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| Hand To Hand editor, Mary Maher and 32 years of the publication (Photo: Julia Bland) |
During
InterActivity 2018 in Raleigh (NC), tables stretched across the convention
center lobby. Over the 4 days of the conference, participants, presenters, and
vendors moved around the tables loaded with stacks of back issues of Hand To Hand (H2H), the Association of Children’s Museums' quarterly publication.
Boxes and boxes of back issues, as far back as 1986, had been shipped from
ACM’s Arlington (VA) office to allow members to browse and collect issues
and hopefully reduce storage for back issues in ACM’s new offices.
Some
conference goers passed and glanced; others stopped, browsed, and selected
issues to take home. Yet with so much happening during the conference–colleagues
seen only once a year; multiple sessions and study tours; and a MarketPlace
full of vendors–absorbing what these stacks of issues mean for our field–its growth,
change, and increased potential–was a challenge.
Thirty-two
years is a long time, more than a generation. When 32 years of a field is
explored in 4 issues in each (or most) of those years, countless stories and
threads emerge making our field’s interests, concerns, and growth visible. And
impressively so.
Initially
Hand
To Hand was a newsletter with a mix of
long articles and short bits of information about exhibits, museum openings,
people. From 1986 to 1993, Linda Eidecken was publisher/editor; she wrote the
newsletter in cooperation with the AAYM (American Association of Youth Museums)
board. In 1993, what had evolved into the Association of Youth Museums (AYM)
bought Hand To Hand from Eidecken. Mary
Maher took over as editor and designer and has continued in that role for 25
years. A few other changes came with this transition. The news and information
portion became AYMNews and H2H strengthened its focus on
substantive articles, case studies, museum initiatives, and reports.
Scanning the stacks of issues on the tables, H2H design changes were easy to catch.
For years, H2H was a duotone (black
plus 1 PMS color), tabloid size (11 x 17), and usually 8 pages. Decisions about
color and size changed as web and PDF formats gained in use. In 2007, H2H was a 16-page, 8-1/2 x 11
publication. The first full color issue was printed in Spring 2015. The most
recent issue, a 32-page double issue, covered the history and culture of
children’s museums.
These
stacks are more than a “fire sale,” more than a publications list, and more than cardboard boxes in storage. These approximately 120 issues of Hand To Hand tell something about where
we started, where we are, where we are going, and how we are getting there.
In
scanning issues of H2H, some consistent areas of interest come through, as do the evolving ways in which children’s
museums–and increasingly other types of museums–work and engage to address them.
An
enduring interest in children and their wellbeing is evident in issues on
play (Summer 1998, Fall 1999, and Winter 2008), humor (Fall 2000), health and
wellness (Fall 2006), and cognitive development (Fall 1990). Strong roots in
early childhood are reflected in a research review on young children in museums
(Summer 1996) and a Great Friend to Kids Award to Head Start Founders (Summer
2007). From the beginning Hand To Hand
has served as a way to look reflectively and critically at what a children’s
museum is (Spring 1987, Fall 1992, Winter 2014/2015) and has given us the
opportunity to be a community of learners around topics like these.
Several topics
such as planning, exhibits, research, visitor services, and play appear in
the very first issues
and again over the next decades. This is not simply repeating
a topic with new titles and authors. Rather, topics are reframed and reflect greater understanding of a topic and how to address it.
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| The most recent issue of Hand To Hand chronicles the history and culture of children's museums |
Following
one topic, research, across 32 years shows the focus recurring and shifting in
how it has been addressed and what it suggests about the field’s maturation. In
the Spring 1989 issue that explored research and evaluation in children’s
museums, Mary Worthington wrote, “Who Should Do Evaluation?” The Winter 2004
and Spring 2005 issues focused on research, in particular, integrating it into
museum practices. When the Fall 2014 issue, Revving up Research, came out, the
focus was on composing a research agenda for the field. By Spring 2016, an entire
issue was dedicated to the Children’s Museum Research Network that has been
active in conducting research across 10 research network member museums.
Early on,
themes and articles in H2H focused
internally on the museum, an understandable interest of museums that were just opening,
growing fast, and figuring out what a children’s museum was. Some articles such
as “Running a Non-Profit” (Winter 1991) were nuts-and-bolts. Others looked at
setting up a children’s advisory board (Winter 1988 and Winter 1989) and
conducting self-studies (Spring 1992). Profiles of exhibits and museums in most
issues offered information and examples of exhibit topics and design to staff hungry
for ideas.
Over the
32 years, more articles and issues have reflected the complex nature of children’s
museums’ interests. Topics that may have initially seemed well defined, like
play, programs or audience, have been increasingly understood in greater depth
intersecting with other interests, like culture, partnerships, leadership, and
sustainability. This awareness comes through in issues on Enhancing the Visitor
Experience to Increase Revenue (Summer 1993), Planning for Change (Winter 2002
and Spring 2003), and The Cultural Meaning of Play and Learning (Winter 2008).
Just as a
museum makes a journey from self-interest to a common good, so has the
children’s museum field. This is apparent in an increasing focus on the larger
environment in which museums operate. World events came to the forefront in
9/11 Response (Winter 2001) and After The Disaster following Hurricane Katrina
(Winter 2006). With time, the global stage assumes a higher profile in Children’s
Museums Around the World (Fall 2008) and Global Issues Impact, Local Impact
(Spring 2013).
This
journey towards a common good, of being useful in their communities is
increasingly noticeable across 32 years of Hand
To Hand. The Summer 1990 issue, Museums in Downtown, was the first to place
children’s museums on the community landscape. A growing sense of
responsibility to be engaged with the community and a deepening understanding
of their potential impact are evident in the focus of somewhat more recent issues. Do
The Right Thing: Children’s Museums & Social Responsibility (Winter 2000);
Shared Values, Many Voices (Summer 2002); a double issue on diversity (Spring
and Summer 2007); Declare Your Impact (Summer 2009) and Social Justice (Fall
2016) have probed these topics from more perspectives and emerging contexts.
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| The first issue of Hand To Hand featured a profile of Elaine Heumann Gurian |
In
“Looking Back 23 Years” (Spring 1988), Mike Spock reminded us that our field is
for somebody, not about something. His
insight has been invaluable in understanding who we are as children’s museums. It is
equally helpful in recognizing the source of children’s museums’ strengths to
which every single issue of Hand To Hand attests.
Our field is defined by people, their collegiality, and generosity. By-lines,
photos, and interviews amplify the centrality of people in this enterprise whether
it is an interview with Brad Larson (Winter 1997), Elee Wood’s by-line (Fall
2016), or Elaine Heumann Gurian’s photo on the first issue of Hand To Hand (Winter 1986-87).
Hand To Hand fully relies on the people who
contribute to every issue. In fact, without them,
there would be no Hand To Hand.
The publication has benefited greatly not only from the contributions of colleagues in our field but also from many outside the field. They have shared personal insights, professional
knowledge, organizational lessons, and sometimes, personal loss. They have also
generously shared their time and writing talents. While the circle of authors
keep widening, there are many who have written several H2H articles.
Thirty-two
years of issues also demonstrate that children’s museums have a wealth of
friends who have helped the field and enriched Hand To Hand. Loyal friends like George Hein, Professor Emeritus at
Lesley University, have written on many topics for Hand To Hand over the years. The voices of researchers like Karen
Knutson and Kevin Crowley, UPCLOSE (Spring 2005); museum professionals from
outside the field like Kathryn Hill at the United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum (Winter 1993); and museum planners like John Jacobsen (Summer/Fall 2017)
and designers like Peter and Sharon Exley (Spring 2008) have extended the range of
expertise and perspectives covered. Countless authors including Jim Collins, Richard
Florida, Tom Kelley, Richard Louv, and Neil Postman have shared their work with
the field through InterActivity presentations highlighted in Hand To Hand.
Hand To Hand would not have grown and evolved, guided and reflected our maturing field were it not for its steady-handed,
word-loving editor, Mary Maher. Working closely with ACM staff she frames
issues, finds writers, and works with each one. She designs each issue, and transforms
an often fuzzy but promising idea into a quarterly publication that goes to
museums, members, and authors, across the U.S. and the world.
So, when the
next issue of Hand To Hand arrives,
spend some quality time with it. In the meantime, pull out some of your
favorite H2H back issues or go
on-line and have a look. Take time to reflect, enjoy, and appreciate the contributions of so
many in our field. And think about contributing yourself.
