Saint Joseph's University will train future museum educators through a new program with the Barnes Foundation.
This fall, St. Joe's will offer an online museum education graduate program including a Master of Arts in museum education degree and a museum education certificate. Through the program, students will learn how to share knowledge in an inclusive and engaging way with visitors to all types of museums, institutes and historical sites.
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Offered as a fully online program with synchronous and asynchronous aspects, the 30-credit M.A. curriculum covers the history and philosophy of museums, museum management, and pedagogical practices for gallery-based teaching. The certificate also covers those subject areas, but to complete it students need only four courses totaling 12 credits.
Students enrolled in the program will have access to the Barnes' Visual Experience Platform, an online learning tool catered toward the study of visual material. It allows users to zoom in on artwork and interact with fellow students and educators. Local students in the program will have internship opportunities at the Barnes, located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, as well as at St. Joe's Frances M. Maguire Art Museum — housed just off the Hawk Hill campus in Merion in the original Barnes' gallery building.
The museum education program builds on St. Joe's existing partnership with the Barnes — a nonprofit cultural institution and art collection established in 1922 by collector and educator Dr. Albert C. Barnes. Since 2018, St. Joe's and the Barnes have worked together to offer classes, workshops and the Barnes Horticulture Certificate Program. While the Barnes collection moved to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in 2012, the organization continues to oversee a 12-acre arboretum by the Hawk Hill campus that's open to the public daily.
"The uniqueness of our new museum education program lies in the strength of the partnership between the Barnes and SJU," Joshua Power, dean of St. Joe's School of Education and Human Development, said in a release. "This program was co-created by these two great institutions to provide a one-of-a-kind educational experience tailored specifically to the museum industry and advancing your museum career."
