UNK Public History M.A. student Micah Huyser elected board member for the Mountain Plains Museum Association

“The History Department absolutely encourages our students to get involved in the field through professional service opportunities,” said University of Nebraska at Kearney’s Associate Professor of History Dr. Will Stoutamire.  
 
This service can include serving as a member of a professional association, something that current student Micah Huyser recently had the honor of being elected to do.  
 
Huyser is currently pursuing a Public History M.A. at UNK. He is also the executive director at the Nebraska Prairie Museum in Holdrege, Nebraska.  
 
Beyond being a full-time museum director and part-time graduate student, Huyser volunteers on several local boards, such as the Holdrege Area Chamber and the Nebraska Museum Association. 
 
In September, Huyser joined Stoutamire and only two other Nebraskans as a board member for the Mountain Plains Museum Association. 
 
“Becoming a member of the Board as an at-large representative, which Micah is, requires election by the entire MPMA membership, so it’s not an easy feat,” said Stoutamire. “Elections are competitive each cycle; not everyone gets selected.” 

 

The MPMA represents small museums to state agencies across ten states. It is affiliated with the American Alliance of Museums, which is the largest and oldest association in the United States to represent museum professionals. 
 
This feat is all the more impressive, considering that Huyser was selected as a current graduate student. 
 
“It’s very uncommon for a graduate student to be elected to a board such as this; Micah benefits from being able to combine his graduate training with his current position as a small museum director,” Stoutamire said. 
 
Although Huyser has his hands full already, he knows the importance of professional development opportunities such as this. He sees the opportunity as a resume builder as well as an opportunity to continue growing his network within the industry 
 
“You have to put yourself out there and make those human connections, which going to conferences and meeting new people really help with,” said Huyser.