Smithsonian Institution Affiliate
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| Established | 1996 |
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| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Director | Harold Closter |
| Website | affiliations |
Smithsonian Affiliations is a division of the Smithsonian Institution that establishes long-term partnerships with non-Smithsonian museums and educational and cultural organizations, in order to share collections, exhibitions and educational strategies and conduct joint research.
Partner organizations are known as “Smithsonian Affiliates” and are allowed to use the tag line "In Association with the Smithsonian Institution" and the approved Smithsonian Affiliations logo on their website, programming, and marketing material. Any 501(c)(3) nonprofit or publicly operated educational entity can apply to become a Smithsonian Affiliate.
The Smithsonian Affiliations program was established in 1996 by Smithsonian Secretary I. Michael Heyman with the approval of the Smithsonian Board of Regents, in response to several challenges the Institution faced at the time: a decrease in federal funding, limited storage space for expanding collections, and the need to make the Institution more reflective of the nation without operating additional museums outside of Washington, D.C.
In 1993, the Commission on the Future of the Smithsonian Institution introduced the first proposal for initiatives promoting strategic, collections-based partnerships at the Institution. The Commission, composed of 22 members appointed by the Smithsonian Board of Regents, was charged with examining the Institution's ability to uphold James Smithson’s vision of an organization dedicated to "the increase and diffusion of knowledge" despite a changing society and increasing financial hardships. Of the four initiatives proposed by the Commission: Educate More of the Nation's People; Collections, Research and Exhibitions; Governance; and Assure the Future, two directly called for the creation of strategic partnerships and making artifacts in the collections accessible to other museums.
To Educate More of the Nation’s People: “Build collaborative partnerships with other museums, research centers, and educational institutions throughout the nation."
Collections, Research and Exhibitions: “Shape a master plan for maintenance of the priceless collections, including the sharing of collections through long-term or permanent loans to partner institutions."
Significant emphasis was placed on the benefits that partnerships with outside museums would create for the Institution. By dispersing artifacts to museums in a responsible way, the Commission believed it, “could make the Institution more reflective of our nation… [as well as] address the problem of storing, curating, studying, and exhibiting the constantly growing collections."
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