Support of the Maxwell Museum advances the Maxwell Museum’s cultural, educational, and research mission. Your tax deductible donation can support exhibitions, collection stewardship, education, and pubic programs.
Review the list of funds below or download the attached pdf to learn about the various endowment and gift funds that support the Maxwell Museum. Please help sustain these important programs and make a financial contribution today:
To donate online click the links in the below list to select the program you would like to support.
OR, send a check made out to UNM Foundation to the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, MSC01 1050, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131-0001, noting the fund you wish your donation to go to in the memo field
All donations made to gift funds are spent directly on their intended purpose.
Maxwell Education, Curation, and Research Fund (Director’s Discretionary Fund) (937043): Originally named the Maxwell Museum Director’s Discretionary Fund, the Maxwell Education, Curation, and Research Fund supports the three pillars of the Maxwell Museum: Education and Community Engagement, Care of Collections, and Innovative Anthropological Research. Your gift will be used where the need is greatest. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Maxwell Museum General Fund (937038): The Maxwell Museum General Fund is used to support activities and programs in all divisions of the Museum at the discretion of the Museum director. Your gift will be used where the need is greatest. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
The Garth and Elaine Bawden Adopt-A-Bus Fund (937474): Supports K-12 class visits for Title 1 APS Schools. Bus transportation is awarded on a lotter basis. In addition to the Museum program, students discover and explore the UNM campus. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Our Newest Fund: Human Evolution Exhibition Fund (937562): help support the new iteration of New Mexico's only exhibition on human evolution: Becoming Us: The Exploration of Human Evolution. Scheduled to open in 2026, this new exhibition will convey the latest scientific understandings of our shared human story, from the earliest hominins to contemporary human diversity. To contribute to this exciting project, click here.
Passport to People Program Fund (937536): Supports the Maxwell Museum Passport to People Program. These multigenerational thematic Family Day educational events explore exhibitions, topics, and cultures of people around the world. After completing activities including hands-on projects, connecting with special community guests, artists and musicians, and exploring museum exhibits, participants receive stamps in a “passport” to earn a goodie bag of educational materials to take home. Click here to give directly to this fund.
Maxwell Museum Exhibits General Fund (937304): Supports the Museum’s exploration of the human experience by contributing to exhibitions that feature unique and fascinating anthropological collections, objects, and images and the rich stories they tell. Your gift supports exhibit development and production costs. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Archives and Library Fund (937364): The Maxwell Museum Archives and Library hold the history of American anthropology and Southwestern archaeology at UNM. Your gift helps to preserve the extensive research records, field notes, maps, photographs, and other research documents for future generations. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Katherine Kit Sargent Fund for Southwest Archaeology Collections (937134): This fund supports curation activities on the Maxwell Museum vast, irreplaceable collections in Southwest archaeology. Your gift contributes to the costs of supplies and materials for collection rehousing, photography, and documentation. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Smith Family Totem Pole Conservation fund (937452): The restored Tlowitsis Nation Smith Family Totem Pole now stands in UNM’s Hibben Center. Your gift supports its continuing care and exhibitions that tell the story of the pole’s history and conservation. Click here to donate directly to this fund.
Holzapfel Textile Support (937417): This gift fund, created by Robert Holzapfel, provides support for the housing,care and documentation of the Holzapfel Collection of Latin American textiles
Maxwell Museum Endowment Funds are administered by the UNM Foundation for the express purpose of supporting the programs and staff of the Maxwell Museum. The endowments are invested by the foundation and the Maxwell receives quarterly payoffs from the endowment’s earnings into an expendable index. Donors can give to either the base endowment or make a donation to the expendable index for immediate use.
Maxwell Museum Endowment (Endowment: 670010; Expendable: 937083): Originally funded by an anonymous donor, the Maxwell Museum Endowment is today the Museum’s largest and most general endowment. Earnings from the endowment are used in any area of the Maxwell “to enhance the value of the Museum.” Your gift helps us provide resources in the areas of greatest need.
Frank C. Hibben Quasi-Endowment (Endowment: 620030 Expendable: 937085): Created by Frank C. Hibben at the time of the construction of the Hibben Center for Archaeology Research, the Frank C. Hibben Quasi-Endowment supports research associates conducting archaeological research in connection with the Maxwell Museum, Maxwell Museums educational and public programs, and improvements and repairs to the Hibben Center.
Maxwell Museum Association Endowment (Endowment: 621160 Expendable: 937058): Created in 1998 by the former Maxwell Museum Association, earnings from this endowment support public programs of the Maxwell Museum.
Ethel-Jane WestFeldt Bunting Endowment (Endowment: 600510 Expendable: 937084): Established in 1999 in honor of Ethel Jane WestFeldt Bunting, your gifts to the “Bunting Endowment” support the Maxwell Museum for purposes of, but not limited to, acquisition of collections, ongoing maintenance of exhibits, and travel expenses for Museum staff. To learn more about Ethel J. WestFeldt Bunting click here.
Catherine Buchanan Endowment (Endowment: 610149 Expendable: 937403): Created in honor of long-term educator and Maxwell Museum volunteer, donations to the Catherine Buchanan Endowment supports outreach programs for school-aged children, including the Museum’s Traveling Trunk and Adopt-A-Bus Program.
Holzapfel Ethnology Endowment (Endowment: 610320 Expendable: 937446): Created by Robert Holzapfel (who also donated a significant collection of Central American textiles to the Museum), the Holzapfel Ethnology Endowment was created to support research on the ethnology collections at the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, specifically curator-designated projects by students and/or textile and cultural specialists.
Note: a limited number of funds can currently be accessed directly on the UNM Foundation web site. If you wish to make a gift to one of our other funds, please send a check made out to the UNM Foundation to the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, MSC01 1050, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131-0001, noting the name and number of the fund you wish your donation to go to in the memo field.