Docents

Purpose of the Crocker Docent Council

The Docent Council is a volunteer service group developed to support educational programs offered by the Crocker Art Museum. Along with touring groups of visitors, docents present outreach programs, spotlight talks, and interactive gallery-based activities.

Current Docents

To input your service hours or check your service history, click here.

History of the Crocker Docent Council

Formed in 1963 by a group of Junior League members, the Crocker Art Museum's Docent Council currently has more than 150 active and 50 sustaining members.

The Docent Training Program

All docents at the Crocker Art Museum participate in an extensive training class before becoming active-touring docents. The training program is a nine-month learning experience, covering Crocker collections, art history, art education, and touring techniques.

The training program includes more than 60 hours of class time plus at-home assignments, touring practice, group activities, mentoring by active touring docents, and a series of thematic presentations. Class formats include lectures, interactive gallery experiences, workshops, field trips, peer-to-peer modeling, and hands-on studio art activities. Topics covered include the history of the Crocker Art Museum, the purpose and functions of a 21st-century museum, visitor motivations, object-based teaching methods, art education practices, and art history as it pertains to the Crocker's permanent collection, which features one of the country's finest collections of Californian art, exceptional holdings of master drawings, a comprehensive collection of international ceramics, as well as European, Asian, African, and Oceanic art.

Applicants

The Crocker strives to form a docent corps that reflects the rich diversity of the Museum's visitors and of the Sacramento region. Docent trainees come from all stages of life. Many trainees are retirees, who have always had a passion for art but have made their career in other fields. Some are still working and wish to contribute to the community and to the vitality of the Crocker. A few are involved in graduate studies and wish to include their training as part of their graduate work. All are enthusiastic about their interest in art and wish to share their love for art and for the Crocker with others.

The Crocker Docent Council is looking for prospective trainees who wish to engage visitors of all ages in the acts of looking closely at art and sharing inspiring ideas connected to art. If you are interested in participating in a collaborative learning experience and are inspired by the visually stimulating environment of an art museum, look no further­—the Crocker Docent Council is for you!

To join our list for the next docent class please contact the Crocker's Education Department at: education@crockerartmuseum.org.