Museum Studies Program University of Michigan

Kudos to… KeunYoung Kim (MSP06) who recently began a position as Deputy Director at the Old Korean Legation Museum in Logan Circle, Washington D.C.

2026 Michigan Museums Association Conference Scholarship Application

The Michigan Museums Association (MMA) is pleased to be able to offer a number of scholarships to help more of our members attend our annual conference this year, which is being held October 19-21 in Oakland County.
Scholarships are open to individual MMA members and those listed on the accounts for MMA museum members. The number of scholarships available will depend on funds raised through the scholarship appeal. Donations can be made online at michiganmuseums.org/donations.
Scholarships will be awarded based on articulation of need and desire to attend, and will reflect the broadest representation of MMA membership possible. The scholarship includes conference registration and also provides a stipend of $200 to cover travel and other expense.
Scholarship applications are due July 13. Click here for application instructions: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KDH9NJX

Kudos to… Briana Kemmerling (MSP23) recently began a new position a Technical Services Librarian at The Henry Ford.

Kudos to… Hayley Crowell (MSP22) who digitized the entire collection of the UM Museum of Zoology sea snakes and all of their associated x-rays, capture maps, reproductive information, and diet data. The collection can be found here as part of the UM Library Digital Collections.
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/r/rept4ic

Kudos to… Irma Guzman (MSP23) is a Research Project Manager for the 1968-1969 Detroit Black Power Murals Research Project. This project focuses on community engagement efforts in Detroit, archival research, and oral histories, and the work will culminate in a public history website. From this work, Irma is also supporting the nomination of stained glass windows to the Michigan Stained Glass Census on behalf of Grace Episcopal Church. The church contains stained glass windows by the Douglas Phillips Studio, the only known Black stained glass artist to have been working in the US from the 1950s-1970s. An extension of this work is also an evolving collaboration with Dr. Kelli Morgan - Black Artists Archive Founder, the City of Detroit Historical Advisory Board, and Eastern Market Corporation - to preserve and reactivate a Black Arts Mural from 1979 that was painted in an Elementary School by multiple leading artists of the Black Arts Movement. Irma is also a co-founder for Detroit VOCES Collective working on an oral history project to document and celebrate the histories, legacies and contributions of Latinos in Detroit. Irma also completed the research and marker text for a State of Michigan Historical Marker that was finalized and installed for Dr. Lucile Cruz Gajec, a critical community organizer in Detroit's Mexican/Latino community and founder of Museo Indigenista - Museum of Indohispanic History & Culture.
https://detroit.umich.edu/news-stories/detroit-black-power-murals-online-exhibit-resurrects-political-themes-in-public-art/

Kudos to… Pelle Tracey (MSP21) began a position as an Assistant Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington.

Kudos to… Richard Bachmann’s (MSP20) ongoing work with the Woodbridge Community recently launched the Woodbridge Digital Archive. The Woodbridge Oral History Archive project is a collaboration of Woodbridge Neighborhood Development, the Detroit Historical Society, and former and current residents of Woodbridge.
https://woodbridgedigitalarchive.omeka.net/

April 15 – MSP25 Capstone Presentations
Wednesday, April 15 from 4:00 – 8:00 pm
Eldersveld Room, 5670 Haven Hall (University of Michigan)
Full schedule can be found here: https://ummsp.rackham.umich.edu/news-publications/april-15-msp25-capstone-presentations/

Kudos to… Alexandria Rayburn (MSP19) defended her dissertation this past summer and began a position as Assistant Professor in the library science program at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa.

March 31 - America at 250: History, Memory, and Truth

A Conversation with Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
Tuesday, March 31, 6pm (doors open at 5:15pm)
Rackham Auditorium, 915 E. Washington St.

Museums are the classrooms of our country. They play a crucial role in helping us understand the nation’s complex past. Join us for a dynamic conversation with Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, and Lynette Clemetson, director of Wallace House Center for Journalists, as they reflect on the significance of the 250th anniversary of the United States. At a moment in which discussions about our shared past and collective future feel especially urgent, this event offers an opportunity to learn from a leader who has devoted his career to informing and inspiring Americans to strive for the public good.

https://ummsp.rackham.umich.edu/tribe-event/america-at-250-a-conversation-with-lonnie-g-bunch-iii-secretary-of-the-smithsonian-institution/