Public Impact 



17 



Asian American LEAD, the Chin Baptist Church, the New- 

 comer Community Service Center, and the Chinatown 

 Community Center, PAPAS initiated museum visits and 

 other activities for children that laid the groundwork for col- 

 laboration as these organizations and the Smithsonian get to 

 know one another. 



Affiliations Support Big Ideas 



Bisbee, Arizona, with a population of just under 6,500, was 

 a leading copper mining site in the late 19th and early 20th 

 centuries, a thriving urban center in the rugged Arizona Ter- 

 ritory. The mines are closed now, but this rural community 

 is home to a small museum with big ideas. 



In 2002, a new permanent mining and minerals gallery 

 will open at the Bisbee Mining and Historical Museum that 

 includes Bisbee minerals on long-term loan from the Na- 

 tional Museum of Natural History through the Smithsonian 

 Affiliations Program. The partnership, says director Carrie 

 Gustavson, "has allowed us as a community museum to take 

 our vision and go for it." 



The Bisbee affiliation shows how one partnership can 

 penetrate multiple museums and communities. As the mu- 

 seum works with the Smithsonian's Office of Exhibits 

 Central and the Smithsonian Center for Education and Mu- 

 seum Studies on exhibition development and fabrication 

 and educational programming, it has conceived a workshop 

 series called "Think Big," for staff in small, rural Arizona 

 museums. The Smithsonian-stimulated exhibition in Bisbee 

 will provide a laboratory for hands-on learning and profes- 

 sional development in other museums. 



"No one would have ever thought that a small mining 

 town would partner with the Smithsonian," says Gustavson. 

 "If we're a tiny museum and can think beyond the limits, 

 others can do it, too." 



Object Lessons from 



"The American Presidency" 



More than 900 objects from the National Museum of 

 American History's collection were assembled for "The 

 American Presidency: A Glorious Burden," a new permanent 

 exhibition that celebrates rhis powerful and challenging in- 

 stitution. 



For museum director Spencer Crew, two particular objects 

 evoke the glorious burdens of the presidency. The first is a 

 charred wooden beam from the White House that is believed 

 to have survived when the British burned the building in 

 1 8 14. "Looking at that burned wood," Crew says, "one has 

 to think about the crisis James Madison faced ar that mo- 

 ment as the survival of the new nation hung in the balance." 

 The second object is a glass ballot box, "a reminder that the 

 power of the presidency is derived from the will of the 

 people" — and an especially meaningful symbol in 2000. 



"The American Presidency" is made possible through the 

 generous support of individual donors and corporate spon- 

 sors, including Kenneth E. Behring; The History Channel; 

 Chevy Chase Bank; Cisco Systems, Inc.; Elizabeth and Whit- 

 ney MacMillan; Heidi and Max Betry; and the United States 

 Congress. Additional sponsors include Automatic Data Pro- 

 cessing, Inc.; Business 2.0; KPMG LLP; Sears, Roebuck and 

 Co.; and T Rowe Price and Associates, Inc. 



The Electronic Smithsonian 



Capturing the potential of a powerful medium 



On a cyber-journey through the Smithsonian, the frontiers 

 are limitless. If you missed "Vikings: The North Atlantic 

 Saga" in person, you can visit the virtual version on the 

 National Museum of Natutal History's site, www.nmnh. 

 si.edu/vikings. You can satisfy your curiosity about the Star- 

 Spangled Banner and get an update on this spectacular 

 conservation project at www.americanhistory.si.edu/ssb. You 

 can also peruse digital editions of rare books in narural his- 

 tory or search the on-line catalog on the Smithsonian 

 Institution Libraries' site, www.sil.si.edu. 



Electronic visits to Smithsonian Web sites topped 2 mil- 

 lion per month this year. Nearly every organization has 

 expanded its on-line offerings and redesigned its sites, and 

 more resources have gone live on the Web. Electronic access 

 is transforming the way people use and enjoy the Smithson- 

 ian, as these new developments in fiscal year 2000 illustrate. 



Forbes magazine described the Smithsonian American 

 Art Museum's revamped Web site as "a party at every click." 

 At AmericanArt.si.edu, the museum is open while its build- 

 ing is closed for renovation. Director Elizabeth Broun shates 

 her personal favorites from the permanent collection in a vir- 

 tual gallery talk. A click on the monthly calendar, "1001 Days 

 and Nights of American Art," displays a new entertaining fact 

 about American art and artists every day. And an on-line re- 

 search librarian will answer questions submitted to "Ask Joan 

 of Art." Forbes chose the site for its "Best of the Web" issue — 

 one of just seven art museums to receive this distinction. 



The museum also supports new art created for the Web 

 with the New Media/New Century Award. Winning proj- 

 ects are posted on Helios, the museum's on-line photography 

 center. The award is made possible by Dominion, an energy 

 company, in an ongoing partnership with the museum that 

 is dedicated to supporting landscape photography. 



The National Museum of American History, Behring 

 Center's Star-Spangled Banner Web site is an absorbing 

 compendium of history. The many-layered presentation, de- 

 veloped by a team of museum experts, captures the Web's 

 potential for quality, quantity, and interactivity. 



The award-winning site tells the story of the flag that in- 

 spired rhe Star-Spangled Banner and describes the challenges 

 of preserving and caring for this fragile artifact. Visitots can 

 consult primary sources such as photographs, documents, 

 and published materials and compare their conclusions ro 



