The Army Museum Enterprise (AME) a first-class enterprise that efficiently and effectively captures, preserves, displays, and presents the material culture and heritage of the Army now and into the future. It will present and interpret the Army's history in innovative ways to accomplish its mission. The museums tie us to our military and civilian communities, maintain and showcase Army customs and traditions through preservation, and inform and influence military and civilian researchers and decision makers alike. The AME is a unique and invaluable resource for Army strategic communication and civil-military relations.
The Army Museums Directorate (MD) provides governance and administration of the AME through regulation and policy, funding, programming, and material management in order to preserve and protect the U.S. Army's historical artifacts, and enhance the education of Soldiers and citizens. Key tasks include of MD include:
- Serve as historical and technical advisors for Army Historic material culture to the Army, DoD, Congress and to the general public upon request
- Provide clear and consistent policy and regulatory guidance as the Army's proponent for AR 870-20 Army Museums, Historical Artifacts, and Art
- Implement strategic guidance provided by Army leadership
- Providing quality and timely customer focused support
- Ensure consistent and timely resources are available to the AME
- Maintain 100% accountability of Army artifacts and art
- Maintain an active and effective inspection and accreditation program
MD is composed of a Headquarters and Operations Division, Programs Division, Historic Materiel Division and Field Museums Division. MD provides executive control over the entire AME and local control to 10 museums. The remaining museums are directly managed by their owning commands.
Operations Division
The Operations Division provides administrative efficiency and effect mission support operations to the AME. The Operations Division's key tasks include:
- Management of the VMUS Management Decision Package for the AME and budget execution for MD and the museums under the local control of Field Museums Division
- Management of the VMUS Table of Distribution and Allowances (TDA)
- Oversee development and execution of policies and procedures
- Management of contracts
- Administrative support to the AME General Officer Steering Committee
- Functional support for AME facilities
- Operational and strategic planning
- Management of the Museum Status Report
Programs Division
The Programs Division is responsible to improve the quality of exhibits in the AME; ensure that exhibit content is accurate and provide training that enables AME museum staff to reach professional museum standards and develop their careers.
- Review storyline proposals for long-term AME exhibits
- Responsible for quality control of all long-term exhibits for the AME
- Approve concept design (the first stage of design) for all long-term AME exhibits
- Develop general and site-specific educational programs for the AME
- Execute and oversee design, design-build, and fabrication contracts for funded exhibit projects
- Organize and execute museum professional training courses
- Provide editorial services for all media projects emanating from the Museum Directorate
- Provide Staff Assistance Visits and other consultative services in the areas of interpretation, design, fabrication, installation, exhibit contracting and educational programming.
Historic Materiel Division
Historic Materiel Division (HMD) manages the Army Historical collection in accordance with laws and regulations. Their key tasks include:
- Manage two Museum Support Centers (MSCs) located at Fort Belvoir, Virginia and Anniston Army Deport, Alabama.
- Serve as the proponent for curatorial collections management, conservation and care.
- Serve as the functional proponent for review and approval of system wide emergency response plans
- Provide consultation for conservation, preservation, abatement, and restoration for the Army Historical Collection as per laws regulations.
- Manage the Army Collections Committee; to include system-wide acquisition and disputation of historical property
- Host the Army Artist-In-Residence Program.
HMD writes material culture studies and responds to official and public inquiries. HMD's staff includes object conservators who provide artifact assessments, conservation plans, emergency planning, and contracting services to Army museums and museum activities, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve museums, as well as subject matter experts.
HMD also coordinates the development and installation of the official portraits of the Secretary of the Army and the Army Chief of Staff. Branch members also serve as historical, technical advisors to the Program Executive Office Soldier (PEO), The Institute of Heraldry, the Office of Uniform Policy, and the Army Uniform Board. The resident U.S. Army Combat Artist Program is also operated out of the MSC–Belvoir.
Within HMD, the Army Museums Logistics Branch maintains the Army's Historical Property Book and provides property accountability and transportation support for historical property through laws and regulations.
- Responsible for creating and maintain formal records
- Coordinate, manage, track and provide staff policy guidance and consultation for the movement of historical artifacts and art
- Identify, acquire, control, transfer, loan exchange, dispose, asset report, and provide on hand balances to include the conditions and locations of all historical artifacts and art under the control of the AME
- Establish the overall objectives and levels of resources needed to accomplish the movement of historical property
- Conduct Command Supply Discipline Inspections
The MSCs provide centralized lifecycle manage of the Army's Historical Collection for the Army Museum Enterprise. MSC - Belvoir, which opened in 2010, is the repository for both micro artifacts and the Army Art Collection. It also houses a reference archive of more than 25,000 publications used to identify and catalog artifacts. It provides direct support to the National Museum of the United States Army (NMUSA). The second facility operated by HMD is MSC - Anniston at Anniston Army Depot, AL. It receives, ships, and stores historical artifacts and property not stored at MSC-Belvoir to include macro artifacts. These items are available for use by Army museums, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve museums, approved non-military museums, and for scholarly research. MSC – Anniston receives and stores heraldic and historic property of inactivated units and issues such property to activating units.