expERIEnce Children's Museum’s Post

Eye-tracking research helps Indianapolis museum steer guests in the right direction "Prominent signage is key when navigating a new space. This is especially true when the majority of a location’s visitors are parents or guardians who are attempting to guide themselves while caring for young children. In partnership with the University of Southern Indiana, the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis used eye-tracking to determine how effective their wayfinding signage truly was for first-time guests." Read more https://lnkd.in/gj_H_nAX #QuirksMR #MRX #insights

Quick and easy! Let’s pump these numbers up 😤💪🏼

Celebrate 314 Day!! It’s time to celebrate our day, our way, St. Louis! 314 Day celebrations, specials and events are underway all week long across the metro and there's something for everyone. For a complete list, visit www.TheSTL.com/314Day and show your local love.    St. Louis' Gateway Arch Saw 2.4 Million Visitors in 2023 The @GatewayArchSTL had 2.4M visitors in 2023 – its highest number since 2012. New data shows that, for every one visitor to the visitors' center, another is on the grounds. More: https://lnkd.in/ge4T93q5 #stlmade   Washington University says it contributed $8.8B to local economy last fiscal year #stlmade @WUSTL recently announced that its direct and indirect contributions to the St. Louis economy totaled $8.8 billion in fiscal 2023 and it supported more than 54K total jobs in the region. More: https://lnkd.in/gQ_gR4iG

Case study alert! One of the best aspects of the AIM New Stories New Audiences grant programme has been how transformational it's been for smaller museums, in terms of organisational working AND participant outcome: https://lnkd.in/eSt2Cbbq

Advisory Board for the Arts offers biweekly arts and culture executive benchmark surveys on priority focus areas that are top-of-mind to leaders. Benchmark yourself against your peers by participating in surveys and gaining insights from the results. Our latest ABA Executive Benchmark explored rental income at arts and cultural organizations. Highlights from the survey include: Almost all participating organizations have discounted rates (e.g., nonprofit rates) for both private event and performance rentals. About half provide discounts of over 20% off of the standard rental price. Typical rates for both private event and performance rentals at responding organizations range from $5,000 - $10,000. Most flat rates for performance rentals include lighting systems; fewer include staff time. Artistic renters typically are given presence on the website and social media pushes courtesy of the venue. Local arts organizations and individual artists are the most common types of artistic renters. At most organizations, over half of their current performance renters are return clients. ABA is a research, strategy and consulting firm providing data-driven solutions to cultural arts organizations worldwide. The full report is available for free for a limited time on our website. Reach out to us at info@advisoryarts.com to learn more.

Here are some helpful links for SNAP recipients! 🔗 EBT Card Information: Learn more about your EBT card and how to use it. 🎟️ Museum Discounts: SNAP recipients can get discounted admission to many museums and cultural centers across Colorado. Just show your EBT card at participating locations! For more information, simply scan the QR codes on the graphic! #SNAPSupport #CareAndShare #SNAPBenefits #CommunityResources #FightingFoodInsecurity

If you are involved with nonprofits or public sector orgs at all, you know that recruitment is a challenge. What can we learn from organizations that have taken steps to not only recruit but also diversify the volunteer corps? Check out the tactics, lessons learned, and advice from The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in this latest article in the Engage Journal. Learn how the museum is creating a vibrant volunteer community and more appealing volunteer opportunities that are reflective of its commitment to IDEAS: Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access and Sustainability. https://lnkd.in/gsWu6xjX

Celebrating 25 years of putting children’s imaginations on stage… Since Scene & Heard was founded in 1999, we have worked with 429 children who, alongside 664 arts professional volunteers, have created 947 original plays. To celebrate this huge milestone, we commissioned Dr Sarah Harper to write a study analysing our impact to date, and unpacking the ‘what, where, how and why’ of our unique work. (We have also organised two brilliant parties AND created a pop-up museum, because 25 years is truly worth celebrating!) Over the coming weeks, I will be posting snippets of Dr Harper’s great work on LinkedIn, alongside my own reflections from 15 years as CEO of Scene & Heard. In doing so, I hope to share learnings, inspire action, and start conversations amongst my network about the power of live theatre to transform the lives of young people. We know that this work is more important than ever; there has been a relentless devaluing of the arts in schools and educational settings, and consequently in our wider society. Engaging with the arts encourages creativity and independent thought, and it is through thinking creatively that scientific discoveries are made, cures for diseases are found and complex problems are solved. The arts are vital, and our work goes some way to demonstrating exactly why that is. I look forward to sharing more here over the coming weeks! #SceneAndHeard #ArtsCharity #YoungPeople #SomersTown #Creativity #CommunityArts #ArtsInEducation #SceneAndHeard25

💡 In an insightful essay on Community Centric Fundraising, Carlos García León explores the challenges and joys of working in arts fundraising. They share personal experiences and insights on navigating donor expectations, advocating for diverse programming, and the need to balance artistic goals with organizational demands. The article also discusses the importance of community-centric principles in the arts sector, reflecting on how these practices can enhance both the work and impact of arts organizations. For a deeper understanding, you can read the full article by clicking link below ⤵

Live in the #WashingtonDC area? Want to learn more about the first #DemocracyFestival in the #DC region, and how you or your organization can be involved?  Join Learning Life for our next #DMV #Democracy #Festival planning meeting tonight/Tuesday, July 9, 8:00-9:30pm ET, via this Zoom: https://lnkd.in/ei7tMUpy More about DemFest below.  BE PART OF THE DMV DEMOCRACY FESTIVAL   Dance, flowers, marijuana, beer and wine all get #festivals. If democracy is so important to Americans, why don’t we have democracy festivals every year in towns and cities across the country? If Washington DC is the capital of our country, and democracy is central to American freedom, why do we have folk, kite flying, and cherry blossom festivals, but no democracy festival?   In this election year, with democracy at stake, Learning Life, a DC-based nonprofit, is organizing the first DMV Democracy Festival or DemFest, tentatively scheduled for Saturday, October 19. We’re aiming for a festival with a range of engaging activities for youth and adults, including arts performances, exhibits, game rooms, workshops, round-chair discussions, a youth citizen assembly on mental health, and a democracy market. More about DemFest here: https://lnkd.in/dQNq2T6B    If you and/or your organization would like to be involved in DemFest in any of the above or other ways, please fill out our brief DemFest Partner Survey now:  https://lnkd.in/eB7WPDyg We'll then email you updates, including info on Zoom and in-person planning meetings upcoming you can attend to get details, ask questions, and figure out how you and/or your organization can be involved.  If you'd just like to attend DemFest in Oct, and want updates, RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/eMFqBMXa