The Association of Midwest Museums has teamed up with Mutual of America to provide virtual programming to explore ways in which supervisors and museum leaders can better support the well-being of museum workers. Programs in this series will be a mix of opportunities to learn, have fun with your peers, gather new ideas, relax and recharge.
All are welcome! This series is FREE.
Upcoming events:
Lunchtime Leadership Chat: Employee Needs, Well-Being, and Belonging April 18 at 12:30 p.m. CT (1:30 p.m. ET)
In what ways are Midwest museum leaders prioritizing and supporting staff needs and well-being at this time? How are they ensuring individuals feel included and a sense of belonging? What have been the greatest challenges as they addressed new needs that have developed in recent years, in an attempt to maintain morale and prevent burnout? How are leaders prioritizing or making space for their own needs, mental health, and well-being? We’ll explore these questions during a 60-minute moderated panel discussion with executives from AMM member museums, including time for Q&A.
Panelists include:
Juliette Francis, Vice President of People and Museum Culture, Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN
Monica Walker, Human Resources/Administration Director, Dayton Art Institute, OH
Beth Whisman, Executive Director, Children’s Discovery Museum, Normal, IL
Session will take place in Zoom Webinar. Participants are encouraged to join the discussion as they are comfortable via the chat. Session will be recorded. ASL Interpretation and Zoom’s built-in transcriptions will be provided.
Midwest Museums Connect Meetups These casual conversations are a safe space to hash out your daily struggles with your colleagues. Sign up to receive the Zoom login information.
April 22, 10:30 a.m. CT – Volunteer Recruitment and Engagement: How are you approaching volunteer recruitment and engagement this year? What’s new/different about the process? How are you supporting volunteers’ needs and addressing expectations? What benefits do you offer to volunteers? What steps have you taken to enrich their experience?
We are seeking a full-time Administrative and Development Coordinator, and we would love to get referrals from YOU! Your own networks and communities are a great resource for finding a talented person to help support the Alliance team, please help us out! Send this job listing to anyone you know who might be interested, or share it on your social media or in your email newsletters.
Thank you!
Short description:
Administrative and Development Coordinator
Full-time, $43,000-$46,000/year + available benefits
The ideal candidate will have experience in nonprofits, direct involvement in the planning and coordination of fundraising events, and experience with public programs. The position will require work on a variety of projects including administrative support, grant tracking and management, assisting with event planning, and donor and database management. See full description here: https://www.chicagoculturalalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Admin-Coordinator-Job-Description-04.04.2022.pdf
Emerging and established cultural presenters are invited to submit proposals for free, live, in person, outdoor events, including music and dance festivals, block parties and parades,
spanning all genres, that activate Chicago’s neighborhoods.
Through Chicago Presents, DCASE will provide grants ranging from $25,000 – $75,000 to present individual events or event series. DCASE anticipates 10 – 15 grants through Round 1 of this
program.
Program Requirements
● All programs must take place between June 18 – October 31, 2022.
● Admission to the event must be free and open to the public, with no fees or suggested donations for entry.
● Program site must be confirmed.
● Programs must occur outdoors, including but not limited to neighborhood block parties, farmer’s markets, plazas, parks, community gardens and vacant lots.
● Program must feature 2 or more artists, bands or performance groups.
● Programs must occur within the City of Chicago.
The final deadline to submit a Chicago Presents: Summer Festivals & Outdoor Events application is April 22, 2022, at 5:00pm CST.
Join DCASE staff for a virtual Chicago Presents grant program webinar to learn more about Chicago Presents: Summer Festivals & Outdoor Events program details and eligibility criteria.
This workshop focuses on key concepts and best practices in financial reporting and story-telling. We’ll explore the types of financial reports that should be generated for various audiences and at what frequency. We will also explore how to build a “team around the numbers” focused on financial results. Key concepts covered in this session will include:
Financial reporting best practices for board, leadership, and staff
Strategies for improved communication across functions
Please welcome Mónica Félix as the Chicago Cultural Alliance’s new Executive Director! If you did not get a chance to meet her in person at our Activating Heritage Networking Brunch, you will have another chance to meet her (at least virtually!) at our next Town Hall, Friday, April 1, 3pm. Register for that here.
Some of you may remember Mónica from her time working for DANK Haus German American Cultural Center! Here is a little more information on her background:
Mónica Félix has a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Chicago with specializations in German and Russian literature and a B.A. in German and Linguistics from Lawrence University. She began her career in public humanities with her role as the Museum Director of the DANK Haus German American Cultural Center in Chicago. To support new programming for diverse audiences, she formed partnerships with fellow Alliance organizations to plan an International Game Night, secured funding for genealogy resources, and greatly expanded the museum internship program to draw students from across Chicagoland.
Her nonprofit leadership experience continued when she stepped into the role of Chief Administrative Officer of the American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA), the principal learned society in the United States for scholars whose work involves several literatures and cultures. As the ACLA’s first CAO, she oversaw multi-year planning of the organization’s 3,000-attendee annual meeting, implemented strategic planning, founded a development committee, established a new digital infrastructure, and overhauled the membership management structure.
You can contact her at [email protected] or 312-858-8623. Mónica will be working on getting to know all of our Core and Partner Members in the coming weeks and months, and is very much looking forward to working with all of you!
Thank you so much for all of your support during our search for a new ED. It has meant a lot to the staff to have the wonderful Members of the Alliance supporting us with patience and kindness.
-Marie Rowley Marketing and Communications Manager
Elizabeth Neukirch, senior vice president of The Silverman Group
In this interactive workshop, Elizabeth Neukirch will guide participants through the process of developing effective public relations campaigns from conception to execution, with a focus on engaging new audiences through storytelling in different news mediums (print, broadcast, online).
Through lecture and guided exercises, workshop participants will learn strategies to incorporate public relations into their organization’s marketing strategy, including: how to position the work of an organization in a newsworthy and timely manner; effectively communicating an event/initiative to the media using clear and concise language; crafting pitches to journalists that spark curiosity and conversation; and authentic, thoughtful ways to invite people to engage with an organization through earned media.
Colleen McGaughey (she/her) is the director of development at the National Public Housing Museum, where she leads the strategic direction of the museum’s fundraising efforts with a focus on creative and community-centric approaches.
Mario Longoni
Board Member
Mario Longoni is a cultural anthropologist (“Lead Environmental Social Scientist”) in the Keller Science Action Center at the Field Museum. For over 20 years, he has worked with individuals and organizations to surface and activate cultural and natural assets (specific strengths and characteristics) to help communities meet the challenges they face.
Rob Fojtik
Board Member
Rob Fojtik is Vice President for Neighborhood Strategy at Choose Chicago, the city’s official tourism and convention promotion bureau. In this capacity, Rob oversees efforts to promote and support Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods to visitors from near and far. Programs include the award-winning Neighborhood Content Creator program that leverages resident-made digital content, and Chicago Alfresco, a $2.5 million placemaking initiative created in partnership with the Chicago Department of Transportation to transform public spaces into community plazas for outdoor enjoyment.
Before coming to Choose Chicago, Rob was a Senior Advisor to Mayor Lightfoot on economic development and international relations at City Hall, as well as LGTBQ+ affairs and the expanded outdoor dining program. In this role, he also worked to recommend and place over 150 civic leaders and residents onto City boards and commissions. Prior to government service in the Lightfoot administration, Rob ran her winning campaign in the crowded 2019 Chicago mayoral race as Chief of Staff. In past lives, Rob has worked as a public affairs manager for a Fortune 500 company downtown; had misadventures in management consulting, art sales, and personal cheffing; and spent time in Washington DC working for former Secretary of Defense William Cohen. Rob also served a one-year appointment at the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence as a policy advisor on Central and Eastern Europe. In this role, he was part of the NSC’s interagency process to develop a comprehensive sanctions regime on Russia as a consequence of its 2014 invasion of Crimea and Eastern Ukraine.
After receiving his BA in Slavic Languages and Literature at Northwestern University, Rob lived and worked in the Czech Republic teaching English and tending bar before moving to Washington, D.C. to pursue a MA from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Center for Eurasian, Russian, and East European Studies (CERES). He enjoys cooking, learning foreign languages, hiking with his partner and their dog, and visiting Chicago’s many neighborhoods.
Paul Durica
Board Member
Dr. Paul Durica is the Director of Exhibitions at the Chicago History Museums and worked in a similar capacity at The Newberry Library. From 2015-2020, he served as the Director of Programs and Exhibitions with Illinois Humanities, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Prior to that he drew upon his work as a writer, researcher, and teacher to produce a series of free and interactive talks, walks, and reenactments focused on narratives from Chicago’s past that resonate with its present.
These public history programs led to collaborations with cultural institutions in the city such as the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, Chicago History Museum, Newberry Library, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Chicago Cultural Center among others.
Each program made use of both his original research and the skills of the arts organizations, community groups, local businesses, and publications that acted as my partners. Some of these programs, such as the full-scale reenactment of the Haymarket Affair in 2011, involved recruiting and directing over 300 volunteers and 1,000 participants.
To produce these programs successfully, he wrote grants; managed budgets; generated web content; worked closely with program partners of varying sizes and resources; and identified, engaged, and sustained a diverse multi-generational audience.
Lynessa Rico
Board Member
Dr. Lynessa M. Rico is the Associate Chair of the Business Psychology Department at the The Chicago School of Professional Psychology Chicago campus. She is also a business mentor at 1871.
Lynessa is a results-driven Strategic Consultant with over 25 years of experience enabling leaders to meet strategic business objectives by identifying and aligning business growth opportunities with strategic direction of culturally diverse organizations. By leveraging her strategic experience in identifying and impacting business growth opportunities and maximizing profits in retail firms and higher education institutions, Lynessa leads workshops focused on the creative mindset, women’s entrepreneurship, emotional intelligence, and the value and application of design thinking within entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial ecosystems. Her services also include consulting with and educating leadership on emotional intelligence, the power of design thinking and the creative mindset, and leadership styles to support inclusive, creative workplaces. She has presented to leadership and innovation teams in small, mid-size, and Fortune 500 companies.
Lynessa received her undergraduate degrees in Marketing and Management from Wichita State University. She then went on to earn a master’s degree in Business Administration from Wichita State University with a focus in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. After earning her master’s degree, Lynessa received her doctorate in Business Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology where she successfully completed her dissertation titled, “The Relationship Between Personality Types and Color Preference for Color Combinations.” Her current research interests include women’s entrepreneurship, design thinking, creativity, emotional intelligence, and entrepreneurship self-efficacy.
Outside of work and research, Lynessa enjoys mentoring start-ups and judging pitch competitions. Lynessa currently resides in Chicago, Illinois with her four cats. She is an avid long-distance runner, having completed 5 full marathons (and counting), and enjoys watching musical theater.
Briana Thomas
Board Member
Briana Thomas is the Museum Associate at the Abrahamic Center for Cultural Education (a core member of the Chicago Cultural Alliance). She wears many hats including developing exhibition content, facilitating community programs (children and adults), liaising with visitor artists, and other responsibilities. Her previous experience in the nonprofit space includes her tenure as the Financial Empowerment Coordinator at AMERICORPS Sharing Life Center as well as engaging with the public at the Dallas Arboretum. Her past professional experience has remained rooted in marginalized communities. It is their needs,discourse and histories that she has routinely been tasked with protecting and showcasing in the face of poor infrastructure, and willing ignorance. Creating safe spaces is an ancestral practice she has inherited.
