As you may have heard, the IMA has decided to make several changes to our membership program beginning September 1. These changes were first announced to our IMA members via email last week. Since then, we have received several good questions about the changes that we thought we should share with our blogging community.
Why did the Museum change the membership structure?
After five years of the same basic membership structure, the Museum was past due for an update. Therefore, after months of research and benchmarking, the Museum’s development department decided to make necessary adjustments to our program in order to keep it current.
I hear the IMA is instituting paid parking in September. Do members park for free?
Yes, all IMA members will receive free parking as a benefit of membership. Simply bring your membership card with you each time you visit the Museum for entry.
I just purchased my membership in June. Will my benefits change September 1, 2011?
No. Current members who have an expiration date before September 1, 2012 will not experience any changes until their current membership expires.
Why did you take away the guest from the Individual and Student membership levels?
We want our members to know that the majority of their contribution is going to support the IMA’s efforts to offer free school tours and educational opportunities to the community, and unfortunately the previous structure could not guarantee this.
Why did you increase the price of the Student and Individual levels?
A slight increase to these levels was necessary in order to stay current, and is in line with our peer institutions.
Why did you change the name of the Family membership level to Dual/Family?
We changed the name in recognition of the fact that modern families are defined in many ways. We want our members to be able to share the museum with members of their family, whether that be a spouse, life partner, children, grandchildren, or their closest friends.
Why did you take away the Sustaining level membership?
With our new structure, we have worked to establish benefits at each level that are distinctive and match the various personalities of our visitors. We did not feel that the Sustaining level offered enough benefits to continue offering it as a distinct level. Therefore, the IMA decided to consolidate two of the upper-level member groups, Sustaining and Associate, by phasing out the Sustaining level and reducing the cost of the Associate to $125.
Why does the Associate level no longer offer reciprocal benefits?
The IMA has continued to grow its reciprocal program over the years. Today, we have one of the most extensive reciprocal membership programs in the country, offering benefits at more than 500 institutions. Therefore, we decided to start the reciprocal benefit at a higher giving level.
Will docents still continue to receive reciprocal benefits?
Yes. Our docents, who do so much to support the IMA’s audience engagement efforts, will continue to receive reciprocal benefits with the purchase of an Individual or Dual/Family membership.
We thank you for all of your thoughtful questions and your understanding of the changes. The Museum looks forward to offering more family programs, better communications and additional special promotions in the coming year in thanks for the support of its members.
Filed under: Local
September 6th, 2011 at 12:30 pm
The answer to why the guest was taken away from Student and Individual memberships does not make sense to me. What does allowing a guest have to do with knowing that the museum offers free school tours and educational opportunities? If anything, having a guest could inspire someone to purchase their own membership because they can see the benefits and would like to visit the museum alone or with another friend and enjoy those same benefits. Who is going to invite a non-member friend to go to a special exhibit that the friend has to pay admission to see? I certainly am not that rude.
October 25th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
I agree with Audrey. I believe being able to bring a guest to special exhibits was instituted when the Museum admission went “free”. In my case no reason to buy membership. Just pay for special exhibits.
February 6th, 2012 at 4:12 pm
It’s been a while since I was at the IMA. I typically only go for the gardens when the weather is nice-as it’s my favorite place in Indy to read or just unwind and destress. But I do enjoy a movie or special exhibit from time to time. I was shocked to see the $5/visit charge for parking! One of the best things about the IMA, outside of the gardens and museum, was that parking there was free. Not something you’ll find very often in Indy! Now, I’m not sure I’ll be visiting much any more. While the fees for membership might be in keeping with the current rates, as a student who’s husband is also a grad student and was laid off 2 years ago with only part-time jobs (and student loans) to help meet our monthly bills, buying a membership isn’t high on my list. I’m sure this change will effect many people and families that are struggling to get by financially who once could visit for free, enjoy themselves, and not have to worry about whether or not their bugets could afford it.
Trackbacks
Leave a Reply