NEW ORLEANS (press release) – The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) has been awarded grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the National Endowment for Humanities (NEH) to support museum operations and new roles at the institution.
“We are pleased to be able to announce these awards from the NEH and IMLS that will support the museum in a number of ways critical to advancing our operations and our overall success,” said Susan Taylor, Montine McDaniel Freeman Director. “Not only will these grants help NOMA recover from the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, they will also help the museum realize a number of possibilities we have long envisioned. We are grateful to IMLS and NEH for their generosity and support.”
NOMA has been awarded an IMLS grant under the Museums Empowered Program in the amount of $162,800 to support institution-wide evaluation capacity building. With funds received from IMLS, the museum will continue to build robust evaluation capacity and embed data-informed decision making into its processes, practices, and systems, supporting an institutional culture of evaluation. Activities made possible by the IMLS grant will empower museum staff to evaluate programs, practices, and products, helping NOMA to better understand the measurable outcomes of the museum’s work, ultimately benefiting all of the museum’s diverse audiences.
The NEH awarded NOMA with $144,058 under the American Rescue Plan Act to support the creation of two positions at the museum that address pressing needs that have emerged as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The full-time roles of Interdepartmental Project Manager and Digital Archivist will oversee the museum’s cross-departmental projects and ensure that digitally curated material produced during the pandemic period is preserved for long-term use.