Curated Conversations Presents "Making Museums Accessible"

Description

Join Stephanie Brown, assistant program director and senior lecturer for the MA in Museum Studies program, as she hosts leading museum thought leaders Beth Redmond-Jones and Heather Pressman in a strategy-sharing session for increasing the accessibility of museums for all guests, including guests who are differently abled.

Beth Redmond-Jones has used a visitor focus over the past two decades to explore how museums can more effectively serve those with unapparent disabilities, especially autism, sensory processing disorder, and mental health challenges. Redmond-Jones has authored articles, presented at international conferences, and spoken on podcasts about unapparent disabilities and her museum practice. She has worked at museums around the country, from the Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Redmond-Jones is the editor and coauthor of Welcoming Museum Visitors with Unapparent Disabilities (AAM/Rowman & Littlefield, May 2024).

Heather Pressman (she/her), a Johns Hopkins graduate (MA in Museum Studies) and a Johns Hopkins faculty member who teaches Accessibility in the Museum, is an educator with a passion for accessibility and inclusion. As co-founder of Achieving Access, a museum accessibility consulting firm, Pressmen works for the rights of everyone to access and enjoy cultural experiences regardless of their abilities or disabilities. Previously, she spent six years as the director of learning and engagement for the Molly Brown House Museum where she worked to expand access, despite the physical challenges of a 130+-year-old historic house. She recently coauthored The Art of Access: A Practical Guide for Museum Accessibility (Rowman & Littlefield, 2021) and is editor/author of An Accessible Past: Making Historic Sites Accessible.