Object Donation

We are considering object donations to the museum on a very limited basis at this time as we are currently prioritizing our resources to other museum needs that center on student learning. However, we will periodically review potential new object donations.

We are especially interested in collecting objects that represent experiences and aesthetics of historically marginalized communities, specifically objects that were owned, worn, produced, and/or distributed by historically marginalized communities including:

  • people of color
  • Indigenous communities
  • the lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and/or other historically marginalized sexual identity communities
  • the trans, gender non-conforming, and/or other historically marginalized gender identity communities
  • people with disabilities
  • little person, dwarf, and/or persons of short stature
  • undocumented people
  • immigrant communities
  • persons who are or have experienced severe financial hardships, low income, living in poverty, and/or homelessness
  • fat, plus-size, and/or person with larger body size
  • oppressed religious groups
  • other oppressed ethnic groups

What is the object donation process and timeline?

  1. Donor fills out the form below.
  2. During the academic semester, a museum team member will acknowledge receipt of the form within 5 business days. Please note if the form is submitted during the summer or during semester breaks, we will acknowledge receipt of submission when the semester is back in session.
  3. The form will be reviewed by the museum team with the following accessioning criteria:
    • Does the object duplicate what we already have in the collection?
    • Do we have physical space in the collection for this object?
    • Can we care for this object with our current resources available?
    • Do we have the proper storage materials for this object?
    • Does the object align with the mission of our museum?
    • Does the object support the curriculum needs in the Apparel Merchandising and Design program?
  4. A member of the museum team will respond to the request with the decision. This decision and response can take up to four months depending on the museum priorities and needs.
  5. If the museum team determines the object meets the accessioning criteria, we will prepare a deed of gift for the donor to review.
  6. The museum team will ask the donor if they have any questions about the deed of gift.
  7. The museum team will ask the donor to send a signed deed of gift via email as a PDF attachment.
  8. We will request that the donor first place the object inside a plastic bag and freeze the object for 10-days straight to kill any potential mold, pests, or other harmful materials that can cause severe damage to other objects in the permanent collection.
  9. Then, a museum team member will request the object be mailed to the museum via email.

If you would like us to consider an object donation, please fill out the Object Donation Form.