Affiliate Benefits

Smithsonian Affiliations National Conference
Smithsonian Affiliations hosts a national conference every year in Washington, DC. All Smithsonian Affiliates are invited to sessions and events chock full of information, discussion and joint planning workshops showcasing a variety of Smithsonian officials and staff from a wide range of disciplines. An evening reception with the Affiliates'congressional delegations is an annual highlight as well as behind the scenes tours and a resource fair featuring Smithsonian museums, programs and research facilities.

Affiliations Web Site
The Smithsonian Affiliations website, is a single point of reference for information on the Affiliations Program. The site provides guidelines, press information, and resources on Smithsonian collections and programs. A map component details all current Affiliates and their projects, with links to Affiliate web sites and a calendar of Affiliate events. A featured artifact section highlights objects loaned from the Smithsonian to Affiliates around the country and an Affiliate spotlight area takes a closer look at a featured Affiliate activity, programming and exhibitions.

Affiliates-Only Web Site
The password protected site is an on-line resource provided exclusively for current Affiliate partners. The site encourages Affiliate participation with an event calendar for Affiliate exhibitions and programs and provides access to information frequently requested by Affiliates. Highlights of this internal site also include:

	Affiliate directories
	Lists of Smithsonian resources and policies
	Conference registration materials
	Internship and fellowship applications
	Fact sheets on the Smithsonian Affiliate Membership Program and Smithsonian logo product available for purchase
	Guidelines for use of the Affiliations logos and tag line

Affiliate Blog Area
This area provides a forum for Affiliates to post museum related information, pose questions, share resources, seek collaborative partnership and build stronger ties with Affiliate colleagues.

Smithsonian Affiliations Intern Partnership Program
The Smithsonian Affiliations Intern Partnership Program is designed for students sponsored and pre-approved by an Affiliate institution. The goal of the program is to promote professional growth and development while mutually benefiting the intern, the Smithsonian, and the Affiliate. Drawing upon the vast resources of the Smithsonian, interns gain practical experience and skills in the museum field and develop lifelong professional networks. The program is open to college and graduate students whose academic backgrounds and career aspirations lie in the museum field. Interns spend ten weeks during the summer working full-time (40 hours per week) at the Smithsonian on a project designed to assist with an Affiliate's own endeavors. A variety of lectures, behind-the-scenes tours, and social gatherings complement the interns'stay. Following their time at the Smithsonian, interns return to the Affiliate organizations in their own local communities to assist Affiliate staff part-time (12 to 15 hours per week) for up to four months, typically during a fall academic term. Interns in this program receive stipends jointly funded by Smithsonian Affiliations and the sponsoring Affiliates.

Smithsonian Affiliations Visiting Professional Program
The Smithsonian Affiliations Visiting Professional Program is open to staff members of Affiliate institutions and specifically targets professionals beginning their careers or mid-level professionals who find themselves with newly-added job responsibilities. Visiting Professionals work full-time (40 hours per week) with staff at the Smithsonian for two to six weeks on a specific project before returning to their home institutions to apply their new-found knowledge and skills.

Smithsonian Affiliations Exhibition Program
Affiliates have the opportunity to showcase exhibitions and programs at the Smithsonian Ripley Center and International Gallery in Washington, D.C. Exhibition offerings at the Ripley Center's International Gallery are selected and scheduled through a proposal process. For more information, please contact Ellen Dorn at (202) 786-9199 or dorne@si.edu.