Historically, museums have presented large numbers of objects on walls, in glass cases and in dioramas with explanatory labels. This method standing alone does not meet the learning needs of a diverse public. Increasingly, exhibits are including opportunities to engage the visitor. To serve our audience effectively, diverse learning techniques must be harnessed to different levels of learning. In my time at the University, I have often said that people, not structures, make great universities.
People also make great museums.
Without committed and able volunteers, a museum cannot succeed. Together staff and volunteers make a museum a vital center of learning. Willard L. Boyd is a lawyer and an educator. He is Professor of Law at the University of Iowa and President Emeritus of the University of Iowa and The Field Museum of Chicago. He is currently serving as Chair of the Harry S. Truman Library Institute and has served as a member of the Board of the Illinois Arts Council and Federation of State Humanities Councils.