Museum accreditation is a rigorous process that examines all aspects of a museum’s operations. Of the nation’s estimated 33,000 museums, just over 1,080 are currently accredited by The American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Mia is one of only 21 museums accredited in Minnesota.

AAM’s Accreditation Commission, an independent and autonomous body of museum professionals, considers the self-study and Visiting Committee reports to determine whether a museum should receive accreditation. Accreditation signifies excellence to the museum community, to foreign, state, and local governments, funders, outside agencies, and the museum-going public. To earn accreditation, a museum first must conduct a year of self-study, and then undergo a site visit by a team of peer reviewers.

Alliance accreditation brings national recognition to a museum for its commitment to excellence, accountability, high professional standards, and continued institutional improvement. Developed and sustained by museum professionals for 50 years, the Alliance’s museum accreditation program is the field’s primary vehicle for quality assurance, self-regulation, and public accountability. It strengthens the museum profession by promoting practices that enable leaders to make informed decisions, allocate resources wisely, and remain financially and ethically accountable in order to provide the best possible service to the public.

According to Laura L. Lott, former AAM president and CEO, “Accredited museums are a community of institutions that have chosen to hold themselves publicly accountable to excellence. Accreditation is clearly a significant achievement, of which both the institutions and the communities they serve can be extremely proud.”

Mia was awarded reaccreditation on November 11, 2023. The following are direct quotes from the accreditation summary: “Mia is an exemplary institution with a strong history and roots in its community. The current Director [Katie Luber] started in January 2020 just before the start of the pandemic, and then in May 2020 just blocks away George Floyd was murdered. It is a testament to the Director’s leadership, along with the strength of the Board, museum leadership, and staff, that Mia has been steadily improving their program as they work to serve a civic obligation to help the city rebuild and regain trust and reputation.” The summary concluded: “Overall, Mia is a leader in the museum field and should serve as a model for other institutions. With their long-range planning not only for advancing their public service role and dedication to their audience, but also for addressing the less visible facility’s needs, Mia’s Director, staff, and Board are ensuring that the Museum will remain an anchor in its community and a trusted partner.”

In addition, Marise McDerrmott, chair of the Accreditation Commission, added,
“Mia is an exemplary institution. We commend the strength of its collections, engagement with its community, and professional practices. We applaud its ability to directly connect with audiences and reach as many segments of those audiences as possible via a noteworthy range of programming, and by pursuing diversity, equity, access, and inclusion (DEAI) values and goals.”

Mia is proud of the work we have done and are doing and look forward to maintaining our successful accreditation status into the future.

For more information, contact press@artsmia.org.