# Cooperstown Graduate Program

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The **Cooperstown Graduate Program** (**CGP**) is the first and oldest dedicated [museum studies](/source/Museology) program within the United States.[1][2] It provides a [Master of Arts](/source/Master_of_Arts) degree in Museum Studies, with concentrations in [science museum](/source/Science_museum) studies and [history museum](/source/History_museum) studies. Part of the [State University of New York at Oneonta](/source/State_University_of_New_York_at_Oneonta), the Cooperstown Graduate Program is located in [Cooperstown](/source/Cooperstown,_New_York), known as the "village of museums."[3] It is considered an important part of the development of [public history](/source/Public_history) within the United States.[4]

## History

The Cooperstown Graduate Program was formed in 1964 by [Louis C. Jones](/source/Louis_C._Jones) in a joint effort between Oneonta and the New York State Historical Association (now the [Fenimore Art Museum](/source/Fenimore_Art_Museum)), a [folklorist](/source/Folklore_studies) that wanted a museum training program that centered "ordinary people"[5] and taught practical administrative skills.[4] This was a conscious rejection of the [University of Delaware](/source/University_of_Delaware)'s [Winterthur Program in American Material Culture](/source/Winterthur_Program_in_American_Material_Culture), which focuses almost exclusively on [decorative arts](/source/Decorative_arts) and [curation](/source/Curator).[6] The Cooperstown and Winterthur programs remain [friendly rivals](/source/University_and_college_rivalry). The Cooperstown Graduate Program's mascot, a [plastic flamingo](/source/Plastic_flamingo), comes from this rivalry; the plastic flamingo represents the [material culture](/source/Material_culture) of ordinary people versus the highbrow decorative arts represented by Winterthur.[7] The Cooperstown Graduate Program is considered the most lasting and successful legacy of Jones's experiments in integrating [public folklore](/source/Public_folklore) and academic training, known as "the Cooperstown Idea."[8]

Historically, the Cooperstown Graduate Program offered graduate degrees in [American folk culture](/source/Folklore_of_the_United_States) and [art conservation](/source/Conservation_and_restoration_of_cultural_property) in addition to museum studies. The folk culture program was discontinued in 1979, while the art conservation program was moved to [Buffalo State University](/source/Buffalo_State_University) in 1987.[9]

The Cooperstown Graduate Program is noted for its large [oral history](/source/Oral_history) archive, oral history training, and the integration of oral history into the [digital humanities](/source/Digital_humanities).[10][11][12]

## References

1. Walker, Will (2017-02-03). ["Folklore and the roots of public history training in Cooperstown"](https://ncph.org/history-at-work/folklore-and-the-roots-of-public-history-training-in-cooperstown/). *[National Council on Public History](/source/National_Council_on_Public_History)*. Retrieved 2026-01-21.

1. Conard, Rebecca (2015-02-01). ["The Pragmatic Roots of Public History Education in the United States"](https://online.ucpress.edu/tph/article/37/1/105/90636/The-Pragmatic-Roots-of-Public-History-Education-in). *[The Public Historian](/source/The_Public_Historian)*. **37** (1): 105–120. [doi:10.1525/tph.2015.37.1.105](https://doi.org/10.1525/tph.2015.37.1.105). [ISSN 0272-3433](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0272-3433)

1. Fulkerson, Gregory & Seale, Elizabeth (2012-11-01). ["The Case of Cooperstown, New York: The Makings of a Perfect Village in an Urbanising World"](https://doi.org/10.5153/sro.2742). *[Sociological Research Online](/source/Sociological_Research_Online)*. **17** (4): 13–32. [doi:10.5153/sro.2742](https://doi.org/10.5153/sro.2742). [ISSN 1360-7804](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1360-7804)

1. Conard, Rebecca (2018), ["Complicating Origin Stories"](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781118508930.ch1), *A Companion to Public History*, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, pp. 17–32, [doi:10.1002/9781118508930.ch1](https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118508930.ch1). ISBN 978-1-118-50893-0, retrieved 2026-01-21

1. Walker, William S. (2021), ["Louis C. Jones and the Cooperstown Model: Working at the Nexus of Public Folklore and Public History"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.12366495.13), *Radical Roots*, Public History and a Tradition of Social Justice Activism, Meringolo, Denise D. (ed.), Amherst College Press, pp. 247–270, [doi:10.3998/mpub.12366495.13](https://doi.org/10.3998/mpub.12366495.13). ISBN 978-1-943208-20-3, retrieved 2026-01-21

1. Leon, Warren & Rosenzweig, Roy (eds.) (1989). *History Museums in the United States: a Critical Assessment*. Urbana: [University of Illinois Press](/source/University_of_Illinois_Press). p. 23. ISBN 978-0-252-06064-9.

1. Miller, Kaitlyn & Ragone, Shannon (2021). *The History of the Cooperstown Graduate Program*

1. Livermore, Garet D. (August 2011). ["Revisiting “The Cooperstown Idea”: The Evolution of the New York State Historical Association"](https://online.ucpress.edu/tph/article/33/3/70/88845/Revisiting-The-Cooperstown-Idea-The-Evolution-of). *[The Public Historian](/source/The_Public_Historian)*. **33** (3): 70–89. [doi:10.1525/tph.2011.33.3.70](https://doi.org/10.1525/tph.2011.33.3.70)

1. Dunau, Bera (2014-10-16). ["Cooperstown Graduate Program celebrates anniversary"](https://www.coopercrier.com/news/local_news/cooperstown-graduate-program-celebrates-anniversary/article_347d3613-9411-554e-987f-552525500cee.html). *Cooperstown Crier*. Retrieved 2026-01-21.

1. Walker, William S. (2016-12-01). ["Sparking Rural Community Dialogues with Digital Oral Histories"](https://doi.org/10.1177/155019061601200405). *Collections*. **12** (4): 401–408. [doi:10.1177/155019061601200405](https://doi.org/10.1177/155019061601200405). [ISSN 1550-1906](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1550-1906)

1. Donaldson, Ryan A. (2009). ["Dynamic yet Fragile: Reconsidering the Archive of New York State Folklife"](https://nyfolklore.org/article/dynamic-yet-fragile/). *New York Folklore*. **35** (1-2): 4-10.

1. McLellan, Marjorie L. (2014), ["Beyond the Transcript: Oral History as Pedagogy"](https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137322029_6), *Oral History and Digital Humanities: Voice, Access, and Engagement*, Boyd, Douglas A. (ed.), New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, pp. 99–118, [doi:10.1057/9781137322029_6](https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137322029_6). ISBN 978-1-137-32202-9, retrieved 2026-01-21

## External links

- [Official website](https://cgpmuseumstudies.org)
- [SUNY Oneonta](https://suny.oneonta.edu/cooperstown-graduate-program)

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