Accreditation restored to Flagstaff museum

The Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff received word on August 8 from the American Association of Museums (AAM) that its accreditation by the AAM had been restored.

MNA’s accreditation was withdrawn by AAM’s Accreditation Commission on December 3, 2003, in response to the sale of 21 pieces from its collections by MNA’s former administration and board of trustees. The funds were used to finance an operating deficit, violating the Museum’s own collection policies.

Under new leadership and wanting to regain accreditation as soon as possible, MNA sent its accreditation application to the AAM in December 2004. MNA received interim accreditation on March 26, 2007. On August 8, 2008 MNA officially received word from AAM that it had been granted full accreditation by the commission.

AAM accreditation is the highest national recognition for a museum, signifying excellence to the museum community, to governments, funders, outside agencies, and to the museum-going public.

MNA holds over 600,000 artifacts in its permanent collections of anthropology, geology and paleontology, biology, and fine art from Native and non-Native artists dating from the 1860s. It also houses extensive federal and tribal research collections, and a significant library and photo archive collection.

Look for the metal sculptures of Cretaceous Pteranodon and Ichthyornis [right above] soaring over Hwy 180 out front of MNA as you head north out of Flagstaff.

The museum’s acclaimed exhibit of the Therizinosaur [right bottom] continues through March 2009.