Relevance through Rebirth: A Learning Experience
The Ohio Museums Association is pleased to share the experience of our 2015 Annual Conferencescholarship recipients with the second installment of our 2015 OMA Scholarship series.
Miss our first post? Learn more about the Scholarship series and read our previous entry here.
This week’s post comes to us from Amanda Sedlak-Hevener. Ms. Sedlak-Hevener is a graduate student at the University of Akron, where is she is halfway through a Master of Arts degree in History. She is currently interning at the William McKinley Presidential Library and Museum in Canton.
Relevance through Rebirth: A Learning Experience
By: Amanda Sedlak-Hevener
Public historians not only learn from the past – they also learn from each other. Whether it’s a clever idea, a new trend in the profession, or a new way of looking at the past, once these ideas are shared and others are allowed to creatively run with them, amazing things can happen – this is what I learned at the 2015 OMA conference.
Amanda Sedlak-Hevener in the accessions office at the McKinley Museum
Although Sunday’s event were fun (it’s always a great day when I get to visit museums), I enjoyed the sessions on Monday the most. Two of the noteworthy ones were those on Smartphone apps for historical interpretation and experiential tours. Both were led by experienced, knowledgeable professionals, and I was left feeling both impressed and inspired. Yes, I don’t actually have park to create an app for or a museum to develop tours for, but someday I might, and I already have ideas for them when the time comes.
Once these ideas are shared and others are allowed to creatively run with them, amazing things can happen.” – Amanda Sedlak-Hevener
The networking opportunities were plentiful, and everyone that I talked to – from the vendors to the other attendees – were friendly, willing to answer my many questions, and treated me as though I belonged there, even though I’m just a grad student. It’s safe to say that I enjoyed both days of the conferences, and didn’t want it to end.
As a whole, the OMA conference was an excellent experience, and I look forward to attending as a professional someday, not just as a student. I recommend it to anyone even considering entering the profession!
Looking for more OMA 2015 details? Be sure to visit the OMA 2015: Relevance through Rebirth – Resource Page for session downloads, Awards dinner pictures, the complete Scholarship blog series and more!