Over the past decade, CCLI and museum participants have developed and collected a broad array of resources to help museum professionals as they strive to make positive change in their organizations. There are four types of tools included here (Key Curriculum Ideas, Participant Contributions, Briefs and Reports, Webinars) organized within four different categories: Apply Theory, Shift Internal Practice, Take Action, Connect with Community. We hope you find these helpful as you engage in your equity work! Find the tools by category with descriptions below, or look at the whole list here.
With a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, CCLI is currently developing a suite of resources that support institution-wide efforts by museums to incorporate diversity, equity, access, and inclusion (DEAI) practices into their operations in effective, manageable, and actionable ways.
Project activities include the development of DEAI tools such as infographics, diagnostic assessments, reflection and strategy guides, and webinars. Resources will be available free of charge and disseminated through partnerships with national and regional museum associations. By developing new DEAI resources, the project hopes to empower museums to shift their internal practices to be more inclusive and equitable. Check back soon for new resources developed as part of this project.
Apply Theory
An interview with Laura Huerta-Migus
Building from the 2009 IMLS publication Museums, Libraries and 21st Century Skills, this framework helps museums advance their cultural competency efforts.
Milton Bennett’s model consisting of a continuum of six stages moving from “ethnocentrism” to “ethnorelativism.”
In late 2019, the first field-wide study focusing on DEAI approaches in the museum field was launched to better understand the current state of diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion practices in the United States.
“Best practices in museum education take an asset-based approach, which can be leveraged naturally for DEAI work.”
“Research highlights three core qualities of leadership to support positive change.”
“Learning is a critical component of organizational change efforts; learning requires organizations to question their assumptions and practices.”
This 3-page brief provides foundational concepts, relevant literature and defining terms for considering change to organizational practice in museums.
The Inclusive Museum is a synthesis of the literature that provides the theoretical grounding for the CCLI framework for change.
Shift Internal Practice
See diversity, inclusion and equity statements from a variety of museums, non-profit organizations and for-profit corporations.
In this fun, end-of-year video, CCLI participants from the Center for Aquatic Sciences reflect on the value of staff dialogue and different perspectives.
Discovery Center at Murfree Spring staff reflect on the ways that focusing on cultural competence and inclusion through CCLI has been positive for their organization.
Discovery Center at Murfree Spring in Murfreesboro, TN, created a framework for reflection that also became their roadmap for the future. It’s a useful tool for others too.
Chicago Children’s Museum created this tool to outline the goals and strategies for their Diversity/Inclusion team, and found it was helpful to share with the rest of the staff too.
Understanding the different roles that people tend to play can help balance and ensure good representation on organizational teams.
How can museums restructure team roles around skills rather than pedigree, looking at the intersection of equity, human resources practices, and organizational change.
Take Action
After a year in the program, Claire Pollock, Cincinnati Museum Center’s Senior Director, Community Engagement, reflects on how CCLI can inform the broader museum community.
Are you looking for new ways to address diversity, equity, inclusion or accessibility at your museum? Cultural Competence Learning Institute (CCLI ) is a year-long professional development initiative for museum teams that helps leaders catalyze diversity and inclusion efforts at their institutions.
Staff from different departments at the High Desert Museum in Bend, OR consider ways to make their museum more accessible for staff, visitors and volunteers.
A fun and interactive way to engage staff in identifying and mapping organizational strengths in diversity, inclusion, equity and access using photography.
This set of questions, designed to encourage people to share family traditions can lead to a richer understanding of others’ cultural backgrounds and perspectives.
This community-building activity encourages people to talk about the experiences that shape their cultural identity.
Highlighting the ways that values and cultural norms intersect, this group activity helps people explore their own and others’ cultural values around time and heirarchy.
This light-hearted activity helps groups of people get to know each other better and helps set the stage for deeper conversations about identity and culture.
Some things to consider as you look for outside consultants to support your cultural competence efforts.
Establishing a DEAI committee or task force can be a critical step in prioritizing equity work. This session focuses on best practices to build and nurture DEAI committees to most effectively elevate equity.
An equity and inclusion statement can be a foundational element for an organization’s DEAI work. But what comes next? Statements as guiding principles for action.
This framework for thinking about dimensions of diversity can be used to encourage thinking about values, beliefs, and dimensions of identity for people and organizations.
Children’s Museum of South Dakota focused their CCLI year on staff training; learn about their experience in an end of year video reflection.
Connect with Community
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh shares reflections on building internal cultural competence to help respond to community challenges.
Long Island Children’s Museum developed a live theater experience so that those on the autism spectrum and their families could access performances in a judgement-free setting.
Kristin Leigh’s acceptance speech for the 2016 ASTC Edgie Award outlines Explora’s innovative approach to learn from and collaborate with highly diverse audiences.
Adventure Science Center’s PR video showcases their work to make their museum more accessible.
How can museums ensure community engagement that serves all? Featuring The Wild Center and its community partners, this session focuses on inclusive partnership-building, outreach, and engagement practices.
