Abstract
This session describes a collaboration between art museum educators and occupational therapy (OT) university faculty members to improve the experiences of museum-goers with sensory-processing disabilities. Their connection was initiated through a grant-funded project to support inclusion of families with children with autism. This initiative began by forming an advisory board composed of museum staff, university faculty, and representatives from the autism community. The board drove the creation of sensory-friendly programming which included special early access hours for crowd control, therapeutic tools for sensory self-regulation, hands-on art projects, and specially trained volunteers. Program evaluation data, taken from January 2019 until January 2022, allowed museum staff and university faculty to analyze trends related to sensory-friendly programming and the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall experience was rated as “wonderful” by 57% to 91% of participants over a two-year period. Of all the supports provided, participants consistently rated the specially trained volunteers as most beneficial, however they noted additional training as an area for improvement to understand the variability inherent in the autism community. Overall, this sensory-friendly programming made an impact in the community and the museum’s culture by broadening the visitor base to more fully welcome families with children with autism, along with other visitors with special needs. This collaboration enhanced museum access along with visitor diversity. This study provides a detailed program development description and highlights from longitudinal program evaluation data, in hopes that similar programming can be initiated in other museum settings to enhance visitor diversity.
Presenters
Andrea TyszkaAssociate Professor, Occupational Therapy , Salus University, Pennsylvania, United States Laura Westmoreland
Associate Educator for Adult & Community Programs, Museum Education, Brandywine River Museum of Art, Pennsylvania, United States Fern Silverman
faculty, Occupational Therapy, Salus University, Armed Forces Americas, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
KEYWORDS
Sensory-friendly, Partnerships, Accessibility, Visitor-diversity
