Interpreting Anniversaries and Milestones at Museums and Historic Sites

Kimberly Kenney graduated summa cum laude from Wells College in Aurora, NY with a major in American history and minor in creative writing, where she became a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She earned her Master of Arts degree in History Museum Studies at the Cooperstown Graduate Program. Kim became Curator of the McKinley Presidential Library & Museum in October 2001. She was part of the planning team that developed the 100th anniversary programming for the McKinley National Memorial in 2007. She serves as editor of the Museums website at BellaOnline.com, where she has authored several ebooks, and is a member of the MuseLab Advisory Council at Kent State University. She has appeared on The Daily Show, First Ladies: Influence & Images, and Mysteries at the Museum. Her program “The 1918 Influenza Pandemic” was featured on C-SPAN’s series American History TV. Kim has served as the Region 5 representative for the National Digital Newspaper Project in Ohio, a field reviewer for the Museums for America grant program through the Institute for Museum and Library Services, and a grant reviewer for The History Fund. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Mount Union and teaches online museum studies courses through the Northern States Conservation Center. She was awarded the Oakley Certificate of Merit from The Association of Gravestone Studies for her interpretive projects at West Lawn Cemetery and the Jane Weston Chapman Award from the University of Mount Union for her dedication to women’s history programming.

Interpreting Anniversaries and Milestones at Museums and Historic Sites is a wonderful resource for professionals at any museum or cultural site, large or small, who is looking forward to celebrating an anniversary or noteworthy event in the life of their organization. Kenney’s interviews with multiple museum professionals in the US and abroad are golden in learning of effective celebrations and commemorations including challenges, pitfalls, opportunities, and successes. This is not only a ‘go to’ publication for guidance on anniversary celebrations and commemorations, but also helpful for tips on developing effective programs, events, and fundraising and marketing campaigns for a thriving and engaging museum or cultural site. I highly recommend this book.