Free On-Site Consultation Service
Applications are currently being accepted for the Spring 2012 site visit.
Application deadline: January 31, 2012.
Downloadable application near bottom of the page.
What is FOCoS?
Free On-site Consultation Service (FOCoS) is offered by NCMC to up to two qualifying museums each year. FOCoS provides advice and guidance to small or emerging museums using the resources and expertise resident in established museums around the state. As a result of FOCoS, not only do museums receive valuable feedback on their programs and operations, but the museum community and council are strengthened through the collaborative effort of professionals reaching out to share their knowledge of the field.
A two-person team of NCMC consultants is assigned to a selected qualifying site. Consultants visit and tour their assigned site over a two-day period and together offer professional advice, in the form a written report, relating to needs specified as priorities by the recipient site.
What areas of consulting are offered?
Sites can obtain free consultations in two of the following topic areas:
- exhibit design and construction
- collections management
- administration of facility
- educational programming
- enlisting and recruiting volunteers
- and marketing and public relations.
Who can apply?
Any institution can apply, but consideration will be given to museums with small budgets -- generally, less than $100,000. While sites with larger budgets can apply and will be considered, partiality in selections will be given to those facilities with fewer financial resources.
Do I have to be an NCMC member to apply?
Individual or institutional membership in NCMC is not a requirement for applicants. While enlisting new members is an ongoing objective of NCMC's work, the overriding mission of FOCoS is to help small institutions, regardless of whether or not they are affiliated with NCMC.
Who do I contact?
FOCoS will be administered through NCMC's vice president, working in cooperation with the chairs of Membership Development and Professional Development. If you are interested in serving as a consultant or would like to receive a visit from FOCoS consultants, please contact NCMC's vice president.
How do I apply?
Applications can be submitted at any time during the year.
The application deadline for the next FOCoS site visit is January 31, 2012.
Said site visit will happen during the Spring 2012.
Please note that applications can be created by staff or volunteers at a museum or site, but must be finalized, reviewed and signed by the director or site representative of the applicant organization. The director or site representative is then the direct contact for all interactions involving the FOCoS program.
For more information, contact NCMC's vice president.
Download an application (PDF).
Some Recent Recipient Institutions
Could your institution be next?
2011 – Penderlea Homestead Museum
2011 – St. Paul Museum / North Randolph Historical Society
2010 – Orange County Historical Museum
2010 – Robeson County History Museum
2009 – Kannapolis History Associates
2009 – Hamlet Historic Depot Museum
2012 Annual Conference early bird registration closes this Friday. Sign up now and save on your registration fees! On-line Registration available
NCMC's by-laws are periodically reviewed by the board. Per the by-laws, any time modifications to the by-laws are made, notice of said modifications must sent out to the membership at least thirty days prior to the annual business meeting so that the membership may have the opportunity to review the modifications before voting to approve said modifications at the annual meeting. NCMC will be voting to approve modifications to its by-laws at the March 19, 2012 annual business meeting. 2012 - Proposed NCMC By-Laws. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact vicepresident@ncmuseums.org.
The North Carolina Preservation Consortium is seeking articles for our next electronic newsletter. Have you completed an interesting preservation project? Have an artifact needing conservation you would like someone to adopt? Planning an event for national Preservation Week in April? Share your story with collections colleagues. Please submit text and images as an email attachment to NCPC newsletter editor Beth Doyle at b.doyle@duke.edu Text must be in a Word document. Images should be jpeg format with a printable quality of 250dpi or more. Please include a caption for photo credit. Deadline is March 30th.
New Employment list: Curator of Education, SECCA; Volunter Opportunities at Historic Yates Mill
NCMC 2012 Annual Conference Schedule is now available!!
Find a Museum by County has been updated thanks to a great NCMC supporter!
Free On-site Consultation Service (FOCoS) is offered by NCMC and is now accepting applications!
Intested in becoming a FOCoS consultant?
The Federation of North Carolina Historical Societies' is conducting a hands-on workshop "Researching Our Industrial Past" on November 18. Discover how to research the history of past businesses and industries. Learn the best way to begin such research, the obvious and not-so-obvious sources of information available, and even how some basic archaeological activities can provide information. This workshop will be helpful for historical organizations interested in learning more about industries that once operated in their area, as well as for people simply interested in researching what their ancestors did for a living.
The summer edition of MUSE News is out!
Does your institution need help organizing, managing, and preserving the special collections that document North Carolina’s history and culture? The North Carolina State Archives can help through its Traveling Archivist Program (TAP). The application and instructions are available online on the North Carolina State Archives website.
The Department of Education Southeast Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) region includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The Southeast RAC invites your comments and recommendations on the educational needs of the region and how those needs would be most effectively addressed. Using the links on our page you will find the dates of upcoming RAC meetings open to the public, RAC meetings materials and summaries, and a place for you to leave your comment.
Conducting a regular inventory of collections is a crucial task for museums and historical societies. Come to the Federation of North Carolina Historical Societies' spring workshops to learn tips and strategies for conducting a collections inventory; to practice tagging and marking objects with identification numbers; and to learn about building partnerships to attract visitors to your site.
Check out the new Connecting to Collections Workshops scheduled for 2011. Upcoming workshops include Emergency & Disaster Preparedness, Digital Projects workshop and Collections Care and Preservation.
Board Minutes updated from last meeting.
The Triangle Area Cultural Resources Emergency Network (TACREN) announces the launch of a disaster hot line for area cultural organizations to call when a disaster damages their collections. More info here.
