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1331 Algoma Boulevard, Oshkosh WI 54901 • 920.236.5799 • oshkoshmuseum.org
MEMO TO THE MUSEUM BOARD
April 22, 2021
To the Board,
Attached is the draft agenda for May 6 and the draft minutes from the April 1 meeting. One agenda
item of note is in regard to the format of future Board meetings, so I will start with that.
The decision as to whether meetings should be in-person or virtual is being left to boards and
commissions. However, the meeting must either be all virtual, or all in-person and cannot be a hybrid.
Because the Lecture Room is unavailable until after Titanic opens on July 21, that means we must use
the Sawyer Library. Unfortunately, the square footage of that room is tight for meetings in our Covid
dominated world. It is important to point out that it is difficult, if not impossible, to socially distance
the entire Board, plus staff, and allow for any citizens that might attend in-person. Distancing could
be achieved if we only used tables for Theresa Books and me, but not for Board members. My
recommendation is to continue with virtual meetings until the Lecture Room is available.
I was notified by Associated Bank this week that the Museum will receive part of the residual trust
of John A. and May C. Ziebell. I had met them both in 1991 during the exhibition At Home During
World War II and often talked with John, who was a fighter pilot in Europe during the war. They were
Members and came to exhibitions and programs. John passed away many years ago, and May this
winter. As soon as I know the schedule and amount, I will pass this on to the Board and it will be an
agenda item, most likely at the July 8 meeting. However, if things move along smartly it is possible
that it could be a June item.
On Wednesday, the descendants of Chief Oshkosh visited to examine our Chief Oshkosh artifacts.
They were very appreciative and I am much looking forward to the June 5 Pow Wow to be able to
meet and talk with Menominee leaders and dancers. The visit was coordinated and handled by
Assistant Curator Katrina Achilli, who did a fine job as liaison and host.
On Tuesday, Assistant Director Anna Cannizzo began removing decorative arts in the Sawyer
Library cases in preparation for the installation of the next decorative arts exhibit, titled Iridescence.
Despite the general public perception that exhibits are a 1-2-3 affair, installing a new exhibition is not
simply replacing one item for another. When an exhibition is dismantled, all the items taken off
exhibit have to be returned to their assigned storage locations, and then the Past Perfect database
updated to reflect the changed location for each artifact.
This week we started work on Capital Improvement Project (CIP) requests for the next five years.
Because Ms. Cannizzo will be the Interim Director, I am instructing her on how Ms. Books and I
approach capital projects and what must be considered when each is planned for a given year. Some
capital projects, most notably long term exhibition work, are tied to operational costs, particularly if
staff or interns need to be hired to assist with elements of that work. A good example of that would
1331 Algoma Boulevard, Oshkosh WI 54901 • 920.236.5799 • oshkoshmuseum.org
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be the artifact removal in Memories & Dreams. Those staffing costs are typically supported by our
trusts as well as private funds, so we must plan ahead for those expenses. You might recall that I
present budgets in September, after I have a better understanding of capital projects and operational
needs. When projects are delayed, it then impacts the use of the trusts and funds, so it is always a
balancing act.
As a result of the two day kick-off meeting with Split Rock Studios last week, I am changing the
exhibition fit-out schedule for the Memories & Dreams gallery. I now believe that Memories & Dreams
should be dismantled and demolished and the space turned into our multi-purpose gallery in 2023.
That should be about a six-month project and doing the work in 2023 would enable temporary and
traveling exhibitions to be mounted while Deep Roots, Growing City, is under construction in 2024, the
Museum’s Centennial year. Removing Memories & Dreams in 2023 also prevents a multi-year closure
of second floor. Capital requests are due in mid-May and we have much to do in the coming weeks.
In the miscellaneous paragraph, our attendance for the first quarter was 3,344 visitors. This is very
good visitation considering the pandemic. Between Star Wars, Titanic, and White Christmas, the
Museum should easily exceed its 2021 attendance goal. This week Maintenance Technician Matt
Reinke, and Exhibit Technician Greg Witthun, performed maintenance on the Oshkosh Brewing Co.
logo near the entrance. The Lexan was cleaned and wasp nests removed. Marketing Coordinator
Tammy Malewski made the most of it and our Facebook post on the work received quite a bit of
traffic. In other work, Mr. Reinke was busy on the grounds, removing the netting and straw over the
seeded areas on the grounds. When warm weather finally arrives, we are hoping the grass will get a
strong start before the Pow Wow. Once the grounds are prepared he will start on the initial fit-out
for Sports & Recreation next month.
Wednesday was Administrative Professionals Day and the staff expressed gratitude to
Administrative Assistant Theresa Books for all she does. Administrative staff are the glue that holds
everything together, and the oil that helps make things run smoothly.
That ends the week and I hope you have a pleasant weekend.
Brad Larson
Director