Develop Disaster Preparedness and Response Plan for the Avenir Museum of Design and Merchandising

FAIN: PG-51044-10

Colorado State University (Fort Collins, CO 80521-2807)
Linda L. Carlson (Project Director: May 2009 to September 2011)

Hiring a preservation consultant to conduct an assessment for the development of a disaster preparedness and response plan. The museum's collections hold over 12,000 artifacts, including costumes and textiles. The objects are used by students in courses in the Department of Design and Merchandising, in scholarly research, and in public and educational programming for the purpose of exploring the history of design, ancient embroidery techniques, and the creation of artifacts in the United States and around the world.

This Preservation Assistance Grant requests funding to hire a conservator to conduct an assessment for the development of a disaster preparedness and response plan. Having recently moved into a new facility, we recognize the need to establish policies and procedures to deal with an emergency before it becomes a disaster and to have guidelines for dealing with potential disasters. The goals of the project are (1) to identify potential hazards to which the collections may be exposed; (2) to develop a written comprehensive plan for disaster preparedness and response; (3) to inform all involved agencies of the fragile holdings of the museum and engage their support in the prepared plan; and (4) to conduct a disaster response training workshop for trained volunteers and graduate students.