If you haven't already done so, be sure to check out the program offerings, schedule and registration information for the upcoming NCMC Annual Meeting & Conference, to be held March 4-7 in Fayetteville: www.ncmuseums.org/ncmc/conference/2008/index.html. You can register in advance, or if it gets close, bring registration forms and payment to the conference. You must, however, make your own hotel reservations.

Events from around the state:

1). The Museum of the Albemarle will hold "Pre-Schooler Time" on Thursday, March 13, 2008 from 10:00 am until 10:45 am. Participants must be between the ages of 3 to 5 years old and must be accompanied by an adult. Pre-Schoolers will learn why people wear hats, view a hat from Collections, read a book and participate in an activity.

2). The Kings Mountain Historical Museum's current exhibit is "Minerals and Gems of North Carolina." The exhibit will run through April 26, 2008. Exhibited are private collections of minerals and gems from local "rockhounds" as well as from the National Park Service. Also featured, is a wonderful display on mica mining from Kings Mountain Mining, Inc. Don't forget to visit our Gift Shop and check out our new web site.

3). The Greensboro Historical Museum presents "Evolution of a City: Greensboro, North Carolina" on March 16th from 2:30 to 4:30pm. See the face of Greensboro's through the lens of neighborhood development - who came to live where and why, including information about the economic, racial, ethnic, and other reasons Greensboro grew as she did.

4). The Asheville Art Museum, with generous support from MetLife Foundation and a partnership with the Buncombe County Public Libraries, is proud to announce the creation of the "smART Speak Distinguished Artist Series" and the four phenomenal artists participating in this exciting venture. The series will bring internationally influential artists to Western North Carolina and surround their presentations with discussions, workshops and films. The first date in the series is Monday, March 31, 2008 at Asheville Community Theater.

5). From February 15th through March 9th, the Greensboro Children's Museum is hosting the interactive Button Chair exhibit, an innovative art display designed to increase awareness of breast cancer, in hopes of saving lives. The exhibit is a project of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) Foundation.

6). Cape Fear Museum of History and Science on Saturday, March 29 presents at the Learning Center: "Under the Sea: What is an aquanaut?" Discover the answer to this question and more as you explore ocean science. Learn why the ocean is salty and rivers are not. Play a fun shell match game and make your own sand dollar. Find out why starfish are not fish at all. Use magnification tools to examine sea life up close. Appropriate for children ages 5 to 10. Parental participation is required.

7). This spring the Asheville Art Museum is pleased to present an unusual look at landscape art. "Time is of the Essence: Contemporary Landscape Art" brings together a select group of contemporary artists who consider intersections between time and place. Guest Curator Ann Batchelder assembled works in photography, video, painting, printmaking, film and sculpture from Laurie Anderson, Ken Fandell, Charles Mary Kubricht, Kimsooja, Maya Lin, Sally Mann, Richard Misrach, Kiki Smith and Hiroshi Sugimoto for this fascinating exhibition.

8). The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences' current traveling exhibit, "Dinosaurs: Ancient Fossils, New Discoveries," will take flight Sunday, March 2. "Dinosaurs," which features a life-size model of a newly identified feather-covered tyrannosaur, presents the most up-to-date look at how scientists are reinterpreting many of the most persistent and puzzling mysteries of dinosaurs. It also details the complex and hotly debated theories of why they became extinct and how they are linked to present day birds.

9). On Saturday, March 1, 2008, the Joel Lane Museum House, the Birthplace of Raleigh, will re-open to the general public for the season. Tours led by costumed docents are available Wednesday through Friday at 10:00, 11:00, noon, and 1:00 pm and on Saturdays at 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 pm. Admission is $5.00 for adults, $4.00 for seniors, $3.00 for students, free for children under 6.

10). Reynolda House Museum of American Art and Delta Arts Center invite you to a spring festival celebrating Ancestry & Innovation on Sunday, March 30, 2-5pm. The festival will feature music, children's activities, artist discussions, and the chance to purchase Little Richards BBQ and George's Kettle Corn. A free shuttle will travel to the O'Kelly Library at Winston-Salem State University to see two John Biggers murals as well as to Delta Arts Center to view works by Elizabeth Catlett. Admission is free.

11). The Arts Council of Henderson County announces the opening of "The Art of Our Children," an exhibition that features the work of local elementary-aged students. The opening night reception takes place Friday, March 14th, 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm and is free and open to the public.

12). The Bellamy Mansion Museum presents "African-American History Days" on March 15 from 10 am to 1:30 pm. Come and experience the Bellamy Mansion with a focus on 19th century African American History of the area. The Bellamy household included not only the eleven Bellamy family members, but also nine enslaved African Americans who lived on the site and worked throughout the house. Learn about their lives as well as those of the free blacks and hired-out slave artisans who built this grand house, the carriage house, and slave quarters.