While the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures has been vacant of museum patrons over the past six months, staff have been actively engaging in behind-the-scenes work to help advance the museum toward reopening safely and securely.
A cleanup project will soon be taking shape in order to catalog, organize and assess the many items stored in the building, including old furniture, outdated electronics, tech gear and computers, and other goods.
Museum staff and archivists dedicated to this project will meticulously evaluate items, primarily focusing on the first and third floors of the ITC—where many employee offices and storage spaces are located. Exhibits on the second floor—which houses the majority of the exhibit space—are not a part of this cleanup project and will not be moved or altered.
“The cleanup project will be a crucial first step in getting the building prepared so that we can safely welcome guests back.”
“Our goal is to identify items that are not of value to the future of the institute in order to remove or dispose of those surplus items properly,” said Veronica Rodriguez, interim head curator. “Museum staff will be careful to identify artifacts or items of historical value to ITC and UTSA archives. Those items will be retained and stored appropriately.”
As part of the plan the UTSA Libraries administrative core will be supporting the cleanup project and providing oversight. A new member of the ITC team has been hired to help spearhead facilities and operational efforts in the building. Vinny Genco will serve as operations specialist for the ITC and will work in conjunction with the libraries’ administration staff on the project. Genco previously served as events coordinator in campus services at UTSA.
The UTSA facilities department, under the business affairs division, is an important partner with the ITC on this project, Rodriguez said. Associate Vice President for Facilities Paul Goodman and his team will provide supplementary oversight and expertise.
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“Goodman and his team have been valuable organizational partners in determining efficiencies in the project so that the building is properly cleaned and secured,” Rodriguez said. “With their help we are hopeful the cleanup project will be a crucial first step in getting the building prepared so that we can safely welcome guests back.”
UTSA leadership, with guidance from the university’s Public Health Task Force and ITC staff, will identify a reopening date for the museum once the cleanup project is complete.
