For many indigenous communities, darkness is a time of creative genesis and regeneration, a time for hope beyond the fear. From fiscal constraints to grants that have disappeared to federal staff that are no longer in positions of leadership and support, the impacts and despair are real and reach across our museum field. In these troubling times, we will hear from multiple museum practitioners who will share their programs, exhibitions, practices and beliefs that will help attendees keep the fire alive, stirring our passions and purposes.

Museums often face the challenge of attracting and retaining talented staff in a field where compensation lags behind other industries. This session examines how museums can become employers of choice by strengthening the employee experience beyond wages. Using various initiatives and case studies as a foundation, this session will highlight approaches to recognition, growth, and culture, followed by a facilitated discussion to surface practical, adaptable strategies across diverse museum contexts.

Do you often feel pressure to do it all? Museum staff  face large, complex projects when preserving collections held in public trust. Small museums with limited staff and tight budgets must make difficult choices, while larger institutions, despite greater resources, may still struggle to prioritize and allocate time and funding effectively. In many cases, collections staff carry the burden of trying to do everything. This discussion-based session shares strategies for using resources wisely and challenges the expectation of doing it all.

How do you design galleries that reflect a divided public? This session shares a process for developing exhibitions that give equal authority to stakeholder perspectives and historical evidence. We will discuss the internal framework that kept our team steady while navigating social and political tensions as we collaborated with stakeholders across the state. Attendees will learn a practical path for balancing historical facts with authentic, object-based storytelling to create galleries where visitors see themselves in the stories being told.

$63 General | $20 UMA Members

Sponsored by DLR Group
Sponsored by Utah Division of Arts & Museums and Utah Historical Society 

A celebration of the WMA and UMA Communities with special guest speaker Laufou Jacob Fitisemanu Jr., Director, Sāmoana Integrated Learning Initiative and including the presentation of UMA Annual Awards.

$65, includes transportation, tours, appetizers, and drinks (buses will be looping from the Hilton to Red Butte Garden and Arboretum starting at 6pm and Natural History Museum of Utah starting at 7pm)

6:00 PM-7:00 PM

Respite at Red Butte Garden and Arboretum