Classifying Emails with AI for Fun (and Non-Profit)
I will be presenting at the MCN 2025 conference this year, alongside designer and technologist Knut Graf. Our talk will focus on a prototype AI system we developed that classifies incoming emails based on multiple criteria, including subject matter, visitor type, and urgency. This system helps route messages to the appropriate team members with the relevant expertise, ensuring fair and timely responses. Read more
Data-Driven Insights for Museum Virtual Event Programming
During COVID, as museums took their institutions online, event programming became a viable space to adapt to new monetization paths and presented potential new business practices. After we published our research into how the pandemic affected and shaped museum website visitation, colleagues in the museum technology field (shoutout MCN!) Read more
The Museum Computer Network (MCN) is a US-based non-profit organization for professionals with an interest in the use of computer technology for museums. In 2022 we performed qualitative consumer sentiment analysis research for the association of museum technology professionals, Museum Computer Network (MCN). We employed focus groups and individual interviews to produce a report that informed the MCN board’s deliberations on strategic direction.
When Doors Close, Where Do Audiences Go? Analyzing Museum Web Traffic During Crisis
I spoke with journalist Alexander Panetta of CBC News for a story on museums’ use of technology during the pandemic:
Despite this historic opportunity for online learning, with hundreds of millions of people locked out of public spaces, [Spellerberg] says traffic to museum websites plummeted last year. Read more
Museum Digital COVID-19 Research at MCN 2020 Virtual Conference
Since COVID-19 first hit, I have been conducting a cross-institutional research study about the effects of shelter-in-place on museum website visitation. Researcher Grace Poole and I have been working hard over the past several months to analyze the pandemic’s impact across the sector’s digital activity. Read more
Call for Participants: Museum Digital COVID-19 Research Study
We are living through history. Around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping society. When Americans began practicing “social distancing” and following orders to shelter-in-place, museums and cultural organizations moved quickly to cease public visitation. But even as our institutions closed their physical doors, we have opened digital windows. Read more
Presentation at WordCamp NYC 2018
Zack Rothauser and I will be heading to WordCamp NYC 2018 to give a presentation on the Clyfford Still Museum’s web-based touchscreen video platform.
Presentations at MCN 2018
I'm involved in three presentations at this year's MCN conference: "Proud to be Flesh: Cultural Spaces After the Internet," which will be a conversation between museum technologists and local artists; "Understanding our audiences," about the Whitney’s Website Visitor Survey and its broader context; and "Emotion, Intimacy and Space," about designing and developing the Clyfford Still Museum’s In-Gallery Video Kiosk System.
Understanding Online Museum Audiences: Academic Research on Digital Visitor Motivations
Circa 2016, we co-led a study into the motivations of museum website visitors, with 23 institutions participating. We presented this work through several conference presentations and in an article in the Journal of Digital & Social Media Marketing.
For an overview of the project, see our post about the MW 2016 presentation. Read more
Presentations at WordCamp DC & WordCamp Austin, 2017
In 2017 I presented at two WordCamps: DC with Desi González, and Austin with Zack Rothauser.
Here’s how we described the DC talk:
In May 2017, The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, PA rolled out a redesigned website, built on on WordPress. Read more
Workshops for Artists, Filmmakers and Community & Art Organizations
I’ll be in Toronto presenting at LIFT and the Directors Guild of Canada this October. The first is focused on getting individual artists and filmmakers up-and-running online, with a website and social media accounts. The second is for professionals working with community and arts organizations, helping them focus their communication strategies for maximum relevance. Read more
Presentation at MCN 2016: National Museum Website Visitor Motivation Survey
Museum Computer Network is
a membership-based professional association that provides a space for museum professionals to connect, share resources and best practices, develop their careers, and advance digital transformation in museums. Hosted every year since 1968, MCN’s Annual Conference draws over 600 cultural heritage professionals from museums, historic sites and visitor attractions in North America and beyond. Read more
