Maryland Higher Education Commission

January 2006 Press Release

 

 

HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS (IMPART) COMMIT TO INVESTING

IN LONG-TERM TRAINING FOR HERITAGE TOURISM PERSONNEL

 

WHAT:               Signing of The Articles of Cooperation 

WHO:                 Audrey Scott, Secretary, Maryland Department of Planning
                            Dr. Calvin Burnett, Secretary, Maryland Higher Education Commission
                            Richard Moe, President, National Trust for Historic Preservation
                            Dr. Jane Margaret O’Brien, President, St. Mary’s College

WHERE:             The newly expanded Banneker-Douglass Museum 
                             84 Franklin Street 
                             Annapolis, Maryland

WHEN:               Thursday, February 2, 2006
                             5:00 p.m.

SIGNIFICANCE:  Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr.’s Fiscal Year 2007 budget includes $200,000 for the Institute for Museum, Preservation, and Archaeology Research and Training (IMPART). Heritage tourism is a growing $8.5 billion industry in Maryland and while there is a growing job market in the heritage disciplines, there remains a shortage of personnel. This initiative will fund undergraduate assistantships and graduate fellowships in heritage tourism academic programs of museum studies, historic preservation and archaeology. Last year’s funding for the Assistantship program provided 45 Maryland college students with opportunities to learn on the job about collections practices, historical research, museum exhibit design and other critical skills. The Articles of Cooperation maximize State resources and allow students to learn at IMPART member institutions. 

IMPART member institutions: University of Maryland College Park, Morgan State University, Salisbury University, St. Mary’s College, Goucher College, Washington College, Maryland Department of Planning, Maryland Historical Trust, Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum and Banneker-Douglas Museum, Historic St. Mary’s City, and the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture. The Ehrlich-Steele Administration has highlighted this program as an exemplary program under its Commerce Pillar due to its collaborative approach to preserving Maryland’s heritage, while serving its economic future.