Jan. 4, 2008

Mackinaw City, Mich. - Mackinac State Historic Parks has recently been awarded reaccreditation by the American Association of Museums (AAM), an honor held by only 774 museums of the estimated 17,500 in the United States.

This is Mackinac State Historic Parks' fourth accreditation since its initial award in 1973, a milestone achieved by only 41 institutions, or five percent of the accredited museums in the United States.

"This recognition is well deserved by the dedicated staff of Mackinac State Historic Parks, and its continuing importance is made possible by the tens of thousands of citizens who visit the parks annually," said Frank J. Kelley, chairman of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, the seven-member governing body of Mackinac State Historic Parks.

The AAM's mission is to enhance the value of museums to their communities through leadership, advocacy and service.  It has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community.  Accreditation by the AAM is a widely recognized affirmation of excellence that brings national recognition to American museums.

According to AAM, accreditation is a rigorous and challenging, yet highly rewarding process that requires not only ongoing commitment to change, but a significant investment of time and resources from all departments and levels of the institution's staff and leadership.

"This is a great honor for our organization," said Phil Porter, Mackinac State Historic Parks director.  "It provides a seal of approval from the country's most prestigious museum organization that validates and confirms the work done by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission and Mackinac State Historic Parks staff to create and sustain an effective, professional museum program that meets the highest professional standards."

The accreditation award was a culmination of two years of work by Mackinac State Historic Parks staff that included an intensive self-study report and a rigorous on-site evaluation.  In the self-study report, staff provided detailed information about the museum's mission, ethics, planning, leadership, organizational structure, staff, collections, education and interpretation, finances and facilities.  After review of the report by the AAM's Accreditation Commission, a two and a half-day site visit by peer reviewers was scheduled.

In August 2007, reviewers met with numerous Mackinac State Historic Parks staff and several Mackinac Island State Park Commissioners for interviews, and toured the parks' principal sites, including Fort Mackinac and the historic downtown buildings on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City.  A visiting committee report, written by the peer reviewers, was submitted to the AAM's Accreditation Committee, where the decision was made to award re-accreditation to Mackinac State Historic Parks.

According to the report written by the visiting committee, Mackinac State Historic Parks showed exemplary strategic planning, stating, "MSHP has planning in its organizational bloodstream."  The committee also lauded MSHP's well-maintained historic buildings, successful exhibits and outstanding education programs.  "In word and in practice, education is at the heart of the work done at MSHP," the visiting committee wrote in their report.  "The ‘Visitor First Initiative'…institutionalizes the mission statement's goal of providing outstanding educational experiences for the public.  A focus on understanding and working with the expectations, learning styles, and interest of audiences to produce more educationally effective exhibitions, interpretations, and programs has become the modus operandi of the staff."

In addition, the report cited that MSHP serves as a conscientious steward of the historic properties and resources it is charged with protecting and preserving.  The Mackinac Island State Park Commission was cited in the report for providing excellent leadership in protecting, preserving and presenting these resources.  The commission provides a "remarkable example" of how to properly manage a complex museum institution, according to the report.  "The seven commissioners are a mutually respectful and close-working group….Century-long traditions of independence and delegation are well ingrained in both Commission and staff cultures."

Other mentions included accessibility for all audiences as a key value of the museum, research guiding the educational and interpretive effort, and an impressive publications list.  Live interpretation at sites, welcoming, helpful and informative staff, and the exemplary condition of the buildings and grounds were highlighted in the report as well.

"It (MSHP) struck us as the sort of place people would want to come back to often after visiting for the first time," the visiting committee wrote.

"Other, comparable museums have much to learn from these efforts of MSHP," the report concluded. 

Mackinac State Historic Parks, a family of living history museums and parks in northern Michigan's Straits of Mackinac, is an agency within the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries. Its sites include Fort Mackinac, Mackinac Island State Park and Historic Downtown on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City.  Mackinac State Historic Parks is governed by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, established in 1895 to protect, preserve and present the parks' rich historic and natural resources for the education and recreation of future generations.  Visitor information is available at (231) 436-4100 or on the Web at www.MackinacParks.com.

Read more press releases from the Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL).