This subseries currently is closed to researchers. File titles are subject to change when processing is finalized at a later date.

Following Robert Scott's retirement as Museum President in 1996, d'Harnoncourt was appointed the following year as the Museum's Chief Executive Officer in addition to her continued role as its George D. Widener Director. This subseries coincides with d'Harnoncourt's earliest years leading the Museum in her dual roles. During this period, with the approach of the new millennium as well as its 125th anniversary, the Museum began to plan for its future while building upon its past. There are several sets of files in this subseries that document how the Museum identified new goals and the steps needed to achieve them. As the office responsible for defining and implementing major gift and funding campaigns, the Development Department plays a vital role in an institution's plans for its future, which is further evidenced by the amount of documentation filed here by that department's name. With 2001 marking the Museum's 125h anniversary, the department files subtitled "Campaign 2001," "Cabinet for Campaign 2001," "Collections 2001," and "Committee on Collections 2001" all pertain to what would be the Museum's most ambitious capital fund drive in its history. Other documentation addressing the Museum's future include the "Long Range Planning" folders that pertain to defining the institution's needs for the next five and ten years, as well as the "Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building" folders that pertain to the Museum's initial steps in purchasing the nearby art deco building.

As part of its 125th anniversary campaign, the Museum sought to enrich its collection with the acquisition of 125 collection-transforming works of art. The major acquisitions well-documented here are the bust of Benjamin Franklin by Jean-Antoine Houdon and the portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Mifflin by John Singleton Copley. Documentation of the Franklin bust is filed under the department responsible for its acquisition, "European Decorative Arts and Sculpture." The latter is filed under the name of the institution that originally received the painting as a bequest, "Historical Society of Pennsylvania." Another significant object-related event of a completely different nature is the Museum's 1999 agreement to return five works of armor to the State Art Collections in Dresden Germany. These, too, are filed under department name, "European Decorative Arts and Sculpture: Kienbusch Collection of Arms and Armor." Although much of the acquisition and Dresden documentation is closed to public access, researchers can find a significant amount of related information on the Museum's website.

A final subject with significant documentation is one d'Harnoncourt first orchestrated almost 15 years earlier. Just as the Museum was required to apply for reaccreditation with the American Association of Museums in 1983 when she began her tenure as director, the Museum was called upon to repeat the process in 1997--again just as d'Harnoncourt began her new, expanded role. Documentation consists of more than 30 "Reaccreditation 1997" folders.