For many years, Mia’s volunteer guides—known as docents then—underwent two years of training, a kind of master’s in Mia’s collection and facilitating tours. Much has changed. For the next cohort of guides, starting in September, the training period will be thirteen weeks—a mix of online and in-person classes. And the volunteering options have been simplified to two: leading school groups or hosting Discovery Days, a new program involving discussions in the galleries and art activities. While school guides might lead up to two tours a week, Discovery Days can be a one day a month commitment.
The goal, says Debra Hegstrom, Mia’s Senior Educator, is to broaden participation: “We’re really rethinking what it means to be a volunteer, who is a volunteer, and how they do it.” Focus groups, studies of other museums, and discussions with current guides helped reshape the program, which has often been at the vanguard of education, Hegstrom says, from open inquiry that invites student participation to visual thinking strategies. “We’ve always looked at where the field is going and how we can contribute to that.”
“We’re much more focused now on having a conversation with people,” says Kara ZumBahlen, Mia’s Associate Educator, “rather than simply relaying facts about the art. We want to invite people to make connections with the art and how it relates to their lives.”
Leading school groups remains the largest need. And with more diversity in the region’s schools, the desire for more diversity in the guide corps helped inspire some of the program changes. Other tweaks are simply the result of how information is shared: for the first time, with so much online to learn from, there’s no textbook required for the training.
“Of course we’ll continue to provide access to curators and learning materials,” says Hegstrom, “and we’ll point people to places for more information. But we’re also relying on people to be much more self-directed.”
Current guides, some of whom have served Mia for decades, will help mentor future cohorts. “We want a unified guide corps, so that they’re all learning together,” says ZumBahlen. “The goal is bring everyone together and start building on each other’s strengths, helping each other out. It already feels good to do something new and energizing.”
Sign up to volunteer, for either Discovery Days or the school guide program, through August 19. Email educationvolunteers@artsmia.org with questions.