Louisiana has a treasure trove of cultural and historical institutions, but you’d never know given that the Office of State Museum operates nine state institutions under its care. That’s the big takeaway from a recent performance audit by Legislative Auditor Mike Waguespack.
OSM, also known as the Louisiana State Museum, operates five museums in New Orleans, one in Baton Rouge, and three others across the state. It is part of the State Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, which is administered by Lt. gov. Billy Nungesser is directed. In a scathing account of the museum’s management, Waguespack outlined a number of operational shortcomings.
For example, since May 2016, OSM has not appointed a permanent museum director according to the procedure set out in state law. It has had 11 directors since 2004 – seven who have served on an interim basis and three since Nungesser took office in 2016. Waguespack notes that the director’s position has “little autonomy and is political in nature.” Nungesser, as Lieutenant Governor, appoints all 21 members of the State Museum Board.
The report states that OSM also suffers from low employee morale and lacks a comprehensive strategic plan, detailed budget and adequate marketing resources. Waguespack suggests the museum prioritize hiring a new director. At the heart of the problem, however, is the political nature of the museum’s leadership.
That was not always so. In the early 1970s, then-Gov. Edwin Edwards appointed an independent board and allowed it to hire a director based on qualifications – a novel concept in Louisiana. The board hired 32-year-old Robert Macdonald, who served as museum director for 11 years (1974-1985) and oversaw some of his best years.
Under Macdonald, the museum received accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums, hosted hugely popular exhibits such as The Sun King: Louis XIV and the New World, and restored the Old US Mint in New Orleans, the Old State Capitol in Baton Rouge, and the State Exhibition Museum in Shreveport. The board also created the Louisiana Museum Foundation in 1981 to expand private support.
Unfortunately, most of that success has disappeared, a victim of political interference.
In response to the audit, Nungesser proposed merging his nine museums with nine under the supervision of Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin and creating regional units to manage them. Ardoin, who oversees the Old State Capitol, declined. “We will not change how the museums are managed under our agency,” he said. “We are proud of the work our museum staff has done throughout Louisiana.”
Any meaningful reform must include taking OSM out of the hands of politicians. This requires legislation – itself a major political hurdle.
A promising option, first suggested by Macdonald in a 2004 analysis, is for the state to consider a public-private partnership. As an example, he cites New York’s Cultural Institutions Group, a coalition of private nonprofits that manages 34 public institutions, including the Bronx Zoo, Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Lincoln Center—to name a few.
The Audubon Nature Institute uses the same model to manage several popular New Orleans public facilities. BREC operates an excellent selection of parks and attractions in Baton Rouge. Although their governance differs slightly, Audubon and BREC share one key characteristic: each has its own property tax mill. Civic engagement also helps protect both from political interference.
“People have to take the lead. They have to come forward and demand more,” Macdonald said recently. “There are good examples across the country of how this can be done. Louisiana can get the best out of them and come up with a plan for how to proceed.”
If citizens lead, politicians will follow.
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