VMNH Receives Highest National Recognition

August 4, 2025

The Virginia Museum of Natural History (VMNH) has received reaccreditation from the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). AAM accreditation is the highest national recognition afforded to the nation’s museums and a status that VMNH has maintained since 1994.

National accreditation brings recognition to a museum for its commitment to excellence, accountability, high professional standards and continued institutional improvement. Developed and sustained by museum professionals for over fifty years, the Alliance’s museum accreditation program is the museum field’s primary vehicle for quality assurance, self-regulation, and public accountability, and strengthens the museum profession by promoting practices that enable leaders to make informed decisions, allocate resources wisely, and remain financially and ethically accountable to provide the best possible service to the public.

"VMNH is a credit to Virginia's slate of wonderful museums, and has been a true partner in the lead up to the nation's 250th Anniversary Celebration," said Virginia Secretary of Education Aimee Guidera. "We are so pleased to congratulate VMNH on this deserved recognition for their commitment to quality and excellence."

Of the nation’s estimated 33,000 museums, approximately 1,100 are currently accredited. All museums must undergo a reaccreditation review at least every 10 years to maintain this privileged status.

“Achieving accreditation once again is a testament to the commitment and dedication that both the museum’s governing board and staff continuously demonstrate to ensure that VMNH remains a standard-bearer of museum excellence,” said Dr. Melany Clark, chair of the Virginia Museum of Natural History Board of Trustees.

Accreditation is a rigorous, but rewarding, process that examines all aspects of a museum’s operations. To earn accreditation, a museum first completes a yearlong self-study before undergoing a site visit by a team of peer reviewers. AAM’s Accreditation Commission, an independent and autonomous body of museum professionals, considers the self-study and visiting committee report to determine whether a museum should receive accreditation.

"National accreditation shows that your organization is following the gold standards of museum operation," said VMNH Executive Director Dr. Joe Keiper. "To attain this status, you have to go through a deep dive into your operations and scrutinize your policies and procedures. We revised some policies to keep up to date, and analyzed visitation and financial data to measure our impact. Less than 5% of all United States museums ever attain accreditation, showing the hard work by our staff and board members leads to positive outcomes in science and science literacy."

As Virginia's natural history museum, VMNH seeks to increase understanding of, and appreciation for, the natural history of the Commonwealth through education, research, collections, and exhibits. All four areas were praised within the final accreditation report, with special emphasis placed on the museum's science outreach programming.

"Our site visit report was very complimentary of our staff and their dedication," said Keiper. "The site reviewers were very impressed with our science outreach team, who lead educational programs at schools all around Virginia. Their expertise and professionalism were evident throughout the report."

Though the museum has enjoyed accreditation for over 3 decades, maintaining the status requires a commitment to best practices at all levels of the institution.

“Accreditation is a monumental achievement,” said Marilyn Jackson, AAM President and CEO. “The process demonstrates an institution’s commitment to best practice and is flexible enough to be accomplished by museums of any size.”

To celebrate the achievement, VMNH will offer free admission to all museum visitors on Saturday, August 9, 2025 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information about the American Alliance of Museums, visit aam-us.org.