SCV Historical Society Selected For Two Prestigious Programs – SCV History

The Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society is pleased to announce that it has been selected to participate in the American Alliance of Museums’ 2023 Museum Assessment Program (MAP), a critical step toward museum accreditation. AAM, founded in 1906, is a national organization representing the entire scope of the museum field.
In addition, the Society is also one of only 44 institutions in the country selected to participate in the 2023 Collections Assessment for Preservation program, administered by the Foundation for Advancement in Conservation.
Conducted over the course of a year, MAP assessments help museums look at both functional and strategic aspects of their operations; examine diversity, equity, access, and inclusion issues as they relate to the assessment focus; and include a peer-reviewed site visit.
The CAP program helps museum improve the care of their collections by providing an assessment of the museum’s collections and buildings. The Society will work with a team of preservation professionals to prioritize its collection care efforts and set standards that staff and volunteers can follow.
“It’s a great honor for the Historical Society to have been chosen for the Museum Assessment Program,” said Society president Alan Pollack. “This reflects our determination to evolve from a small, volunteer-driven local history advocate to a full, professional museum presence in Santa Clarita. We intend to create one of the premier local history museums in Southern California.”
“I am excited to be a part of a new trajectory for the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society and the History Center,” said board member Meredith McGowan, who is leading the CAP effort. “The Collections Assessment for Preservation (CAP) Program is designed to help small and mid-sized museums better care for their collections and that is exactly what we need at the new History Center, in advance of opening our museum at the Pardee House for the community.”
“We served a relatively small, incorporated town of about 70,000 people when we opened in 1980 with one museum building in Hart Park,” said Society vice president Leon Worden. “Today, we need to be serving a community that is not only four or five times larger but also more sophisticated and diverse with higher expectations for a museum experience.”