ABOUT ME
On October 5th, 2012 I stepped into my new position at the American Museum of Natural History — the Associate Director For Digital Learning — and launched this blog (re: I Am Joining the AMNH & What’s It To You).
Located within the Education Department, Youth Initiatives, I bring my dozen years working in youth development and nearly twenty years working in new media to support the AMNH to advance its mission.
And what is that mission? “To discover, interpret, and disseminate information about human cultures, the natural world, and the universe through a wide-ranging program of scientific research, education, and exhibition.”
ABOUT THIS SITE
I created this blog as a place I could talk publicly about my work, connect with others, and learn as I share. It hope it will be broader than just my work and address issues of relevance to anyone interested in and concerned about how digital media is changing museum-based learning.
ABOUT THE SITE NAME
When my oldest boy was about a year and a half, my wife and I told him we were going to spend the day at the museum. He was so excited. He took up a chant that continued all the way from Brooklyn to the Upper West Side. It sounded something like “Moosha Moosha Mooshme. Moosha Moosha Mooshme.” We thought we knew what it meant. He already had a relationship with the museum and couldn’t wait to return. When we exited the subway, however, and went straight to lunch in the cafeteria, his face fell. He became nearly inconsolable, convinced (we later surmised) that we had not actually gone to the museum. The chanting continued, now forlorned, “Moosha Moosha Mooshme,” as if he were looking for a lost friend. After lunch we went to the planetarium and the light returned in his eyes. His excited chanting returned as well, as he realized we had finally arrived at the place he had been attempting to summon all day (and as we finally put two and two together): The Moosha Moosha Mooshme, or, as we like to call it, The Museum of Natural History.
When it came time to name this site, I couldn’t imagine a better way to encapsulate the intense engagement the museum has on people of all ages. I am using it as a constant reminder to never lose focus on that core relationship between the museum and its patrons.
FIND ME
Twitter: @mmmooshme
Where else do you want to see me? Facebook? Pinterest? Please let me know.