Thus, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, Motley says, is organizing a national membership campaign, and raising $5 million - $3 million of which will establish an endowment for the museum.
"We are limited on funds," echoes the Rev. Fred Perriman, president of the board of directors for the fledgling Morgan County African American Museum in small-town Madison, Georgia.
With an annual budget of about $60,000, the museum - a five-room house that, among other things, depicts local African American life at the turn of the century - is searching for a full-time director, preferably one with fund-raising and grant-writing experience.
Insufficient funding also hampers the museum world's effectiveness at spreading the word about its career opportunities. And the lack of funding contributes to the industry's deflated salaries.
That, says Able, puts museums in the tough competitive position of telling prospective museum professionals, "On the one hand, we'd love to have you and, by the way, we would like for you to have a master's or a Ph.D. On the other hand, we're going to pay you $12,000 a year."
As with schools, their sister institutions of learning, the well-being of museums is an important though often neglected community issue. Perhaps the museum world's second greatest challenge is strengthening relations with the community.
Says Able: "We need to be clear about the fact that we are a part of the community, and that we care about the community and its issues."
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