Kara Blond appointed Director
We are pleased to announce that the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington, DC (JHSGW) has appointed as it’s new Executive Director Kara Blond. Blond is currently Director of Exhibitions of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC. Blond begins her new position effective September 5, 2017. Museum Search & Reference conducted the national search.
Michael Mansfield appointed Director
After a nine-month, nationwide search, we have selected an admired curator and administrator from the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.,” announced Ogunquit Museum of American Art Board President David J. Mallen.Museum Search & Reference conducted the national search.
Victoria Lyall appointed Curator of Pre-Columbian Art
Lyall, a seasoned former curator at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), will oversee the DAM’s pre-Columbian art collection, which represents nearly every major culture in Mesoamerica, Central America and South America. She will join Frederick & Jan Mayer Curator of Spanish Colonial Art, Jorge Rivas Pérez, in the museum’s New World department.
Samuel McKelvey appointed Executive Director
McKelvey previously served as Site Manager for Meadow Farm Museum at Crump Park, an 1860 living-history farm site and museum. During his tenure at Meadow Farm, McKelvey significantly updated the site’s programs and re-interpreted a number of tours, bringing in new audiences, growing attendance, and making the site relevant to a new generation of students, families, and tourists.
Elizabeth M. Laurent appointed President
The Chester County Historical Society has appointed Elizabeth M. Laurent to be its new president, effective July 25, 2016. Board Chair George C. Zumbano, Esq. said “We are delighted to have selected from a national field of candidates a history-museum leader with exceptional professional experience. She will oversee a complete new installation of our galleries opening in 2017 and public programming to further expand our audiences.”
Cara Sutherland appointed Executive Director
Cara Sutherland has been appointed Executive Director of the Remick Country Doctor Museum & Farm, Tamworth, NH. She began work on April 1, 2016. Sutherland was Executive Director of the Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science & Art in Scranton, PA, and she brings a wide range of experience at history museums, large and small, encompassing 14 years of experience as a museum director. She previously directed a regional maritime museum, the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum in Virginia from 2002- 2004.
Brett Abbott appointed Director of Collections & Exhibitions
Abbott, a specialist in American photography of the 20th and 21st centuries, comes to the Amon Carter from the High Museum of Art in Atlanta where he has served as Keough Family Curator of Photography and Head of Collections since 2011. He will join the staff at the Amon Carter in late October.
