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October 2015 – LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

BennetDear Friend,

I really enjoyed seeing so many other dads at CMEE’s Big Truck Day! A few Museum members even remarked on the number of fathers with one grandmother commenting, “When it’s an art or music program, it’s easy for dads to opt out, but trucks are supposed to be ‘manly’…so dads want to see them too.” At CMEE, we certainly see far more moms than dads even on weekends, and the comments during Big Truck Day made me wonder if our experience was typical of other museums.

Five years ago, Reach Advisors conducted a survey of thousands of museum-goers. While dads completed almost 4,000 of the surveys, that number was tiny compared with the more than 13,000 moms who completed it. Among the moms filling out the survey, 55% reported that their spouses generally did not visit museums with them. This data, according to Susie Wilkening, who is senior consultant and curator of museum audiences at Reach Advisors, “indicates that dads are not visiting or engaging with museums nearly as much as moms.”

Wilkening makes an interesting comparison between the motivations of moms and dads attending museums. While moms are more likely to focus on the needs of their children to the exclusion of any adult engagement, she says that dads generally go to museums because they are personally interested in the subject matter. A dad demonstrating interest and engagement with museums increases the interest and engagement of his children, “who then are more likely to grow up into curious life-long learners.”

CMEE is eager to make the Museum as engaging for dads as it is for moms and children. If interesting topics are what motivates dads to visit, what subject matter would you recommend CMEE present? CMEE staff members are discussing a range of ideas including tournaments on CMEE’s mini golf course, an outdoor exhibit of race cars, and a drumming program. All of these ideas sound pretty cool to me, but I’m eager to hear suggestions from other dads. Please e-mail, call, or share suggestions on CMEE’s Facebook Wall or Twitter Feed.

Sincerely,

Steve

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