Interpretive Report for Lake of the Woods County Historical Society
To hire a qualified consultant to write an interpretive report for Lake of the Woods County Historical Society.
$4,500,000 the first year and $6,500,000 the second year are for history programs and projects operated or conducted by or through local, county, regional, or other historical or cultural organizations or for activities to preserve significant historic and cultural resources. Funds are to be distributed through a competitive grant process. The Minnesota Historical Society must administer these funds using established grant mechanisms, with assistance from the advisory committee created under Laws 2009, chapter 172, article 4, section 2, subdivision 4, paragraph (b), item (ii).
Available upon request. grants@mnhs.org
Our short term outcome stated that we would be able to determine the current themes and level of interpretation of the current exhibits through an unbiased assessment. This was achieved, if not exceeded, with Tom, Bret, and Andrea's visits both of the museum exhibits themselves, but also with the conversations they had with focus group members and the surveys filled out by visitors.This gave us the level of interpretation that we, as museum people, would see but also as the level of interpretation viewed by the general public. A bubble diagram was completed (and included in the final product) showing the main themes currently on display.
The intermediate outcome was that members of the community would be able to share input on the current museum displays/programs/themes/interpretation at the museum in multiple ways as well as sharing their ideas and hopes for future exhibits or displays. This was achieved through the surveys and focus group meetings held with Museology. It was also interesting to get a sense of what residents saw in the museum and future ideas for the museum versus those from out of town (who may not have had any history or ties to the county).
Our long term outcome stated that the interpretive report would provide a basis for a thorough and detailed interpretive plan from which the long term planning for a complete exhibit space redesign could be established. Museology's interpretive report provided an in-depth look at the museum's resources and understanding of the people who visit the museum. This was achieved both from analyzing what the museum has in its collections, the themes and stories shared through displays and exhibits, and the programs and events offered by the museum. By understanding the current visitor trends and looking at what the focus groups and survey respondents stated they hoped to see at the museum, we now have a sense of what the community wants from the museum and some things to focus on in order to bring in more visitors and return visitors to the museum.
Available upon request, grants@mnhs.org