We are absolutely delighted to announce that the Master of Arts in Museum Studies (MAMS) program moved from another OU college into SLIS on July 1, 2023. The MAMS program is a fully online master’s which was initiated within the College of Liberal Studies in 2006 as an option under the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies. The MAMS is 33 credit hours (11 courses) that include required courses in management/leadership, collections, technology, research methods, intro to the field, plus electives and a required internship or project course.
“As cultural heritage institutions, libraries, archives, and museums share common goals to acquire, preserve, and make accessible artifacts and evidences of the world’s social, intellectual, artistic, even spiritual achievements” (Dupont, 2007, p. 13). These common goals make the MAMS a natural fit for the School of Library and Information Studies. In fact, some MLIS students express interest in pursuing careers in museums and some MAMS students are very interested in careers in archives and special collections. Students from both the MAMS and the MLIS have taken classes from both degree programs, many students are pursuing a dual master’s degree with the MAMS and the MLIS, and students from both degrees often add the Graduate Certificate in Archival Studies to their programs.
In practice, cultural heritage institutions commonly have crossover, with museums housing archives and libraries, libraries housing archives and special collections that include artifacts, and archives that include published materials and artifacts. Archives education has long been tied to LIS, with many professional archivist jobs requiring an ALA-accredited MLIS degree. More recently, some MLIS programs around the U.S. have begun offering courses and graduate certificates in Cultural Heritage Institutions. The literature is reflecting the overlap of Libraries, Archives, and Museums (LAMs) such as Stauffer’s new book Libraries, Archives, and Museums (2021), Libraries, Archives, and Museums in Transition (Rasmussen, Rydbeck, & Larsen 2022), and Latinos in Libraries, Museums, and Archives (Montiel-Overall, Nuñez, and Reyes-Escudero 2015). This is certainly not an exhaustive list, and the collaboration of LAMs is common in European countries as well as in North America.
By accepting the MAMS program into SLIS, we are acknowledging the interconnectedness of these institutions and the synergy of educating professionals for these similar, yet distinct, professions. Please join us in welcoming the MAMS program, faculty, and students into SLIS.
Susan K. Burke, Associate Professor, Program Director: Master of Arts in Museum Studies
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