Research, Rural School, & Museum Questions
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Hours
UNIM Research Center
Monday - Friday (8-5) Please schedule an appointment by contacting the office
Center for Rural Schools
Monday - Friday (9-4)
Marshall Center School
Friday, Saturday, & Sunday (10-3)
Culture Lab
By Appointment
Assistant Director / Chief Curator Office Hours
Tuesday 3-5 & Friday 2-5
Exhibit Hall Hours
| Fall and Spring Semester Mon-Thu 7am - midnight Fri 7am - 7pm Sat 10 am - 5 pm Sun noon - midnight |
Summer Session Mon-Thu 7am - 8pm Fri 7am - 5pm Sat noon - 5pm Sun noon - 8pm |
Note special hours during exams, holidays and interims
UNI Museum Mission Statement
The UNI Museum serves as an educational facility for museology and seeks to inspire critical thinking about world cultures and the natural world through original research, innovation technologies, educational programming, and exhibits. Through the use of material culture, the museum encourages multi-disciplinary learning opportunities to foster student and community engagement resulting in a deep appreciation of diverse cultural groups.
Primary Objectives:
- Serve as an educational/training facility
- Provide open access to the collection for educational purposes to all people
- Interpret the collections to aid in the public’s understanding of diverse cultures
- Adhere to the highest level of professional practices and ethics
- Enhance the collection through acquisition and deaccessioning to correlate to organizational collection policy
- Work directly with diverse cultures when curating and researching collections and exhibits
Approved 27 February 2019
A Brief History of the UNI Museum
The University of Northern Iowa Museum had its origins in the 1890s when a “Cabinet of Natural History” was set up in a science laboratory in Gilchrist Hall to provide instructional material for classroom use. The initial focus of the collections was in Geology and Zoology. Sizeable collections of Native American artifacts were acquired in the 1920s, initiating the World Cultures/Anthropology collection. Throughout its history, the Museum has provided educational resources and programming for the University and the surrounding community. Today, the collection numbers over 100,000 items in four broad areas: Biology, Geology, History (including institutional history), and World Cultures/Anthropology. The affiliated Rural School Collections (http://www.uni.edu/museum/ruralschool/) include public records that document the history of one-room schools in Iowa; the project web site also provides access to an image gallery, interviews with former students and teachers, various specialized collections related to the history of education, and research tools. The Museum administers the Marshall Center School, an authentic one-room school that was moved to campus from near Laurens, Iowa, in 1987.
The Museum moved from a classroom and the corridors in Gilchrist Hall to the Administration Building in 1896; in 1911 it moved again to the top floor of what is now known as Seerley Hall. When the Library moved to a new building in 1964 and Seerley was remodeled for the Business Education department, the exhibits were dismantled for storage. The Museum was moved to temporary quarters in the Physical Plant Shops Building in August 1966. A Museum Advisory Committee was formed in 1969, and on its recommendation in 1971 oversight of the Museum was transferred from the Biology Department to the Field Services Division. On July 1, 1975, the Museum became a free-standing entity in the Division of University Relations and Development. The Museum moved to its long-time location on Hudson Road in 1986. In June 2012 the Museum was closed to the public and its administration was transferred to Rod Library, where space has been refurbished for exhibits, instruction, storage of artifacts, and staff offices. Topical satellite exhibits are located across campus.