Excellence in Museum Education Award

Superintendent's Award

Recognizing Excellence in Museum Education

The Superintendent’s Award for Excellence in Museum Education competition recognizes the outstanding achievements in California museum programs that serve K-12 students and/or educators. The competition is the joint project of the sponsors, the California Association of Museums (CAM) and the California Department of Education (CDE). Since 2012, the competition has recognized 56 programs, presented by a diverse range of institutions that demonstrate the vibrant contributions museums make to California’s K-12 educational system. In 2022, CAM and the CDE recognized four outstanding programs that took place in 2021.

Award Instructions
Scoring Rubric
Submit Application Here

Congratulations to the 2022 recipients of the Superintendent's Award for Excellence in Museum Education:

• Oceanside Museum of Art ‒OMA’s Literacy Through Art: A Community-Driven Partnership Addressing Oceanside’s Early Childhood Literacy Crisis
• Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County ‒Marine Science Teen Internship Program
• USC Pacific Asia Museum ‒Distance Learning Program
• The Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) ‒The Stories and Art of Ezra Jack Keats Virtual Tour

Program Information

A component of the California Department of Education (CDE) California School Recognition Program (CSRP), the Superintendent’s Award for Excellence in Museum Education (Superintendent’s Award) is a joint project of the CDE and the California Association of Museums (CAM) . The Superintendent's Award recognizes the outstanding achievements in California museum programs that serve California’s kindergarten through grade twelve (K–12) students and/or educators. Since its beginning in 2012, the Superintendent’s Award has received applications presented by a diverse range of institutions that demonstrate the vibrant contributions museums make to California’s K–12 educational system.

Additional information about the Superintendent’s Award, including Superintendent's Award Application Instructions, Guidelines, and Requirements, Superintendent's Award Scoring Categories and Rubric, and Superintendent's Award Application, can be found on the CAM Superintendent's Award website.

Eligibility Criteria

All types of museums are invited to submit an application, including zoos, aquariums, science centers, children’s museums, botanical gardens, and historical societies. In order for a museum to qualify for the Superintendent’s Award, the museum must be located in California and be a legally organized nonprofit organization or government entity. Foundations, friends groups, or services organizations that collaborate with multiple museums to administer the program are also eligible.

The previous year's Superintendent's Awardees are not eligible to apply for the current year application process.

Application

All applications and required attachments were required to be submitted on the CAM Superintendent's Award website by Friday, June 9, 2023.

For additional information regarding the Superintendent’s Award Application, please contact Rochelle Kuan Hoffman, CAM's Program Manager, by phone at 831-471-9970 extension 3, or by email at programs@calmuseums.org.

Selection Process

A CAM selection committee will score the applications based on the following criteria:

• Program Design (maximum 4 points)
• Evidence of Excellence (maximum 8 points)
• Planning/Evaluation (maximum 4 points)
• Innovation (maximum 4 points)

The CAM selection committee then forwards the applications to the CDE. A CDE selection committee then reviews the applications and recommends two to six finalists based on the information provided in the Application and the recommendations of the CAM selection committee. The finalists are forwarded to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI), or their designee, who then approves the awardees.

Timeline of Activities

Resources

California Association of Museums 2021 Virtual Summits
Information about the California Association of Museums 2021 Virtual Summits.

Superintendent's Award for Excellence in Museum Education Awardees
Superintendent’s Award for Excellence in Museum Education Awardees information.