We need your help with our Strategic Plan

This Thursday, May 16, we are hosting a public comment meeting at Crawfordsville High School. The Lew Wallace Study Preservation Society and Study staff are hard at work developing a new strategic plan. The strategic plan is a vital document that guides how we serve the community and our visitors. It helps us shape our programming and exhibits.

We would love to have your input in this process. We invite everyone to come to the public comment meeting and share thoughts, questions, concerns, and ideas. The General Lew Wallace Study & Museum celebrates and renews belief in the power of the individual spirit to affect American history and culture--and one way to do that is through helping shape our future efforts here at the Study.

Please join us at 7 p.m. at Crawfordsville High School and share your thoughts with us!

Technology, Web 2.0 and Historic Sites: Strategies for Engagement

Last week, Visitor Services & Marketing Coordinator Kara Edie presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for State and Local History on how historic sites of all sizes are utilizing new technology to spread their mission to larger audiences. The presentation, "Technology, Web 2.0 and Historic Sites: Strategies for Engagement", was chaired by Craig Tuminaro, Director of Museum Interpretation for Drayton Hall in Charleston S.C., and also featured Erin Mast, Curator and Site Administrator for President Lincoln's Cottage in Washington D.C.

All three presenters shared their experiences with new initiatives such as weblogs, social networking and interactive media, which led to an immensely informative discussion with audience members about what new technologies are working (and what aren't) in their own respective sites. Click here to listen to a podcast of this session, and find notes from the discussion here.

Many thanks to Craig Tuminaro and the folks at AASLH for giving us the chance to participate!

“I thought it was a free tour”: The Recession Speaks through Potential Visitors

While everyone has heard the phrases, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch,” and “You can’t get something for nothing,” for some reason those words have not been applied to museums. Over the past couple months we have heard from potential visitors, both adults and those arranging student tours, who have balked at our admission fee ($3 for adults, $1 for students, free for under 6). Now I know that the poor economy has hit many pocketbooks hard: at a time when philanthropic giving as dropped, we not only have to control the climate in an 111-year-old building with a 30’ ceiling, we also need to fix the leaking roof! I’ll let you in on a surprisingly well-kept secret, though: admission not only falls short of assisting with capital improvements, it fails to cover the cost to museums to serve visitors. Estimates vary, but many calculations of the cost of serving one single solitary visitor is around $18-$20, including the cost of utilities and staff time. If a regular business left that large of a margin between cost and earned income, it would be out of business in short order.

Fortunately for us as a non-profit, there are ways to make up the financial shortfall, in particular the monetary gifts of our members and donors. But even more to the point, one thing that sets museums apart from other businesses is that we’re not peddling something as mundane as clothing or food. Those things are necessary, yes, but I would argue that we have something just as vital to a good life. We offer visitors a sense of place; authentic artifacts; reproductions of artifacts that you can touch, smell, and try on; beautiful grounds; a guide to answer your questions; and an inspiring story of a man who succeeded, failed, and tried his hand at everything that interested him. These things – authenticity, beauty, inspiration – are priceless, and that’s why we don’t charge for them.

And so I have a challenge for you. Become a “spy” this summer, a sort of secret shopper, and come for a tour at the General Lew Wallace Study & Museum. Pay the $3 or $1 admission (college students are still students!), and then experience the award-winning orientation video, the exhibit guest-curated by a national scholar, and the guided tour of the National Historic Landmark. Afterwards, evaluate your visit: being completely honest, how much was the tour worth to you? If money were no problem, how much would you pay for this visit? For those of you who are truly intrepid, drop us a line at study@ben-hur.com to let us what it’s worth to you, as well as suggestions for improvement. I think a visit here is worth more than $3, and I challenge you to come, see for yourself, and tell me if you honestly think I’m wrong.

Yipppeee!

Yipppeee! We’ve being saying that a lot around here these days! With the National Medal award, it’s been an incredible fall at the General Lew Wallace Study and Museum. The staff and I are committed to excellence in museum programming and operations and to have this dedication awarded at the top level is more than we dreamed for ourselves. I am truly grateful to our members, donors, and volunteers for helping us make the dreams possible and for inspiring us look to the future with great optimism.

I am excited to share with you that the board has adopted a new strategic plan. Our first plan ended in September of this year with all of our goals met, which in the beginning seemed like an extremely tall order. With your help our first strategic plan was realized and the museum was positioned for accolades. Again, thank you.

The next five years will build on our high standard of excellence established through innovative programs and events like the Lew Wallace Youth Academy, the Historic Preservation Workshop Series, Annual Theme Exhibit and Programs, and the Taste of Montgomery County. It is equally critical to consider the small museum environment that this success was built in – the staff wear multiple “hats” and are regularly bound by budget constraints. As a result, the objectives outlined in our new plan are carefully measured for strength and feasibility.

Heading into the planning process, the board and staff understood that the focus of the plan needed to rest on a three key objectives: restore the study structure, evolve into a self-sustaining organization, and become the “best small museum in the Midwest.” With these in mind, the plan was developed during a series of board retreats held July 19, August 16, and September 20, 2008. Facilitated by Herm Haffner of Total Solutions, the planning process included an in-depth examination of the organization’s core competencies, mission, vision, and charge. With consensus in place, Haffner led the group through discussions regarding assumptions, budget, and human resources. Strategic planning activities included internal and external situation analyses, consideration of weaknesses and problems, comparative analysis of organizational peers, threat analysis, consideration of advantages and opportunities, and finally, establishing objectives.

We have established ten strategic objectives that will help us meet our charge to be a key cultural asset for our community’s continued well-being. To do this, we will:
-Provide innovative cutting edge programs and operations
-Create individualized experiential learning
-Become financially self sustaining
-Provide continued stewardship of collections and historic structures
-Focus on activities that add value to the study and the community
-Serve as a model to the larger small museum community

I invite you to read the entire plan and join our enthusiasm by following this link: http://www.ben-hur.com/GLWSM_2009-2012_Plan.pdf . I look forward to the next five years and the incredible support of our members, donors, and volunteers. Yipppeee!

--Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko, Museum Director

New Strategic Directions for the Museum

This year the Museum will complete its first five-year strategic plan and indicators suggest that we will complete the plan 100%! This is a major accomplishment for the staff and board and we are truly grateful to the Crawfordsville community, our members, and visitors for helping us position the Museum as an organization that contributes to our county's quality of life and provides daily enrichment to our visitors and program participants.

In a few months the Museum board will begin meeting to develop the next five-year strategic plan. In preparation for this, we have developed five core compentencies that we believe the Museum does really well. These competencies will inform our strategic goals so we need to make sure we got this right. I would love to hear what you think about these core competencies. Do you agree? Is there something else we do as well or better? Is this bunk? I want to hear it! It's only through conversations and partnerships with our constituents that we will do our best work and make difference in the community and beyond. Here they are:

General Lew Wallace Study and Museum
Core Competencies

1. We know General Lew Wallace and we make him relevant.

2. We are really good at articulating our message.

3. We possess expertise in the small museum field.

4. We are creative and innovative, and we execute the project.

5. We are obsessed with the visitor experience.

Thanks for reading and I look forward to reading your comments!
Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko