Harn Museum of Art receives highest national recognition

September 14, 2007

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The American Association of Museums recently announced that the Harn Museum of Art at the University of Florida is among 14 museums to earn the highest national recognition a museum can achieve.

This is the second time the Harn has gone through the accreditation process, after first receiving accreditation in 1997. AAM reviews accredit museums every 10 years.

Accreditation recognizes high standards in individual museums and ensures that museums continue to provide the best possible service to the public. Developed and sustained by museum professionals for more than 35 years, AAM’s museum accreditation program is the field’s primary vehicle for quality assurance, self-regulation and public accountability.

“Accreditation by AAM affirms that the Harn Museum of Art adheres to the highest standards of the museum field and that the work we are doing is recognized by our peers at the national level,” said Rebecca Nagy, director of the Harn Museum of Art. “At the same time, the accreditation process helps us to identify those areas where we can improve and grow in fulfillment of our mission to serve diverse local, state, national and international audiences. We are all thrilled with the positive outcome of the accreditation process.”

Of the nation’s nearly 17,500 museums, 775 are accredited. The Harn Museum of Art is the only accredited art museum in north Central Florida. To earn accreditation, a museum first must conduct a year of self-study, then undergo a site visit by a team of peer reviewers. The Accreditation Commission, an independent and autonomous body of museum professionals, considers the self-study and visiting committee report to determine whether a museum should receive accreditation.

The Harn Museum of Art opened in 1990 and has since become one of the largest university art museums in the southeast U.S. In addition to five permanent collection installations, diverse temporary exhibitions are presented annually from other art institutions, private collections and the Harn Museum’s collections of nearly 7,000 works. The Harn also originates exhibitions for travel to other institutions as part of its commitment to contribute to the field through original research.