Mission Statement
The purpose of the Madison Art Collection’s Education department is to provide opportunities for the James Madison University community, the public schools within our service area and for teacher’s and students across the state to enjoy, discover, and learn about art and world cultures thorough the use of the Museum’s collection, exhibitions, and education programs.

Overview

Reflecting the educational heritage of our university, education is one of the primary missions of the Madison Art Collection (MAC).  The goal of our museum education department is to work with the Department of Education and with school teachers to facilitate the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) for public school children.  We believe that museum sponsored learning helps children to understand how and why the past is relevant to the present.  In doing so, we build a foundation of awareness and cultivate an appreciation of world cultures.  Through the interpretation of collection objects from a variety of world cultures, students participate in hands-on, age appropriate activities.   Additionally, we are dedicated to providing life-long learning experiences and teacher training for the JMU community.  These experiences will extend to communities outside of the local area through technology and the expertise of JMU graduate students who have created virtual tours of and suggested projects correlated with the cultural objects in the MAC.  Through the internet, teachers and students across the state will be able to access information and lessons related to the objects in our collection.

Vital Resource

Overall, the MAC Education Department seeks to facilitate the Virginia SOLs through the study of objects in our collection as presented by JMU student interns, guest speakers, and our education director. The nature of the objects in our collection enable us to address the Virginia SOLs which relate to the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, Rome, Africa, China and Native Americans on a multitude of grade levels.  Prior to the implementation of our fieldtrip program, students from the area had to travel to Richmond or to Washington, D.C. in order to study objects from ancient cultures.  MAC opens its doors to local schools and enriches the aesthetic component of a JMU education through the display of a diverse cultural world.  The MAC is a vital cultural resource in the Shenandoah Valley.  As such, it has a special responsibility to serve the public schools located in the region with services and programs of regional, national and international scope.