The objectives of the Museum of Education include (1) researching and staging exhibitions-programs for the College of Education, members of the university community, and the general public, (2) establishing and overseeing a “pedagogical space” where students and faculty may experience a thoughtful research university environment, and (3) serving as an experimental project of the College of Education and articulating through its programs and projects the significant role of social justice, integrity, intellectual spirit, and stewardship for today’s educator.
Museum events are often standing-room-only occasions in the College of Education. Web-exhibitions (notably, the Secondary School Study and the John Dewey Film exhibit) have received recognition from throughout the United States, and Museum research and activities have been presented and reported at the American Education Research Association, the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, the International Standing Committee on the History of Education Conference, the Organization of Educational Historians, the American History of Education Society, the Southern History of Education Society, and on South Carolina Educational Radio’s Speaking of Schools program. The Museum has prepared regular columns for Educational Leadership and the Journal of Curriculum Theorizing and has provided archival documents for the History of Education Society Journal and the Society of Professors of Education. The curator maintains an active web exhibition program with new displays and exhibits announced to the College of Education and to national organizations—AERA, John Dewey Society, History of Education Society. At the national level, the Museum of Education’s websites are used by faculty for instructional purposes, and a Museum distribution list of over 100 leading educational historians is informed of certain events and programs.
Administration
Opened to the public in 1977, Museum curators include:
Founder and Curator: William W. Savage, 1973-1985
Curator: Craig Kridel, 1985-1999
Director: Katherine Reynolds Chaddock, 2000-2005
Curator: Craig Kridel, 2000-2005
Curator: Craig Kridel, 2006-2018
Director: Toby Jenkins-Henry, 2018-