You may not notice a difference the next time you stop by, but the Door County Maritime Museum is a step closer to becoming fully accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. The organization recently announced it has verified the museum’s core documents, which cover its educational mission, strategic plan, code of ethics, and emergency and collections stewardship policies. Deputy Director & Development Manager Sam Perlman says the requirements set forth by the AAM were nothing new compared to what the museum has been doing in the past. Still, it shows they have codified those practices in a written document. Core Documents Verification puts the Door County Maritime Museum one step closer to becoming fully accredited, which only three percent of the country’s 35,000 museums, zoos, and aquariums have reached, including 21 in Wisconsin. Perlman says AAM accreditation has been a goal of the museum for a long time, and it will open the door for more educational opportunities in the future.

Perlman says the process includes an exhaustive self-study and site visit before an accreditation commission decides. Once accredited, the Door County Maritime Museum would carry that distinction for ten years before reaccreditation.