The Dubuque County Historical Society (DCHS) has been awarded local grant funding to support their FY26 Museums for All low-cost-admission program. Funding from Dubuque County, McDonough Foundation, and Cafaro Family Foundation will support DCHS in offering low-cost admission ($5) to the National Mississippi River Museum and Mathias Ham Historic Site for individuals living below the federal poverty threshold.
Museums for All is a national program created by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and includes more than 1,500 participating museums, zoos, aquariums, and botanical gardens throughout the United States. Through Museums for All, those receiving food assistance (SNAP benefits) can gain free or reduced admission by presenting their EBT card and a photo ID. DCHS’s Museums for All program serves approximately 9,000 individuals each year, providing visitors of all ages with access to key informal learning opportunities. There are 14 participating cultural institutions in Iowa including the DCHS properties and Dubuque Museum of Art. Cultural institutions who participate in the program rely upon the philanthropic support of their communities including grants, corporations, foundations, and individual donors who provide support to underwrite the cost of offering reduced admission.
The Museums for All program endeavors to provide affordable access to cultural institutions and encourage diverse populations to build routine engagement in cultural experiences in an effort to nurture the prioritization of lifelong learning. For more information about Museums for All, visit museums4all.org or rivermuseum.org, where you can also learn how to support DCHS to inspire stewardship through educational experiences where history and rivers come alive.