Directors' Retreat 2006: Austin, Texas
 

The Getty Conservation Institute held its third Directors' Retreat for Conservation Education in partnership with the American Institute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and the Association of North American Graduate Programs in Conservation (ANAGPIC) from May 23 to May 25, 2006 at the Crossings conference center in Austin, Texas. The retreat focused on the use of Web-based technology to achieve teaching and learning goals in conservation education.

Group shot of Directors' Retreat 2006 participants. Photo: Foekje Boersma.	Facilitated discussion on distance learning and new technologies, titled eNdless Possibilities?, led by Michael Anderson, manager of Course Development and Technology, University of Texas System TeleCampus. Photo: Foekje Boersma.

The GCI, AIC and ANAGPIC share an interest in using the Web as an educational tool, and in understanding the potential opportunities it offers to conservation educators. The specific objectives of the retreat were to:

• give participants an idea of the uses and impact of technology on both higher and continuing education;
• develop a better understanding of the potential of Web technology for conservation educators; and
• consider ways of building upon the growing collective experience for using the Web in both teaching and learning.

Graphic representation of the discussion on emerging trends in e-learning and technology. Photo: Foekje Boersma.	Small group discussion on Web-based teaching and learning for conservation. Photo: Foekje Boersma.

The main speakers at the retreat were Michael Anderson, Manager, Course Development and Technology for the University of Texas System TeleCampus, and Mary Lynne Rice-Lively, Associate Dean, University of Texas at Austin School of Information. The meeting discussions were facilitated by Sherwood and Eunice Shankland.

Participants came from academic programs and conservation organizations in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the United States. Several of the academic programs had experience in using the Web in either classroom-based or distance education courses. As a result, during the three days of the retreat discussions drew upon the experiences of these participants while also exploring—through both facilitated discussions and small group exercises—additional Internet-based opportunities for teaching, learning, and collaboration. Different approaches and tools for both classroom-based teaching and blended and distance learning were presented. The retreat also included an overview of open source initiatives within academe, and how they may impact the way didactic resources are created, used, and shared in the future. By the end of the retreat, specific ideas for collaborative activities had been identified including, a pilot project on blended learning; development of an on-line science tutorial; and an on-line resource for conservation educators.

Small group discussion on Web-based teaching and learning for conservation. Photo: Foekje Boersma.	Discussion of small group results by Debra Hess Norris, Director of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, University of Delaware. Photo: Foekje Boersma.

On the final day of the retreat, participants visited the Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record at the School of Information, the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center Conservation Department, and the new Blanton Museum of Art—all part of the University of Texas at Austin.

Retreat participants continue discussions informally at the end of the day. Photo: Foekje Boersma.	Visit to The Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record at the School of Information, University of Texas. Photo: Foekje Boersma.

2006 Directors' Retreat Participants

Catherine Atkinson
Head of Conservation Training and Development
British Library

Foekje Boersma
Project Specialist, Education
Getty Conservation Institute

A. Jean E. Brown
Programme Leader, Preventive Conservation
School of Arts and Sciences
Northumbria University, United Kingdom

Kirk Cordell
Executive Director
National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, U.S. National Park Service

Ellen Cunningham-Kruppa
Director, Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record
School of Information
University of Texas at Austin

Kathleen Dardes
Senior Project Specialist, Education
Getty Conservation Institute

John Hinchman
Graduate Program in Historic Preservation
University of Pennsylvania

Michele Marincola
Director, The Conservation Center
Institute of Fine Arts, New York University

Chela Metzger
Lecturer
School of Information
University of Texas at Austin

Debra Hess Norris
Director, Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation
University of Delaware

Ellen Pearlstein
Course Coordinator
UCLA-Getty MA Program in Archaeological and Ethnographic Conservation
University of California, Los Angeles

Elizabeth Peña
Director, Art Conservation Department
Buffalo State College, State University of New York

Eric Pourchot
Program Officer, Professional Development
American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works

Chandra Reedy
Professor, Museum Studies Program
University of Delaware

Robyn Sloggett
Director, The Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation
The Ian Potter Art Conservation Centre
University of Melbourne

Krysia Spirydowicz
Director, Art Conservation Programme
Queen's University, Ontario, Canada

Eryl Wentworth
Executive Director
American Institute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works

Angela Weyer
Director, Hornemann Institute
Center for the Preservation of World Cultural Heritage
University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Hildesheim, Germany

George Wheeler
Director of Conservation
Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Columbia University

Page updated: July 2006