As our oldest friends, family, and supporters may remember, Lake Champlain Maritime Museum was founded in 1985 with one building, a historic stone schoolhouse, to preserve and share the cultural and natural heritage of the Lake Champlain region. We have grown to encompass a 3-acre campus with an array of programs, hands-on learning opportunities, exhibits, collections, boat building, underwater archaeology, open-water rowing, and more. We’re proud of and grateful to our team, board, and community who have all helped us get to this point. And we are excited for the future.
With this growth in mind, in 2019 we embarked on a collaborative 3-year strategic planning process to reflect on our organizational philosophy and to set our goals and plan for the Museum. Our goals in this process were: to ensure that we included the voices of our staff, board members, volunteers, community partners, and long-time supporters; to confirm our philosophy and core statements reflect this unique organization; and to be relevant to our team, community, and the changing world around us.
You can read more about our strategic planning process in this article: Developing a New Organizational Philosophy at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum.
Today, as we prepare for our 2023 season, we are excited to kick off our newly completed Strategic Plan and to share our mission, vision, and values which reflect our renewed commitment to Lake Champlain and our community:
Mission
Lake Champlain Maritime Museum connects all people to Lake Champlain, inspiring them to learn from the past, build together in the present, and create a sustainable future.
Vision
Inspired, empowered, and equitable communities that realize social and environmental justice through their connection to Lake Champlain.
Values
We believe in the power of history
We research, document, preserve, and share an inclusive maritime history and archaeology of the Lake Champlain region. Our work is to repair the harm caused by history being told from a singular, dominant perspective.
We believe in the power of connection
We bring people together to learn from the lake and build skills of collaboration, communication, and critical thinking through equitable experiences that connect people to the world around them, to themselves, and to each other.
We believe that all people are history makers
We inspire people to see new possibilities and to build a future that realizes justice for individuals, our communities, and the environment.
You can read our full Strategic Plan in the reading pane below, or use the button at the end of this post to open and view the full plan in a new window.