Piedmont Arts Receives Highest National Recognition

Piedmont Arts has again achieved accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums, the highest national recognition afforded the nation’s museums.

Accreditation signifies excellence to the museum community, to governments, funders, outside agencies, and to the museum-going public. Piedmont Arts was initially accredited since 2004. All museums must undergo a reaccreditation review at least every 10 years to maintain accredited status. 

Alliance Accreditation brings national recognition to a museum for its commitment to excellence, accountability, high professional standards and continued institutional improvement. Developed and sustained by museum professionals for over 45 years, the Alliance’s museum accreditation program is the field’s primary vehicle for quality assurance, self-regulation and public accountability. It strengthens the museum profession by promoting practices that enable leaders to make informed decisions, allocate resources wisely, and remain financially and ethically accountable in order to provide the best possible service to the public.

“Piedmont Arts is honored to receive re-accreditation from the Alliance,” said Executive Director Heidi Pinkston. "It is a fantastic achievement to be not simply awarded, but earned through countless hours of hard work and dedication from our staff and support from our Board of Directors. Piedmont Arts is committed to excellence and will continue to inspire and engage the diverse Martinsville-Henry County community through visual arts, preforming arts, and arts education, as leaders in the arts.”

Of the nation’s estimated 33,000 museums, over 1,070 are currently accredited. Piedmont Arts is one of 57 museums accredited in Virginia.

Accreditation is a very rigorous but highly rewarding process that examines all aspects of a museum’s operations. To earn accreditation a museum first must conduct a year of self-study, and then undergo a site visit by a team of peer reviewers. AAM’s Accreditation Commission, an independent and autonomous body of museum professionals, considers the self-study and visiting committee report to determine whether a museum should receive accreditation.

“Accredited museums are a community of institutions that have chosen to hold themselves publicly accountable to excellence,” said Laura L. Lott, Alliance president and CEO. “Accreditation is clearly a significant achievement, of which both the institutions and the communities they serve can be extremely proud.”

In celebration of its re-accreditation, Piedmont Arts will hold a champagne toast during the opening reception for VMFA on the Road: An Artmobile for the 21st Century on Thursday, March 21, 2019 at 5:30 pm at the museum. This event is open to the public and admission is free.

About the American Alliance of Museums

The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.