Open Forum

As a University art museum, we see a fair number of visitors using backpacks. While we have lockers available, many students enter through one door and exit via another, making the lockers inconvenient. We do ask visitors to carry the packs on their front, instead of their back, however this raises some accessibility issues as we see some visitors struggling with the weight.

We would like to hear from other museums who have addressed this challenge and are hoping you have some insight to share. Have any of you dropped a backpack ban altogether? What was the result?

TIA,

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DIANE GUTENKAUF
Senior Assistant Director, Operations & Strategy
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
College of Fine and Applied Arts
Krannert Art Museum
500 East Peabody Drive | M/C 592
Champaign, IL 61820
217-333-3437 | dianeg3@illinois.edu
kam.illinois.edu

Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act any written communication to or from university employees regarding university business is a public record and may be subject to public disclosure.
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Hello,

We technically limit them to 11x15 and not too bulky.  It's sort of at the discretion of whichever guard is assigned to the lobby.  We have cubbies and lockers so we direct them there regardless.  If they do choose to take it in to the galleries we ask them to carry it in front or only over one shoulder in order to maintain better control of it.   We do tend to bend this a bit when people respond to our request that it's a medical need to have it with them.  A key point to this though it letting all the guards know that someone has come in under a medical exception so the patron doesn't get approached in every gallery they go in to about their backpack.

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Jim Mooney
Museum Security Supervisor
Currier Museum of Art
Manchester NH
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 06:01 PM
From: Diane Gutenkauf
Subject: Backpack rules

As a University art museum, we see a fair number of visitors using backpacks. While we have lockers available, many students enter through one door and exit via another, making the lockers inconvenient. We do ask visitors to carry the packs on their front, instead of their back, however this raises some accessibility issues as we see some visitors struggling with the weight.

We would like to hear from other museums who have addressed this challenge and are hoping you have some insight to share. Have any of you dropped a backpack ban altogether? What was the result?

TIA,

------------------------------
DIANE GUTENKAUF
Senior Assistant Director, Operations & Strategy
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
College of Fine and Applied Arts
Krannert Art Museum
500 East Peabody Drive | M/C 592
Champaign, IL 61820
217-333-3437 | dianeg3@illinois.edu
kam.illinois.edu

Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act any written communication to or from university employees regarding university business is a public record and may be subject to public disclosure.
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