieutenant Governor Paul Cyr set up operations in the hotel. The Heidelberg was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. After $70 million in renovations in 2006, the hotel has now been reborn as the Hilton Capitol Center. SEMC room rates are $139+ tax, and cutoff date for our room block is September 11, 2010.  For more information or to make reservations, call 877-862-9800 (toll free), 225-344-5866 (direct) or visit www.hiltoncapitolcenter.com.
The Annual Meeting’s agenda also includes an array of off-site sessions, tours, and special activities designed to give participants an insider’s view of the area’s cultural resources.  SERA and EdCom have planned behind-the-scenes experiences at the LSU Museum of Art, NAME will host an “Exhibit Walk & Talk” at one of the downtown museums, and HHMAG will sponsor a hands-on work project at a local historic house museum.  A Wednesday morning walking tour will explore downtown Baton Rouge’s landmark buildings and quirky neighborhoods. The $20 Morning Walk fee supports SEMC 2011 Annual Meeting scholarships.
October is sugar cane harvest season, and participants of Tuesday afternoon’s Sugar Country Tour will learn first-hand about the history and living traditions of sugar cane cultivation through stops at the West Baton Rouge Museum, Cinclaire Plantation and Sugar Mill, the longest-running sugar mill in the parish (1855-2005), and state historic site Plaquemine Locks. The group will then travel to one of the few surviving grand plantation “big houses,” Nottaway, where we will tour the gardens and Gothic Revival mansion. (Tuesday, 10/12, 1-5 pm, tour fee $45).

Participants in Wednesday’s Swamp Stomp tour will never leave the city and yet will get to see a natural cypress swamp and native Louisiana flora. BREC’s Bluebonnet Swamp offers visitors a unique opportunity to walk through a natural urban swamp area. The next stop is LSU Hilltop Arboretum, designed as an outdoor laboratory and featuring an extensive collection of Louisiana trees and shrubs on 14 beautiful acres. Both sites offer indoor interpretation centers that will insure a wonderful experience rain or shine. Trails and walks at both sites are handicapped accessible. (Wednesday, 10/13, 2-5 pm, tour fee $25)

Annual Meeting-goers can sign up for all tours and activities on the Annual Meeting Registration Form, which will be posted on SEMC’s website, www.SEMCdirect.org, on July 15. In addition to the organized activities, Baton Rouge area museums will provide free admission for all Annual Meeting participants from October 11-17. And as lagniappe (south Louisiana talk for “a little something extra”), our Baton Rouge colleagues are compiling a very special guide to the city’s best food and entertainment spots. So think about coming early or staying after the conference to experience even more of this fascinating city!


EVENING EVENTS

It wouldn’t be a SEMC meeting without great evening events, which are included in your registration fee!  Our Louisiana museum colleagues have been working hard to make sure you “pass a good time,” and enjoy Baton Rouge’s great culinary, musical and cultural heritage. Here’s what our hosts have in store for you:

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Kick off the evening on a festive note by strolling down Lafayette Street escorted by a 2nd Line Mardi Gras Band.

Your first stop is the Louisiana Art & Science Museum, where an innovative exhibition by world-renowned Louisiana artist Keith Sonnier will be on view.  Take in Sonnier’s first museum show in his home state, and explore the planetarium’s Solar System and Universe Galleries while you sip libations and dine on appetizers that hit all the highlights of Louisiana’s cultural heritage.

Recharge your appetite with a stroll to the LSU Museum of Art at the Shaw Center for the Arts. Enjoy the best view in town of the mighty Mississippi River from the 4th floor River Terrace. Indulge in a Louisiana menu including crispy fried catfish, red beans and rice with andouille sausage and desserts that will make you smile. Snap your fingers, tap your feet or dance to the sounds of Louisiana music by Mr. Eric Baskin of Quality Music Production. It’s time relax and let your hair down, cher, you are in Louisiana!


Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Board a motorcoach to be whisked away to the past as you begin your evening with a taste of Louisiana history at “Louisiana’s White House,” home of Huey P. Long. The Old Governor’s Mansion welcomes you for mixing, mingling and touring the mansion that housed some of the most colorful politicians in Louisiana history.  You will be sure to enjoy great food such as butternut squash, crawfish bisque, cappuccino shooters, and signature drinks like the Sun-Tini, named after the Louisiana state song “You Are My Sunshine” written by Jimmy Davis, Louisiana’s “singing governor.”

From there you will be taken to Louisiana’s Old State Capitol, where you will immerse yourself in Louisiana’s colorful politics (we have many stories to tell) as you stroll through the building that was burned during the Civil War and rebuilt. Find out why Mark Twain called this a “sham castle” and meet the ghost of Sarah Morgan as she tells the story about the building’s remarkable trials and tribulations through history.  As you visit this facility you will dine on more mount-watering examples of local delicacies.

Your last stop is the Louisiana State Museum, where you will be able to dive into Louisiana’s unique and colorful history and culture. The 69,000 square foot museum features a massive full size shrimp boat, interactive music booths, and an entertaining Mardi Gras exhibit.  Be prepared to participate in a “Fais do do” (dance celebration) as you listen to the sounds of a Louisiana band.  We will tantalize your taste buds once again as you partake of our Cajun and Creole cuisine, including  mouth watering desserts.

Be sure to bring your appetite and comfortable clothing!  As we say in Louisiana,

“Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler” or “Let The Good Times Roll!”

Preliminary Program Click Here
 
 
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