RIT-Genesee Country Village & Museum Partnership

College of Liberal Arts
Museum Studies Major, Class of 2024

Internship: October 2021 - June 2023

“I had several roles as a Wehrheim Scholar. I began with a Collections Management internship working with Amanda Wilck and Peter Wisbey. My main duties were inventorying, photographing, cataloging, and properly storing objects from the museum’s large collection. I worked with items in storage as well as with items on display in the houses. In January of 2023, I began an independent project revitalizing the Stuart Bolger Research Library which included organizing the space and cataloging the books. I also repaired books as necessary and processed new books into the collection. The building is once again a useable space. My goal is to be a Collections Manager and this internship was invaluable in reinforcing that decision and helping me learn the skills I need to accomplish that goal. I learned things at the GCV&M that I simply could not learn in a classroom. It gave me the practical real-life experience that I needed. I learned so much about the museum and its collections. Because of this I wrote my thesis on the stories that objects tell and used 10 items from the GCV&M as case studies. I will eternally be grateful to Wehrheims for providing the means for me to be able to work and learn among professionals in my chosen field. I truly was one of the best experiences of my life.”

College of Liberal Arts
Museum Studies Major, Class of 2025

Internship: February - August 2024

“My goal with applying to this position was to expand my experience in a museum setting. I wanted to see how it differed from a gallery setting since that was the only exposure I have had. I was able to experience living history instead of just learning about it through a screen….The word I would use for this experience is Uplifting. While it is strange to think an internship could be viewed as uplifting, I struggle with using a word like enlightening or illuminating because, of course it is. I have learned a plethora of techniques, abilities, and ideas not only about museums, but I was able to reflect on who, and what type of person I am. I use the word uplifting because coming back to college later on in life felt terrifying, and undoable. I felt lost, grasping at opportunities and trying to feel what was right. This internship gave me that feeling of right: I was and am on the right path, pursuing a now invigorated feeling of preservation and conservation for antiquities. Being able to have a one on one experience with objects we would most likely see behind glass at a museum, I was able to have a familiar relationship with these objects. This gave me the opportunity to not only breathe life into these antiquities, but myself.  Thank you to the donors that have helped me in being able to achieve this goal, and uplift me and my career….

This experience has impacted my classwork in an overall positive way. Like Mr. Wehrheim, I am a very hands-on learner. For me to be able to take in information it is suitable for me to have some sort of interaction with the subject I am learning…. Because of my position at GCV&M my exposure to a wide range of materials, and how they were used in different time periods helped me when analyzing different objects. For example, I now know every part of a teacup, teapot, and how to identify porcelain against the light. I can identify why a finial would be shaped a certain way, and that most of the time it was to show off, or just because the client was fond of dogs.”

College of Liberal Arts
Museum Studies Major, Class of 2024

Internship: May - December 2023

“This internship confirmed that I absolutely love working with collections, specifically at living history museums. My supervisor was the collections manager, Amanda Wilck. She was an amazing supervisor who made me feel listened to and taught me more than a class ever could….This internship helped me directly apply what I learned in my collections management class and introduction to archival theory class. These classes helped me understand the beginnings and importance of archives and collection catalogs as well as how to read and create collection management policies that align with the museum’s mission. I also used skills learned in my Introduction to Preservation course in this internship when working with carte-de-visites and tin types….

This internship was a defining moment in my life. It opened my eyes to the importance of collections management and how I can combine my passion for history with my love for cataloging. This internship will forever hold a special place in my heart. I often reflect on my time at GCV&M and wish I could have stayed long-term. Unfortunately, this was not possible as the position is in high demand. However, this position made it clear to me that I want to continue to work in collections management, hopefully at a living history museum. 

While my supervisor, Amanda Wilck, has decided to leave the museum due to a very exciting job opportunity at the National Archives, I want to express my gratitude for the role she played in my career and my heart. If I had to choose one summer of my life as my favorite it would be 2023 because of the GCV&M and Amanda. Thank you for teaching and supporting me throughout my time there and solidifying my love for collections management.”

College of Science
Biotechnology & Molecular Biosciences Major, Class of 2024

INTERNSHIP: September 2023 - April 2024

“When applying for the internship at GCV&M, I was hoping to get more experience in the more ecological side of the life sciences, as none of my coursework involved that kind of hands- on experience. I wanted to get more experience in fields peripheral to my own, so that I could hopefully be a better communicator in my future career if I needed to work with people outside my area of expertise. I believe I achieved this goal, and so much more…. 

Ultimately, I want to work as a data analyst in genomics or proteomics. Although that goal is very different from the work I did at the museum, I still feel like it was a valuable experience for me. Although my future career may not entail repairing maple tubing or explaining tree identification to guests, I learned how to change course when things don’t go the way I expect, and how to anticipate future issues before they become a problem. I also learned more about communicating science to the public, which, although is not related to my professional goals, is a personal goal of mine.

I would like to thank the Wehrheims for this opportunity, as it was an enjoyable and informative experience that I was glad to have in my last year at RIT. I am also incredibly grateful for the museum staff that I worked with this year, who were all so incredibly welcoming and helpful. It was the most enjoyable work environment I’ve experienced thanks to the kind, lovely people I had the opportunity to work with.

College of Science
Environmental Science Major, Class of 2024

Internship: September 2022 - April 2023

“I am an environmental science major, and I applied to the naturalist/maple internship. When I first applied, I did so out of curiosity, not knowing much about the maple sugaring process. But because I thrive working in hands-on environments, I was very excited about the opportunity. I also love the idea of taking something so pure from nature and refining it using natural processes to become something everyone loves. In fact, after this internship, I was able to get a job as a brewer’s assistant, something I’ve also always wanted to do, and I greatly attribute the work experience I gained at GCVM for my opportunity at the brewery.

My ultimate career goal is to become a conservation pilot, and while the maple internship did not directly teach me about those goals, I did learn a great deal about the forest from Adam, as I was there consistently throughout the internship. I learned about the entire maple sugaring process and think I may take it up as another job in the future because it was so fascinating. Also, as I mentioned before, I would not have been able to get my brewery position without this opportunity! I will say, throughout my entire major and time at RIT, this internship was the best form of learning I have received, and I was able to learn from so many wonderful people.”

To the Wehrheims, I would like to say “thank you for opening my eyes to new worlds!”

College of Liberal Arts
Museum Studies Major, Class of 2027

Internship: October 2023 – June 2024

“I worked in collaboration with the Senior Director of Interpretation, Mary Challman. In my approach to this position, I wanted to understand what it took to effectively support and guide interpreters in portraying lived history and better understand education within the realm of museums. My role at GCV&M was to analyze what they call ‘housebooks.’ Each site in the museum's collection has a book that the interpreters are meant to use as an info guide and the basis upon which their interpretation is founded. These books are admittedly outdated, and across the industry at present are typically called interpretive guides. Using the Livingston-Backus book as a case study, I was tasked with identifying themes within the material, deciding what should be reduced/removed, and what should be developed further. I then would propose my ideas to leadership as to how the Livingston-Backus book should evolve, develop supporting materials to allow this process to take place, and create a blueprint upon which all house books in the museum's collection may evolve into accessible, dynamic interpretive guides that could stand the test of time.

Prior to my position at the museum, research overwhelmed me. Even as it seemed counterintuitive to assume a role as a researcher with this weighing heavily on my mind, I imagined that the only way I'd get over this ‘hump’ was to dive head first into a position such as mine. In doing so I was able to develop and hone my research skills in an environment that wasn’t ‘graded’ in the traditional sense, but still upheld standards and expectations of me. Mary supported me through this process immensely and made the challenge seem a lot less impossible. The format I maintain for my research process remains the same in my academic pursuits and allows me to order my research priorities accordingly.

My primary career goal is best described as a mix of forensic art history and art curation. The skills I gained through my experience with GCV&M demonstrate the significance of beginning with the organization and progression of the ‘back-end’ of things. The housebooks are not something that are seen by museum guests but they are integral to creating an impactful experience for them. A museum, in many ways, is only as good as the language it is molded around.

Truly, thank you for creating these opportunities for myself and so many others to pursue their niche dream, opportunities like the ones you’ve made possible for us are few and far between and the only thing I can really say is thank you.”

College of Liberal Arts
Museum Studies Major, Class of 2024

Internship: September 2023 – September 2024

“My outcome for this position was to continue my work creating Matterport models of the museum’s buildings and exhibits that I initially started in the Spring of 2022 as a test (and in conjunction with a course at RIT). My goal was to create as many models as possible in the time of my internship, so that they could be available on the museum’s website for online visitors to view and appreciate the museum’s vast collection of 19th-century objects. I also applied for this position to help me gain skills that I would need for my Fulbright Scholarship that will help me create Matterport models of historic sites in Dubrovnik, Croatia for the State Archives of Croatia at Dubrovnik….

The first word that comes to mind when I think about my time at the museum is gratitude. I am so incredibly thankful for all the support from the museum’s staff who have not only been incredibly kind to me but have also helped to shape me into a scholar that is cut out for the field of museum studies….This internship allows students like me to try different occupations in a museum and figure out what I like and what I don’t like. I am also grateful to have an internship in the field of museum studies here in Rochester so that I can get experience in my field while still being able to attend classes and be able to apply what I am learning in my internship with what I am learning at the museum. The work that the donor is doing is incredible and is having a huge impact on many future museum scholars. 

I am so thankful to have met the GCV&M staff….They put a lot of hard work and effort into making the museum one of the best living history museums in the country, and their hard work and effort shows in their interns and in seeing the smiling faces of kids who come on field trips to the museum (and adults too!).

View the virtual tours that Izzy created and read about them here.