HA Student, Katelyn Dickerson's Internship Experience
From the desk of MA in Historical Administration student Katelyn Dickerson,
My program required six months of practical experience to complete my master’s degree. I had six months to work at a historical institution, of my choosing, to practice what I had learned in class and to continue to grow as a museum professional. I applied to a number of internship programs based off of my own criteria and interests, one thing I did not narrow my search by was location. I had no reason not to take this opportunity to try out a new place and explore. I ended up in Alaska. This was not by chance. I applied to the position because it suited my preferences and met the requirements of the program. Location was not an issue, at that point. I was offered an interview and after that meeting I was hooked. The thought that I might actually have the opportunity to live and work in Alaska, however temporarily, consumed me in the following weeks. I drove my friends and family crazy, speaking incessantly about Alaska and the small town of Haines where the museum was located. Luckily, my obsession was satiated, and the director offered me the position right before spring break.
The internship was at the Hammer Museum. Yes, a museum dedicated solely to the history of man’s first tool, the hammer. I did not come into the position with any particular affinity to tools, but the organization offered me many opportunities which were influential to my decision. The proposed projects all fit my interests and skills, website content creation and design, artifact research, exhibit design, educational programming development, and event planning and management. The Hammer Museum is a small institution opened in 2002. It started as a private collection, which has steadily grown in the past years. The museum relies on a seasonal demographic of cruise ship tourists and Alaskan Highway travelers, netting about 6,000 visitors annually.
To say that I enjoyed my experience is an understatement. I loved it. I would and will go back, without a second thought, if given the opportunity. The job, the people, and the place were central to making my experience so special.
Early on I was tasked with developing and implementing a fundraising event. This terrified me. Fundraising is scary. Spoiler alert: in the end it was my favorite project and the most beneficial to me as a developing professional. The other intern and I came up with Art & Hammer, an evening of food, drink, and art. People bought tickets to come paint a hammer with the help of an experienced art instructor. The hammer, art supplies, food, drink, and instruction were all included in the price of a ticket. We sold out for both evenings. We exceeded our fundraising goal, and more importantly got people into our museum who did not regularly visit and they truly enjoyed themselves. A win-win-win in my opinion.
The town of Haines is special. It is home to only about 2,500 people annually. Located on a peninsula, one side of the town is nestled along a fjord the other side, the Chilkat River. White-capped mountains dominate the view in every direction. The town is isolated it is a four hour ferry ride to Juneau, an hour ferry ride to the nearest town, a forty-five minute drive to the Canadian border. Bears, moose, salmon, and bald eagles are part of the lifeblood of the region. I had encounters (of varying degrees of danger) with each of them.
In the end the people of Haines really made this town feel like home. Haines residents are a unique breed. If you ask anyone of them why they life in Haines more often than not you will get one of two answers: they grew up there or they simply came to visit, but never left. People live in Haines because it is where they want to be. It suits their lifestyles. People are not there because of their jobs, the jobs are almost always a second thought. Now this is not necessarily true for the seasonal works (of which I was one), but it played a role in most of their decisions. When people choose to live in a place because of the place and not a job or other external factors there is a deep and communal respect for the community. This town still has its problems and there are many disagreements between residents, but in the end people care deeply about their home.
If you couldn’t tell by now I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to have lived and worked in Alaska. In fact I am applying to jobs there, I want to go back. So I learned a lesson, do the weird, take the chances, do something that may seem crazy.
