Shinnecock Indian Nation

The Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum has received a "Get Ready" grant from the New York State Council on the Arts to train its staff in strategic planning.

March 25, 2004

By Hilary J. Larson

The $3,500 grant, administered by the Upstate History Alliance, will pay for a facilitator to spend six months training the museum's eight board members, six employees and two consultants.

"We've had a great deal of success in a short period of time," said Winonah Warren, president of the museum's board of directors, referring to the museum, which opened in June 2001. "Now we're looking for long-term sustainability."

Most of the museum's funding since its inception has come from the Administration for Native Americans, a federal agency, with additional grants from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Town of Southampton. But the federal grant will expire in 2005, and Ms. Warren said the museum has to devise a strategic plan for the museum's future viability.

According to Ms. Warren, "Get Ready" grants help museums and historical societies strengthen and develop their institutions in partnership with their local communities.

The Shinnecock museum has thrived in its first three years, Ms. Warren said, attracting between 3,500 and 5,000 visitors annually, including many school groups. Its future goals include making infrastructure improvements, becoming an accredited museum and attracting more visitors to its exhibitions that showcase 10,000 years of Shinnecock Indian Nation history.

"We want to be the very, very best museum we can be to represent Shinnecock culture to the world," Ms. Warren said.