The Artist’s Loft: Volunteering at the MIM

Posted By Natalie Keller on Sep 30, 2015

By Natalie Keller

Prologue

This month’s “The Artist’s Loft”Â column consists of two articles about volunteering at the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM). There are manyÂ different types ofÂ volunteer opportunities available. ThisÂ first article provides general information about volunteering at the MIM. The second article,Â Â Â The Artist’s Loft: Becoming a MIM Museum GuideÂ , focuses on the training program for guides.Â Les Conklin, Editor

The Musical Instrument Museum (MIM), “The World’s Only Global Musical Instmrument Museum” opened only five years ago and is already one of the Valley of the Sun’s top cultural attractions. We are so lucky to have MIM and a variety of museums in the Scottsdale and Phoenix area. They enrich our lives and attract numerous visitors to our community.

Did you ever wonder how the staff of a major museum knows how to do what they do and what kind of policies and procedures are in place to keep everyone on track? As it turns out, keeping the visitors happy, informed and engaged is a huge undertaking! Itâ€™s called Volunteerism!

I called the MIM because I wanted to find out all about their volunteer program. I heard bits and pieces about their unique program from the editor, Les Conklin, a Pinnacle Peak area resident. MIM will provideÂ guided tours to more than 40,000 school kids this year, and Les volunteers to help support music education for Arizona’s youth.Â When I called MIM, I talked with Erin Miller who is the Media Relations Manager and she scheduled me to talk with two lovely ladies who had a wealth of knowledge about the inter-workings of the MIM.

Erin introduced me to Cristina who is the Volunteer Coordinator. She explained that the MIM is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization and it depends on fundraising, donations and volunteers to keep it viable. The volunteers are an iatrical part of the museums foundation. Most of the volunteers are highly qualified seasoned veterans who are either retired or near retirement age with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Some are musicians and some just like to listen to music but all are very enthusiastic volunteers.

Volunteering at the MIM

Christina pointed out that anyone could volunteer to become a â€œteam memberâ€. The volunteer has an interview with Christina after they fill out a one-page application on MIM.org. She likes to find out their interest and tries to match them with something suitable in the MIM. Christina has the perfect personality (calm, full of information, and friendly) to be the first contact for the volunteers. After the interview the volunteer decides which area in the MIM they would like to begin their experience; training will be provided for the area that they choose. However, they do have to consent to a background check and a drug test. They are expected to make at least a one years commitment although a seasonal commitment is also OK. Some of the volunteers are only here for the nice weather and leave during the summer. Wonder why? (No one has told them there is a lot less traffic and theyâ€™ll never need a restaurant reservation in the summer!)

When they decide to officially volunteer they attend an initial orientation. Itâ€™s a grand welcome and an overview of the MIM. Members of the staff are introduced and they get a general idea of how the MIM functions. Every area of the museum has special training of about one to one and a half hours of class. Volunteers can be a Gallery Assistant, a Guest Service Assistant, Information Desk Assistant, Events Assistant, Experience Gallery Assistant or a Museum Guide; the job description is explained in the volunteer brochure. To become a museum guide consists of more training and not everyone starts out as a guide. Christina stated that many times after the volunteer becomes more comfortable at the MIM they want to be a guide or serve in a different capacity.

Beyond the Orientation

The volunteer can also get more involved if they want to attend the Special Events that happen at least one time a month on week ends or help with the Fall Concert Series. They get to experience a musical genre or geographical music. The weekends are usually the busy time so volunteers are welcomed. The MIM wants to be known as a welcoming and friendly museum and volunteers are crucial in creating this environment. Volunteers like to be around something they love and they often project that to the visitors. There are also some young volunteers (minimum of 16 years with parental consent) who can work on the weekends, holidays and/or summer vacations.

The thing that is different about the MIM is the volunteer scheduling. The on-line scheduling is called â€œVolgisticsâ€ and they can schedule themselves. They log in with their own password and an easy to navigate calendar is available with days open and they decide which days they want. It is a very flexible schedule. Most shifts are three hours but they can work 6 hours if they want to put more time together. The minimum time is six to nine hours a month. For the seasonal volunteer they can make up their hours when they come back to Arizona.

Little Known Facts

Â There is almost no cost for the volunteer to become a team member. The only cost consists for the uniform top that is a light blue blouse/shirt with buttons up the front with a collar, to wear with black slacks. The museum sells the top for $25 or they can buy it elsewhere. The volunteers dress the same as the paid staff so there is no distinction. There are numerous perks, such as free admission, discounts on select tickets, limited number of free passes and discounts on cafÃ© and gift shop. The museum has special functions for the volunteers such as, recognizing the volunteer with over 100 hours, having holiday parties plus a big recognition party with catered food and music.

There are 512 volunteers and most days 40 to 50 are working unless there is a concert or tourâ€¦eighty may be needed for tours or concerts. When I was at the MIM there were groups of girl scouts following the guides. I learned that there are numerous field trip options for preschool, school age and even home schooled students. There are special offerings and artist residency programs with many options; too many to list here. Pick up some of the interesting brochures when you visit or go to MIM.org for more information.

How to Volunteer

For more information about volunteering, including a description of the various types of volunteer responsibilities, visitÂ www.mim.org/about/volunteer/Â Â Visit Website.

You can also call the Volunteer Office at 480-245-6915, or email volunteer@mim.org.

About MIM

MIM collects, preserves and makes accessible a wide variety of musical instruments and performance videos from every country in the world. MIM offers guests a welcoming and fun experience, incomparable interactive technology, dynamic programming and exceptional musical performances. MIM also fosters appreciation of diverse cultures around the globe by showing that we all innovate, adapt and learn from each other to create musicâ€”the language of the soul.

MIM is located at 4725 E. Mayo Boulevard in Phoenix (corner of Tatum and Mayo Boulevards, just south of Loop 101). For general museum information and a full schedule of events, visit MIM.org or call 480-478-6000.Â

Planning a visit?Â For a video review,Â ticket prices and moreÂ visitÂ http://mim.org/visit/plan-your-visit/ Watch VideoÂ Â Â