WKU News

Museums should be free for all. Thanks to a three-year pilot grant, the Kentucky Museum has seen this point in action: in the first year, our visitation grew by 45% and continues to grow. Each day, we welcome more diverse visitors – across all demographics, both at the museum and in our virtual offerings – and this has emphasized the need for us to remain free in perpetuity.

Free admission means a lot. It provides equitability of access while providing stable funding to continue providing you with meaningful exhibits, programs, and events. Inspired by recent movements to ensure museums’ financial stability and our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA), we are putting our money where our values are:

The Kentucky Museum for All Fund will ensure free admission, while providing us with resources to help our community thrive, to encourage partnership-building, and to support the core work of our staff. It also recognizes that while we steward the past, we do so for the present and future of all Kentuckians. 

Based on feedback from our community, annual funding provided by the Kentucky Museum for All Fund is prioritized for supporting

1. DEAI initiatives such as diversifying our collections and providing a living wage for our team; 
2. Scholarships to attend workshops and camps; 
3. Paid internship and research opportunities; and 
4. Curatorial partnerships with faculty, students, and community members.

A minimum of $450,000 is needed to secure Free Admission in perpetuity. 

The museum will launch a SpiritFunder crowdfunding campaign on May 18, in honor of International Museums Day. Gifts of any size are welcome to support this endeavor, with major gift and naming opportunities available. All donors receive a complimentary Friends membership. 

To make a donation or learn about major gift opportunities, click here.