06/05/2026
"Today's cohort session deepened my understanding of how museum collection policies, cataloguing, and conservation... are acts of cultural stewardship...a commitment to future generations."
Learning how to care for artifacts in museum collections is an involved process, with specialized tools, and best practices for storage, handling and record keeping. It's the part of museum work that most visitors will never see, and yet, serves as the foundation for honoring our cultural heritage. The Smithsonian Regional Collaboratives team was so grateful to collaborate with the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the The University of Mississippi - Ole Miss, Mississippi Department of Archives & History and Smithsonian's Museum Conservation Institute to host a three-day workshop for a cohort of Mississippi's cultural caretakers in Oxford last month. The hands-on workshop and skill building exercises supported 30 cultural care professionals from across the state to enhance their practice in conservation and preventive care. Through this community of professional learning, members of this program are also strengthening their network of peers and local experts they can turn to when caring for their own collections.
Maya Cade, creator of the Black Film Archive, once described the act of collecting, preserving, and displaying as an act of love for a community. We certainly felt the Mississippi love among our collaborators and look forward to continuing to learn more about the stories being cared for and preserved in Mississippi.
📸: Courtesy of The University of Mississippi - Ole Miss
