Course description
Registrars wear many hats in the museum world. They are organizers, risk managers, and problem solvers as they tackle the many legal and managerial challenges faced by today's museums. In this course, students delve into the numerous facets of museum registration systems and the role of the registrar in museum management and administration. Modules focus both on policy development and procedural solutions, including collections management and ethics policies, acquisitions and accessioning, deaccessioning, loans, records management, provenance research, federal laws, risk management, and rights and reproductions. Procedures such as condition reporting, object numbering and labeling, packing and shipping, and managing traveling exhibitions are also covered. Through lectures, case studies, and readings, students learn about the administrative, legal, and practical concerns of museum registration within the context of professional standards and best practices for the museum field.
