Juilee Decker
Professor
Department of History
College of Liberal Arts
Program Director- Museum Studies
585-475-4206
Office Hours
Office hours resume the week of January 20, 2025. Please use https://calendly.com/jdgsh to schedule.
Office Location
Juilee Decker
Professor
Department of History
College of Liberal Arts
Program Director- Museum Studies
Education
BA, Wittenberg University; MA, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign; Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University
Bio
Dr. Juilee Decker (she/her) is Director of the Museum Studies undergraduate degree program and is a faculty member in the Department of History/College of Liberal Arts.
Trained as an art historian, Dr. Decker's research and scholarship are at the intersection of museum studies, public history, and technology.
Dr. Decker is an author, scholar, facilitator, and collaborator in the academy as well as in cultural institutions and communities. At RIT, Dr. Decker is co-PI with Dr. David Messinger (Imaging Science, RIT) on an National Endowment for the Humanities PR-268783-20 (2020-2024) that has created, tested, and iterated a low-cost spectral imaging system and software to recover obscured and illegible text on historical documents. This multi-year, interdisciplinary project enhances the work of library, archive, and museum professionals and is only one of the many experiential learning opportunities undertaken by RIT museum studies students under the guidance of faculty from RIT. She also co-directs the Cultural Heritage Imaging Lab. To visit the lab, please email Dr. Decker, jdgsh@rit.edu. To learn more about this initiative, see https://linktr.ee/mishasystem.
Publications include:
- Since 2008, she has served as editor of Collections: A Journal for Museum and Archives Professionals, a peer-reviewed journal published by SAGE.
- In 2015, she edited the four-volume series Innovative Approaches for Museums which brought together research and practices in the areas of engagement, access, technology, collections care and stewardship, as well as fundraising and strategic planning.
- In 2017, she revised Museums in Motion: An Introduction to the History and Functions of Museums, a cornerstone publication in museum studies.
- In 2019, she published her first monograph, an examination of public art, monuments, memorials and memory in Kentucky: Enid Yandell: Kentucky's Pioneer Sculptor was published by the University Press of Kentucky in 2019.
- In 2023, her edited volume Fallen Monuments and Contested Memorials was published by Routledge. In addition to writing the introduction and conclusion for this volume, she authored the chapter "The Disparity Between Us": Rochester’s Frederick Douglass Memorial and its Inscription on the 21st-Century Landscape."
- In 2024, she co-curated Co-Crafting Democracy with Professor Hinda Mandell. The exhibit will be on view at the National Women's Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls.
- The 4th edition of Museums in Motion was released on August 6, 2024.
Select Scholarship
Full Length Book
Decker, Juilee. Museums in Motion: An Introduction to the Histories, Functions, and Aspirations of Museums. 4th ed. Lanham, MD: Rowman, 2024. Print.
Decker, Juilee. Fallen Monuments and Contested Memorials. 1st ed. London, England: Routledge, 2023. Print.
Decker, Juilee. Enid Yandell Kentucky's Pioneer Sculptor. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 2019. Print.
Journal Editor
Decker, Juilee, ed. Collections: A Journal for Museum and Archives Professionals. Thousand Oaks: SAGE, 2024. Web.
Decker, Juilee, ed. Collections: A Journal for Museum and Archives Professionals. Thousand Oaks: SAGE, 2023. Web.
Decker, Juilee, ed. Collections: A Journal for Museum and Archives Professionals. Thousand Oaks: SAGE, 2022. Web.
Invited Keynote/Presentation
Decker, Juilee. "Unveiling the Past: Advancing Knowledge of the Humanities and Special Collections through Multispectral Imaging." Friends of the Library at Sewanee: The University of the South. Sewanee: The University of the South. Sewanee, Tennessee. 25 Mar. 2024. Keynote Speech.
Decker, Juilee, et al. "Multispectral Imaging: Low-Cost and Low Barrier-to-Entry Methods." Archiving 2024 (IS&T). Society for Imaging Science and Technology. Washington, DC. 9 Apr. 2024. Conference Presentation.
Decker, Juilee, Roger L. Easton, Jr., and Izzy Moyer. "From the Medieval to the Modern: Low-Cost and Low Barrier-to-Entry Methods." Fisher Library. University of Toronto, Old Books New Science. Toronto, Canada. 5 Jun. 2024. Guest Lecture.
Peer Reviewed/Juried Poster Presentation or Conference Paper
Decker, Juilee and Roger L. Easton, Jr. "Imaging Science for Cultural Heritage." Proceedings of the SciX: Great Scientific Exchange. Ed. n/a. Raleigh, NC: n.p..
Decker, Juilee and Roger L. Easton, Jr. "Accessible Imaging Technology for Humanities Researchers using MISHA (Multispectral Imaging System for Historical Artifacts)." Proceedings of the Old Books New Science Virtual Symposium. Ed. n/a. Toronto, Canada: n.p..
Decker, Juilee, David W. Messinger, and James Falotico. "Build, Select, Reshuffle: Uncovering Distinct Features of Cultural Heritage Objects with Multispectral Imaging." Proceedings of the Archiving 2023. Ed. Society for Imaging Science and Technology. Springfield, VA: https://library.imaging.org/archiving/articles/20/1/38.
Shows/Exhibits/Installations
Multiple, . Co-Crafting Democracy: Fiber Arts & Activism. Dirs. Juilee Decker and Hinda Mandell. Jun. 2024. National Women\'s Hall of Fame and Museum, Seneca Falls. Exhibit.
Multiple, . Co-Crafting Democracy: Fiber Arts & Activism. Dirs. Juilee Decker and Hinda Mandell. Nov. 2024. University Gallery, Rochester. Exhibit.
Multiple, . Breaking Ground. Director. Juilee Decker. 20 Mar. 2024. University Gallery, Rochester. Exhibit.
Journal Paper
Decker, Juilee, et al. "Bridging Research Praxes Across Pluralities of Knowledge." Culture Unbound 15. 3 (2023): 3-43. Web.
Decker, Juilee and Barbara Wood. "Reflecting on Shared Practice: Academia and Curatorship." Culture Unbond 15. 3 (2023): 20-23. Web.
Decker, Juilee, et al. "Learning by Doing: Experiential, Interdisciplinary, and Incidental Learning Workflows for AR/VR Museum Experiences." Journal of Interactive Teaching and Pedagogy 17. Focus Issue: Extended Reality (XR) Pedagogies & Applications: Interactive & Immersive Educational Technologies (2020): URL. Web.
Book Chapter
Decker, Juilee. "The Disparity Between Us": Rochester’s Frederick Douglass Memorial and its Inscription on the 21st-Century Landscape." Fallen Monuments and Contested Memorials. Ed. Juilee Decker. London, England: Routledge, 2023. 146-162. Print.
Decker, Juilee, et al. "Bridging Past and Present: Creating and Deploying a Historical Character to Engage Audiences Through AR and VR." Emerging Technologies and the Digital Transformation of Museums and Heritage Sites. Ed. Maria Shehade and Theopisti Stylianou-Lambert. Nicosia, Cyprus: Springer, 2021. 139-155. Web.
Decker, Juilee. "No More ‘Dusty Archive Kitten Deaths’: Discoverability, Incidental Learning, and Digital Humanities." Teaching with Digital Humanities. Ed. Christopher J. Young, et al. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2020. 232-240. Print.
Published Conference Proceedings
Decker, Juilee and David W. Messinger. "Under the Hood: Accessible Multispectral Image Processing Software for Historical Document Discovery." Proceedings of the America Institute for Conservation. Ed. JAIC. Washington, DC: n.p., Print.
Messinger, David W. and Juilee Decker. "A low-barrier-to-entry multispectral imaging system for the study of historical artifacts." Proceedings of the Proceedings Volume PC12519, Algorithms, Technologies, and Applications for Multispectral and Hyperspectral Imaging XXIX. Ed. SPIE. Orlando, FL: SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing, 2023. Web.
Arnold, Etta, et al. "Multispectral Imaging for Historical Artifacts: A Case Study Using an 8th-Century Biblical Scroll." Proceedings of the EUROGRAPHICS Workshop on Graphics and Cultural Heritage. Ed. R. Pintus and F. Ponchio. Delft, Netherlands: Eurographics Digital Library, 2022. Web.
Invited Article/Publication
Decker, Juilee. "Letting Go: A History of Save Outdoor Sculpture! as a National Crowdsourcing Effort to Document and Preserve Outdoor Sculpture." A History of Heritage Preservation (University of Delaware). (2022). Web.
Decker, Juilee. "How Enid Yandell ‘Leaned In’ and Became a Flagbearer for Occupational Identity and Woman Suffrage." Kentucky Humanities. (2020). Print.
Decker, Juilee and Cheryl Jiménez Frei. "Adapting and Finding Meaning in Uncertain Times: Teaching the Journal of the Plague Year Archive." History@Work blog (National Council on Public History). (2020). Web.
Published Review
Decker, Juilee. "Cities, Museums, and Soft Power." Rev. of Cities, Museums, and Soft Power, ed. Jonathan Schroeder. Consumption Markets and Culture 23 Sep. 2016: 1-8. Web.
Currently Teaching
ITDL-210
Vertically Integrated Projects
1 - 3 Credits
Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) engage undergraduate students in long-term, large-scale, multidisciplinary project teams that are led by faculty. VIP courses are project-based, team-based courses directly supporting faculty research and scholarship. VIPs under this course number have a particular focus on interdisciplinary humanities and social sciences expertise, with membership in teams across RIT colleges.
ITDL-510
Vertically Integrated Projects
1 - 3 Credits
Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) engage undergraduate students in long-term, large-scale, multidisciplinary project teams that are led by faculty. VIP courses are project-based, team-based courses directly supporting faculty research and scholarship. VIPs under this course number have a particular focus on interdisciplinary humanities and social sciences expertise, with membership in teams across RIT colleges.
MUSE-220
Introduction to Museums
3 Credits
This course examines the history, theory, and practice of museums by situating them as social institutions emerging within their broader historical and cultural contexts, from their origins in the mouseion of the classical era and Renaissance cabinets of curiosities to the modern era’s World’s Fairs and museums of today. The evolution and range of museum functions are addressed. Building on these foundations, the following types of museums and institutions are explored: art and design, natural history, anthropology, science, and history museums, as well as historic houses and sites, botanical gardens, and zoos. In studying the histories and functions of museums through the lenses of social institutions, the course highlights the evolution of museums institutionally, ideologically, and experientially. The course considers the operations of museums, governance, and the professional ethics and legal constraints that affect museum professionals; examines museums and their practices through the perspectives of colonialism and de-colonialization, nationalism, class, gender, ethnicity, anti-racism, and community; and includes field trips to local institutions and on-campus site visits throughout the semester.
MUSE-249
Topics in Archives, Museums, and Community Collections
1 - 3 Credits
Topics courses offer the opportunity to build knowledge specific to events, issues, and opportunities unique to archives, museums, and collecting institutions. Topics and methods vary from term to term, though each offering features an introduction to a concept, methodology, institution, or other subfield of study within museum studies or public history. Students develop theoretical and experiential knowledge of the topic under investigation while fostering opportunities to respond to recent events or to partner with local organizations and institutions. Students also create deliverables appropriate to the experience. The topic will be announced prior to the course offering. The course may be repeated for credit since topics will normally vary from semester to semester.
MUSE-341
Museum Education & Interpretation
3 Credits
This course introduces students to the educational mission of the museum and to the museum’s role in educating citizens for participation in a democratic, pluralistic society. As sites of informal learning, museums have an educational impact on our lives beyond our formal schooling. The course focuses on a wide range of educational activities within museums that address visitors of all ages as individuals and as members of a democratic society, and helps to foster in them a sense of community, civic responsibility, tolerance for multiple viewpoints, and lifelong love of learning. The course examines the institutional shift from a fixed, scholarly approach to exhibiting collections to one that embraces the concept of interpretation, where visitors are encouraged to engage in a variety of experiences, make their own connections with objects and other visitors, and ultimately construct their own meanings.
MUSE-489
Research Methods
3 Credits
This class introduces students to the methods of research appropriate for scholarship in the field of Museum Studies. Students will learn how to locate, analyze, assess, critique and conduct research in the field. They will choose the topic of their senior thesis project, develop a clear statement of how that topic will be explored, and construct an annotated bibliography relevant to that topic. This course leads to the development of a proposal for a senior thesis project that is suitable for full implementation in Senior Thesis for museum studies.
MUSE-497
Museum Studies Internship
0 Credits
Internship in a field related to Museum Studies (at least 50 hours). Students will apply the accumulated knowledge, theory, and methods of the discipline to problem solving outside of the classroom.
MUSE-599
Independent Study
1 - 12 Credits
A program of study executed by an individual student with assistance and guidance by an instructor, outside a classroom setting. Guidelines for designing and gaining approval for an independent study are provided in College of Liberal Arts Policy I.D.
In the News
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February 12, 2025
![Two people examine a wooden box with hinged panels on a metal table. The woman holds a photo. The man wears glasses and a shirt with an RIT logo.]()
Interdisciplinary collaborations drive innovation in cultural heritage preservation
RIT’s interdisciplinary collaborations enrich research across the university and beyond. Two of these collaborative projects recently received funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities as part of a total $22.6 million in grants given to support humanities projects across the nation.
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September 16, 2024
![a photo of the classroom in Wallace where the workshop was held]()
RIT Museum Studies Demystifies AI for Museum Students and Pros
RIT’s Museum Studies Program collaborated to host more than 50 students and archive and museums professionals last week for a workshop on the artificial intelligence trends, tools, and techniques for the industry.
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June 21, 2024
![a group of people stand in front of a marble statue.]()
Cultural heritage imaging system expands international impact to South America
Led by Professor Juilee Decker, Professor David Messinger, and Professor Roger Easton Jr., the development of the MISHA system was originally planned to help small- to medium-sized cultural institutions in the United States.
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November 4, 2024
Decker and Easton co-chair cultural heritage imaging session
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July 17, 2024
Decker and Mandell co-curate exhibit
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July 21, 2023
Museum studies student presents at conference in Norway
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July 21, 2023
Decker, Messinger present on multispectral imaging project
Featured Work
Providing Discoverability and Accessibility of Historical Documents to Museums and Libraries
Juilee Decker, David Messinger, Steven Galbraith
Students in the Museum Studies degree program are working alongside research scientists from the College of Science Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science to create, test, and iterate a low...