It's never too early to plan for spooky season programming!

Museums around the country embrace the Halloween season by tapping into the growing phenomenon of dark tourism to captivate and educate visitors. The John Jay French Museum in Beaumont, Texas embraced the allure of spooky season by partnering with a paranormal investigation team to delve into unexplained occurrences surrounding the historic house museum. Together, they hosted an October event that revealed their findings to the community.

Shelby Brannan and Karli Stansbury discuss this innovative program, its alignment with the museum’s mission, and the logistics of planning for such a unique event. Learn how this initiative attracted new visitors, many of whom never engaged with the museum before, and how dark tourism can create educational and engaging opportunities for heritage organizations. This webinar is perfect for those curious about integrating Halloween’s spooky charm into museum programming along with the importance of balancing sensitive historical narratives with community engagement and tourism development.

Museums are uniquely positioned to extend programming to the littlest of learners through early childhood education offerings.

Museums already pique curiosity, promote social connection, and offer object-based learning opportunities for students and adults. By creating specialized programs for littles, museums lay the foundation for lifelong learning.

Join Beth Brandon, Multi-Generational Programs Manager at the Indiana Historical Society, for an insightful session on how the IHS engages with a new, young audience - children ages 2-5. Discover how the IHS invites young learners into their spaces and programming by offering hands-on activities, interactive exhibits, and enriching experiences designed specifically for this age group. Beth will guide you through the entire process, from initial idea development to execution, including securing board support, designing age-appropriate activities, creating accessible spaces, and effective marketing strategies.

Attendees will gain actionable ideas and insights to create meaningful early childhood programming in cultural and historical spaces.

Learn how to translate the work you may already do in planning an exhibition or collection installation into the language of fundraising.

By honing your interpretive plan, you can also make a stronger case for what your work is, the audiences it engages, and why it matters.

Presenter, Dr. Verónica Betancourt, introduces beginners to the first stages of interpretive planning: developing a big idea and visitor outcomes. More seasoned museum professionals will gain insight into how interpretive planning can become a persuasive fundraising tool.

About the Series Presenter:

Verónica E. Betancourt, Ph.D. is a museum consultant and strategist who specializes in interpretation, education, and culturally responsive evaluation. She works internationally to improve clients' interpretive capacity, create dynamic audio guides and video, and lead the interpretive planning of exhibitions. She is a native Spanish speaker and can support bilingual interpretation and evaluation.

Dr. Betancourt's career began in Curatorial at the National Gallery of Art in DC and has spanned the range of Education and Interpretation—from teaching in the gallery to serving as the Interim Chief Education Officer at the Baltimore Museum of Art.