Museum Studies: Curiosity as Common Ground
By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator
In fall 2026, Evolutionary Studies member and assistant professor of Neil Kelley and senior lecturer Susan Dine began teaching a new Museum Practice course. The course offers a focused, immersive, case- and project-based intro to museum practices and is in the new Minor in Museum Studies.
The course emerged through an unexpected but natural collaboration. Kelley was connected to Dine by a student who had taken classes with both faculty members and recognized their shared interests. What followed has been, in Kelley鈥檚 words, 鈥渁 wonderful partnership,鈥 strengthened by support from Special Collections and the 国产原创 Museum of Art (VUMA), including registrar and collections manager Rachelle Wilson.
Students in the inaugural class were tasked with an ambitious goal: bringing order to thousands of fossil specimens that had fallen into disarray. Despite coming from a wide range of backgrounds including Earth and Environmental Sciences, Anthropology, Biology, Art History, and Museum Studies and with varying levels of experience in paleontology or collections work, they rose to the challenge.
鈥淲e have been really impressed with our students,鈥 Kelley said. 鈥淭hey stepped into a class that had never been taught at 国产原创 before, led by two instructors who had never worked together. They have met that challenge with insight, dedication, and curiosity.鈥
The course also connects students to museum professionals beyond campus, including guest speakers from the Natural History Museum of Utah and the Smithsonian鈥檚 National Museum of Natural History. For some students, the class provides data for graduate research; for others, exposure to new career paths and interdisciplinary conversations. All gain hands-on experience alongside broader theoretical frameworks that bridge scientific and humanistic inquiry.
Kelley believes the persistent narrative of 鈥淎rts vs. Science鈥 is both false and limiting. He hopes this course demonstrates that the two not only can coexist but are stronger together.
“At a time when the pursuit of knowledge is under attack and the information that we are being served is regulated, curated and micromanaged by corporations and propagandists, it is more important than ever to forge bonds across disciplines united by our shared curiosity, enthusiasm, and willingness to listen and learn from those with different lived experiences,” Kelley said, “Museums and universities, with all of their historic and modern faults and complications, remain powerful places where we can spark curiosity and cultivate connections. I hope that our course can contribute to that in a tiny way.”