Museum partnerships enhance education

Landyn Hatch, a fourth-year museum studies major from Elmira, N.Y., participated in a unique, hands-on experiential learning project at the Genesee Country Village & Museum.

As part of the “3D Hands” team, Hatch helped 3D-print hands for the clothing mannequins used in the museum’s Wehle Gallery.

“The partnerships RIT has with local museums allow our students to not only kinesthetically apply classroom knowledge, but also construct meaning in a more personalized way,” Hatch said. “These experiences lead students down potential career paths and help them grow as individuals. It’s a pretty potent combination of constructivist learning and practical work experience.”

The endowed partnership with Genesee Country Village & Museum—which was established in September by a gift from RIT alumnus Philip Wehrheim ’66 (business) and his wife, Anne—isn’t the only way students connect with the Rochester community.

RIT students have worked with the Strong National Museum of Play, the Rochester Museum and Science Center, the Rochester Public Library, and other institutions on internships and projects.

Intersections: The RIT Podcast

Community partnerships are one way RIT provides its students with experiential learning opportunities. In this episode of Intersections: The RIT Podcast, James Winebrake, dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and Juilee Decker, associate professor of museum studies, talk about a unique partnership between the college and one of the Finger Lakes Region’s cultural gems, the Genesee Country Village & Museum.