EUGENE, Ore. -- (December 12, 2016) –The Board of Directors of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) has ratified the appointment of Jill Hartz as a new accreditation commissioner. Hartz is the executive director of the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art (JSMA) at the University of Oregon in Eugene, a position she’s held since 2008.
Hartz begins her five-year term as accreditation commissioner in January 2017.
“The Alliance has a steady flow of academic art museums in the pipeline for accreditation and re-accreditation, so it’s important to have that expertise on the Accreditation Commission. Jill brings that expertise, and so much more,” said AAM Board Member and Nominating Committee Chair Kippen de Alba Chu, Executive Director of the Iolani Palace in Honolulu.
The Accreditation Commission is the body responsible for making independent decisions regarding accredited status. It meets three times per year and is made up of museum professionals that collectively bring a wide range of experience and expertise in the museum field. Commissioners serve in a volunteer capacity.
“In the academic world, accreditation is a widely recognized indicator of excellence,” said Hartz. “Our university presidents and provosts well understand what accreditation means. So, by pursuing it, we help to show that our museums are as important as the degree-granting areas of the university.”
Hartz added that her upcoming service as an Accreditation Commissioner is a good fit for this stage of her career. “I understand a lot about accreditation now, having led three museums through it, and I know that it’s not a cookie-cutter process. And I believe in accreditation as a process for building excellence in our institutions.”
Before joining JSMA, Hartz was the director of the University of Virginia Art Museum (now Fralin Museum of Art) for a decade, and also worked at Cornell University’s Johnson Museum of Art in various capacities for ten years. During her career she has devoted a substantial amount of volunteer time to advance the professionalism, role, and visibility of academic museums, including having served on the board of the Association of Academic Museums and Galleries for more than 10 years, including two terms as president. She has served as an active peer reviewer for both the Museum Assessment Program and Accreditation for more than 20 years.
About the American Alliance of Museums
The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 30,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.
About the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art
The University of Oregon's Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is a premier Pacific Northwest museum for exhibitions and collections of historic and contemporary art based in a major university setting. The mission of the museum is to enhance the University of Oregon’s academic mission and to further the appreciation and enjoyment of the visual arts for the general public. The JSMA features significant collections galleries devoted to art from China, Japan, Korea, the Americas and Europe as well as changing special exhibition galleries. The JSMA is one of seven museums in Oregon accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.
The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is located on the University of Oregon campus at 1430 Johnson Lane. Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for senior citizens. Free admission is given to ages 18 and under, JSMA members, college students with ID, and University of Oregon faculty, staff and students. For information, contact the JSMA, 541-346-3027.
About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is among the 108 institutions chosen from 4,633 U.S. universities for top-tier designation of "Very High Research Activity" in the 2010 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The UO also is one of two Pacific Northwest members of the Association of American Universities.
Contact:
JSMA: Debbie Williamson Smith, 541-346-0942, debbiews@uoregon.edu
AAM: Joseph Klem, Director, Public Relations, 202-218-7670, jklem@aam-us.org
Links: Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, http://jsma.uoregon.edu
