This collection of ideas and resources is the product of experienced practitioners.
Our Contributors
Melanie Adams
Melanie A. Adams, PhD, currently serves as the Director of the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum. Before joining the Smithsonian, Adams served as the Deputy Director for Learning Initiatives at the Minnesota Historical Society overseeing the state’s 26 historic sites. Prior to Minnesota, she spent twelve years at the Missouri Historical Society as the Managing Director for Community Education and Events. Adams is an active member of the museum community and served on the board of the American Association for State and Local History and is a former president of the Association of Midwest Museum.
Adams has taught museum studies classes for the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Bank Street College of education. She is the author of numerous articles and blog posts as well as a regular conference presenter on issues related to museum education, community engagement, and race. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English/African-American studies from the University of Virginia, a master’s degree in education from the University of Vermont and a doctorate from the University of Missouri St. Louis in educational leadership and policy studies.
Veronica Alvarez
Veronica Alvarez, EdD is an educator, historian, and arts advocate. She believes access to quality arts instruction is a social justice issue. After 20 years in the museum field, she recently transitioned to the California Institute of the Arts as the Director of Community Arts Partnership with a special appointment in the Critical Studies Department.
Dina Bailey
Dina Bailey is the CEO of Mountain Top Vision, a consulting company that works with organizations on trainings and strategic initiatives that support more inclusive communities. She has been the Director of Methodology and Practice for the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience, the inaugural Director of Educational Strategies at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, and the Director of Museum Experiences at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, and a high school English teacher at Pike High School. Dina holds a Bachelors in Middle and Secondary Education, a Masters in Anthropology of Development and Social Transformation, and a graduate certificate in Museum Studies. She has been an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University and at George Washington University; and, she has been published in both the formal education and museum fields. Dina is proud to be the Secretary of the American Association for State and Local History, the Board Chair of Next Generation Men and Women, and the Chair of the American Alliance of Museums’ Education Committee. Dina may be reached at dina@mountaintopvisionllc.com and www.mountaintopvisionllc.com.
Kayleigh Bryant-Greenwell
Kayleigh Bryant-Greenwell is a Washington, D.C. based museum equity specialist with over 10 years of museum and nonprofit experience at the intersections of social justice and antiracist practice. Currently serving as Head of Public Programs with Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery she is responsible for an extensive calendar of programs across two museums, leading new outreach and inclusion initiatives towards developing new audiences and cultivating public engagement. In the wake of Covid-19 she led an internal cross-departmental task force toward reopening strategies. In summer 2020 she served on a 6-month part-time detail with the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum to develop a new initiative on race and community. She serves on the Board of Washington Project for the Arts, and on the Artist Selection Committee of Halcyon Arts Lab and VisArts in Rockville, MD. Additionally she participates in the Museum As Site for Social Action and Empathetic Museum movements. She received her Bachelor of Art in Art History from the University of Maryland, College Park and Master of Art in Museum Studies from George Washington University.
Mac Buff
Mac Buff (they/them) is the Associate Director of Education for Student and Teacher Programs at Tacoma Art Museum. Mac began their teaching career at age 16, giving horseback riding lessons to young children. Since that time, they have nearly two decades of experience in museum education, formal classrooms, and youth development at sites along the West Coast of the United States, as well as Northern Ireland. Mac received a master’s degree in elementary education from the University of California-San Diego in 2014. They contributed to the American Alliance of Museums’ Toolkit for Gender Transition and Transgender Inclusion, and have presented on LGBTQ+ inclusion at regional and national conferences. Mac serves on the Washington Art Education Association board as museum representative and interim chair of the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Council. They facilitate workshops on equity and inclusion for museums, non-profits, and educational organizations of all sizes. Mac lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with their wife and very spoiled dog. More information about their work can be found at www.mac-buff.com.
Enrico Castillo
Dr. Enrico Castillo obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and his MD with a Concentration in Underserved Populations from the University of Pittsburgh. He completed his psychiatry residency and public psychiatry clinical fellowship at Columbia University. He spent his public psychiatry fellowship as a medical director on a North Bronx Assertive Community Treatment team and as a staff psychiatrist for a “housing first” outreach team for the chronically street homeless in lower Manhattan with the organization Janian Medical/Project for Psychiatric Outreach to the Homeless. Dr. Castillo was a UCLA Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar and obtained his MS in Health Policy and Management from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
Dr. Castillo’s research has been conducted in close partnership with local, state, and national agencies and community organizations including the Office of the Surgeon General, the New York State Office of Mental Health, the Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Health Services, the RAND Corporation, and Healthy African American Families II. Dr. Castillo’s research is focused on community-public-academic partnerships, the integration of mental health and social services, public mental health and homelessness/housing policies, and medical education on structural competency and health equity.
Juline Chevalier
Juline A. Chevalier is passionate about helping people connect to visual art, each other, and themselves in meaningful ways. She has more than 20 years of experience in art museum education and interpretation, and she is dedicated to making museums relevant and accessible to as many people as possible. Two of her favorite questions are “So what?” and “Why are we doing it this way?” She tries to ask them of herself and others in museums as often as possible and as kindly as possible.
Juline holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History from the University of Virginia, and she received a Master’s Degree in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. For ten years, Juline was the Curator of Education at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. She was the Head of Interpretation and Participatory Experiences at the Minneapolis Institute of Art for five years and joined the staff of the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania as Director of Public Engagement in 2021. She served as the Director of the National Art Education Association Museum Education Division from 2019 to 2021 and is an active member of MASS Action (Museum as Site of Social Action.)
Jayatri Das
Jayatri Das, Ph.D. is Director of Science Content and Chief Bioscientist at The Franklin Institute and an invited Fellow of the Center for Neuroscience & Society at the University of Pennsylvania. She has led development of several exhibitions at the Institute—including Your Brain, a national award-winning exhibit about the neuroscience and psychology of the human brain, and SportsZone—and directs in-person and virtual programming initiatives to advance informal science education about emerging health issues, materials science, synthetic biology and other areas of current science and their societal impact. She also serves as an advisor to the National Informal STEM Education (NISE) Network.
Das earned undergraduate degrees in biology and biochemistry from Penn State and a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from Princeton University. Prior to joining The Franklin Institute, she conducted postdoctoral work at both the Koshland Science Museum and the University of Pennsylvania. In 2016, she was honored with the American Alliance of Museums’ Nancy Hanks Award for Professional Excellence.
Elizabeth Gerber
Elizabeth Gerber is Senior Content Specialist at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. From 2005 to 2011 she served as Director of School, Teacher, and Community Programs at LACMA. Elizabeth was an integral part of the team that launched the Charles White Elementary partnership.
Sarah Jencks
Sarah Jencks is an educator who since 2007 has served as Director of Education and Interpretation at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC. Her work is at the intersection of history, civics, theatre, and education. She was previously a middle school teacher and an arts educator.
Sean Kelley
Sean Kelley is Senior Vice President and Director of Interpretation at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site in Philadelphia. He produced the site’s award-winning audio tour, now heard by more than a million visitors, and has curated more than 100 site-specific artist installations in the building. He conceived and developed The Big Graph, a 16-foot infographic sculpture that illustrates the skyrocketing US Rate of Incarceration, and curated the companion exhibit Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration which won the 2017 Overall Award for Excellence from the American Alliance of Museums. From 2017 to 2019 he oversaw “Hidden Lives Illuminated,” a project which resulted in 20 original films made by currently incarcerated individuals and projected them for a month onto Eastern State Penitentiary’s façade.
Mr. Kelley visits active prisons and writes critically about prison museums and sites of detention. He speaks widely on the responsibility of museums to address controversial and painful subjects, as well as the ethical and management challenges posed by large-scale fundraising events in sites with complex histories. He has served as adjunct faculty at Rutgers University, teaching Museum Studies in the graduate program in Public History, and at the University of Pennsylvania.
Tomoko Kuta
-Senior Director of Education and Visitor Services, San Diego Botanic Garden, 2021-current
-Former Deputy Museum Director, The New Children’s Museum, 2011-2021
Working in a museum was not something that I dreamed about as a girl. In my teens I thought about being a creator, specifically a fashion designer. But I discovered a love of showcasing artists when I landed my first museum job. Since that first experience, I’ve enjoyed over twenty-five years of engaging diverse audiences in the arts in different museums and positions. At The New Children’s Museum, I was part of the leadership team when the organization received national recognition from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. For over nine years, I had the distinguished honor of leading a talented team to commission significant art installations, design impactful educational programs, and deliver outreach workshops in communities far from the museum. I know the work was successful because over the years, attendance and membership, along with the museum’s reputation grew. My drive for excellence in nonprofit work comes from a commitment to serve others. Armed with a BS from Cornell University, a MA from the University of Chicago, and life experiences as an immigrant and having a disabled brother, I have devoted my career to working in arts and cultural non-profit organizations to ignite new interests and nurture creativity in others. My work also extends to serving on the board of the California Association of Museums.
In the whirlwind of all that took place since March 2020, I went through my own transformation. I realized that I wanted to continue to grow and decided to leave the museum. I am now working in a new sector of the nonprofit field at San Diego Botanic Garden where I will adapt the practices of engagement and education for children to a larger and more diverse audience. I too am continuing to learn.
Mickey Maley
Mickey Maley began serving as Program Lead for Museum Education, MA and teaching courses at University of the Arts in 2019. Mickey has 10 years museum education experience serving most recently as Assistant Director of Public Programs at The Franklin Institute where he gained experience in facilitating learning on the museum floor through hands-on and live performance experiences, developing visitor centered programming and training for staff and volunteers, and collaborating on exhibit educational programs.
Mickey has his Master of Science in Education in Leadership in Museum Education from Bank Street College of Education, and his Bachelor of Science in Physics, and is a current member of the Museum Education Trends Committee for the Education Professional Network and a Museum Assessment Program Peer Reviewer both with the American Alliance of Museums. Past non-profit leadership positions include serving as a board member for the Philadelphia chapter of the Emerging Museum Professionals network.
Beth Maloney
Beth Maloney is the Director of Interpretation at the Baltimore Museum of Industry. She leads the education and programming team and collaborates on exhibition development, interpretation, and institutional planning. In addition, she runs an independent consulting practice, coaching staff at museums and historic sites as they create engaging, interpretive experiences. Beth currently serves as a mentor with the EdMEM program through the American Alliance of Museums Education Committee. She is a Past President of the Museum Education Roundtable and a former guest editor of the Journal of Museum Education. Beth holds a B.A. in history and english from Swarthmore College and an M.S. Ed in museum education from Bank Street College of Education.
Lorie Millward
Lorie Millward is an agent of change and has championed free choice learning and mold-breaking throughout her 30+ years in the field. She has authored several articles and book chapters related to her work and was the inaugural recipient of the STEM Innovator of the Year award from the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development. She has served the field as President of the Utah Museums Association, the Western Museums Association Vice President of Programs and Innovation, and as a member of the American Alliance of Museum’s Diversity Committee.
Her range of experience and expertise includes museum design and construction, creation of immersive learning environments, exhibition development, formal and informal education, audience research, evaluation, and the natural sciences. Lorie’s greatest academic and professional achievement, however, is the impact her efforts have had in the lives of those with whom she has explored. She is a dancer, naturalist, traveler, and grandma to the world’s best boy.
Catherine Awsumb Nelson
Catherine Awsumb Nelson, Ph.D. is a research and evaluation consultant specializing in PK-12 education, with a particular focus on measuring and strengthening the impact of investments in teacher learning and leadership.
Mark Osterman
Mark Osterman is a museum administrator, researcher, technologist and artist. He has a Doctor of Education with a research focus in arts, literacy and technology. Mr. Osterman has taught at Miami Dade College, facilitated specialized workshops in art educational theory and practice for the University of Miami, The Wolfsonian-FIUand the Lowe Art Museum. He has presented nationally on technology in museums and art educational theory and research studies and has published work in the Journal of Museum Education and the Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia among others.
Mr. Osterman has worked for The Brooklyn Museum of Art, The Museum of Art and Design, The Wolfsonian-FIU, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens and currently at the Lowe Art Museum | University of Miami. His museum work has focused on strategic thinking, interpretive technology initiatives, curriculum development, and developing evaluation and assessment tools related to museum practice. Mr. Osterman has volunteered professionally by serving as a Board of Director for MCN, Conference Committee Chair for AAM EdCom, a Member of the Museum Education Division Peers Initiative for NAEA and as a Grant Reviewer & Panelist for Miami-Dade Department of Cultural Affairs.
Scott Pattison
Scott Pattison, PhD, is a social scientist who has been studying and supporting STEM education and learning since 2003, as an educator, program and exhibit developer, evaluator, and researcher. His current work focuses on engagement, learning, and interest and identity development in free-choice and out-of-school environments, including museums, community-based organizations, and everyday settings. Dr. Pattison specializes in using qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the processes and mechanisms of learning in naturalistic settings. He has partnered with numerous educational and community organizations across the country to support learning for diverse communities. For more information about his work, visit: https://www.terc.edu/profiles/scott-pattison/.
Smirla Ramos-Montanez
Smirla Ramos-Montañez, PhD, is a bilingual (Spanish/English) and bicultural (Puerto Rican/American) researcher and evaluator focusing on culturally responsive studies related to informal STEM learning. Dr. Ramos-Montañez has led and supported a variety of projects, including program and exhibit evaluation as well as STEM education research to provide accessible, culturally relevant, and engaging experiences for diverse audiences. Currently, she is working with Dr. Scott Pattison to better understand family interest pathways and how to foster long-term interest in the engineering design process. For more information about her work, visit: https://www.terc.edu/profiles/smirla-ramos-montanez/.
Beth Redmond-Jones
Beth Redmond-Jones is the Vice President of Exhibitions & Facilities at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Prior to her current position, she was the Vice President of Engagement and Education at the San Diego Natural History Museum (TheNat). Beth is an accomplished and award-winning museum professional with extensive experience in exhibitions, master and strategic planning, museum programming, facilities operations, and financial management. Under her leadership, exhibition and digital teams have won numerous awards including the American Alliance of Museum's (AAM) Excellence in Exhibition Competition, AAM's Sustainability Excellence Award, AAM's Excellence in Label Writing Award, AAM's Media and Technology MUSE Award, and the Balboa Park Sustainability Award.
Beth holds a master's degree in museum studies from John F. Kennedy University and a bachelor's degree in art history from the University of New Hampshire. She served on the board of the National Association for Museum Exhibition, a professional interest group of AAM, and AAM's 2019 and 2020 National Program Committee. In 2006, Beth was recognized by the convergence of Museum Talent Project as a next-generation leader who demonstrates creativity and innovation in leadership, learning and organizational change. She has been actively exploring how museums can more effectively serve those with hidden disabilities, especially autism and sensory processing challenges.
Anna Schwarz
Anna Schwarz is the Head of School and Teacher Programs at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. In this role, she collaborates with an ensemble of full and part-time educators to create, implement, and evaluate in-person and online programming for teachers and students in grades Pre-K—12. Programs include gallery tours, in-school residencies, live performances, and a year-long teacher professional development series focused on introducing educators to arts-integration teaching techniques that foster students’ critical thinking, creative problem-solving, collaboration, and civic literacy skills. Along with her team, Anna’s work focuses on creating experiences that reflect the Skirball’s mission, connect our audiences to arts and culture, to history and the world, and most of all, to one another. Anna holds a BA in Translation and Pedagogy from College of Foreign Language Teachers at John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Poland. Prior to her work in museums, Anna was a German language teacher in Poland’s public schools.
Hallie Scott
Currently the Specialist, University Audiences at the Hammer Museum, Dr. Hallie Scott is committed to facilitating programs that center the goals and ideas of young people and that generate exchange and learning between educators. Her previous experience includes overseeing teen programs as an Education Specialist at the J. Paul Getty Museum; working as the Education Director at the Wassaic Project, a contemporary art center and residency in Dutchess County, New York; and teaching art history courses as a Teaching Fellow at Brooklyn College. She has a PhD in Modern and Contemporary Art History from City University of New York, Graduate Center, and wrote her dissertation on artists, architects, and dancers who developed experimental education initiatives in the 1960s and 1970s. Hallie presently serves on the editorial board for Viewfinder: Reflecting on Museum Education e-journal and is the 2019-2021 Community Engagement Chair for Museum Educators of Southern California.
Julie Smith
Julie Smith is a Human-Centered Continuous Improvement Specialist and Co-Founder of Community Design Partners (CDP). Her background as a K-12 teacher and administrator inspired her curiosity and passion for meaningful, community-centered change. She is driven by the desire to disrupt the root causes of inequities caused by white supremacy. Julie founded Community Design Partners as a place to center empathy as a mindset and practice through work with philanthropic organizations, school districts, state and county agencies, and youth development organizations. CDP is currently working on a student-powered improvement project that supports organizations to empathize with those they serve with the end goal of empowering youth and families to lead the change that is needed.
Theresa Sotto
Theresa Sotto is a museum educator, arts education advocate, and writer who is passionate about arts learning initiatives grounded in social justice and inclusive practices. She has worked at the crossroads of education, equity, and the arts for over 20 years. In her current role as associate director of academic programs at the Hammer Museum, Theresa oversees educational programming for university, family, and K-12 school audiences. She also co-leads the Hammer's internal Diversity and Inclusion Group, which initiates strategies for embedding inclusive practices in the museum’s work. Prior to joining the Hammer, she worked at the Getty Museum, the University of Arizona Poetry Center, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Theresa’s curricula and programs work have received honors and awards from the American Alliance of Museums, the California Association of Museums, and the Best in Heritage global conference. She frequently leads trainings for museum professionals on implicit bias and privilege awareness, and she has presented across the U.S. on topics related to inclusive gallery teaching, innovative programming models, and diversity and inclusion initiatives.
Rachel Stark
Rachel Stark is currently the Director of Education at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles where she oversees the development and implementation of award-winning cross-generational programs designed to spark imagination, foster empathy, and encourage civic engagement. Prior to her time at the Skirball, she played key roles in the Education Department at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) for more than a decade. Stark has served on the board of the Museum Educators of Southern California and presented at the American Alliance of Museums and the National Art Education Association conferences about dynamic approaches to working with adult learners using co-expertise models. She is a published author who has contributed to the Journal of Museum Education and other arts and museum education publications. Stark holds a BA in history/art history from the University of California, Los Angeles and a MSEd in museum education leadership from Bank Street College of Education.
Teresa Valencia
Teresa Valencia is the Virtual Field Trips Coordinator at the Ohio History Connection where she creates virtual experiences for youth focused on cultural inclusivity and social justice. From 2016-2020, she served as the Director of Curation and Education for Iolani Palace. There she managed the restoration efforts of the Palace and its royal collections, developed new exhibits and partnerships, as well as expanded the Palace’s educational outreach in the community. Before joining Iolani Palace, Teresa held various education, research and outreach positions at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, Maidu Museum and the California State Indian Museum. Teresa received her Museum Studies MA as well as an MBA from John F Kennedy University. Her thesis work focused on the need for cultural competency in the museum field. She has presented at several local and regional conferences on this subject. She currently lives in Ohio with her husband Joe and two sons Aiden and Matthew.
Lauren Zalut
Lauren Zalut works as Director of Education and Tour Programs at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site. In this role she oversees education programs, guided tours and leads family and school programming. Using the historic site as a catalyst for conversation on contemporary social issues, Lauren has worked with the education team to incorporate dialogue facilitation, lived experience in prison, and content about mass incarceration into guided programs. She has led Eastern State’s fair chance hiring initiative, recruiting and hiring formerly incarcerated people in a variety of roles. Throughout her career she has initiated collaborative programs between grass-roots organizations, social service agencies, and museums. This includes her work co-teaching Museum Studies graduate course Prototyping for Community Engagement and as Museum Educator and Communications Coordinator at the Wagner Free Institute of Science, where she launched partnerships like the science café, Science on Tap, and the Philadelphia Honey Festival.
Lauren earned a Master’s Degree in Museum Education from The University of the Arts and a Bachelor’s Degree in Art with a concentration in Visual Studies from Tyler School of Art at Temple University. She is also trained to teach college courses in correctional facilities through the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program at Temple University. Lauren believes that museums can be spaces that create social change, and she works to design inspiring, accessible and transformative visitor experiences. She lives with her husband, son, and chickens in Philadelphia.
Our Editors
Jason L. Porter
Jason Porter is the Kayla Skinner Deputy Director for Education and Public Engagement at Seattle Art Museum. Previously, he served as the Director of Education + Programs at MoPOP (Museum of Pop Culture) in Seattle, as Director of Education and Public Engagement at the San Diego Museum of Man (now Museum of Us) and Associate Director of Education at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. His work focuses on experiential education and public programs that serve community, school, family, and teacher audiences and on using the arts as a vehicle for personal transformation and social change. Prior to entering the museum field, he was a public school teacher. He received a B.A. in English from Tufts University, an M.A. in Education from Seattle University, and an Ed.D from UCLA. His dissertation examined charter schools meeting the needs of special education students. Professional development activities have included presentations at conferences including AAM, CAM, and WMA, serving as a mentor to emerging museum professionals and teaching as a guest lecturer in a number of museum studies programs. He has been a board member of AAM’s Education Professional Network (EdCom) from 2014 through 2016, a jurist with the Excellence in Exhibitions competition in 2017 and 2018, a grants reviewer for IMLS in 2018, and a member of the peer review board of the Journal of Museum Education (JME) since 2016. When he’s not working, he’s reading, writing, cooking, cycling around town, or visiting other museums. He lives in an apartment that has a view of the Space Needle with his dogs, Penny and Ellie, and his husband, Mark.
Mary Kay Cunningham
For nearly 30 years, Mary Kay Cunningham has served over 35 different cultural institutions or attractions in the diverse roles of consultant, manager, museum educator, volunteer coordinator, and docent. She founded Dialogue Consulting in 2001 to support institutions improving their visitor experience through inclusive and collaborative interpretive planning, programming, and professional development. Her passion for facilitating group learning that brings together staff, volunteers, and communities to navigate institutional change is the hallmark of her work.
Mary Kay is the author of The Interpreters Training Manual for Museums (AAM, 2004 and University of Macerata Italy, 2013) that guides front line staff in facilitating meaningful learning conversations with visitors. As a professed learning addict, she pursues and support professional development in the field by serving on the editorial board of The Journal of Museum Education since 2010, creating and instructing a graduate-level course on Visitor Experience design at the University of Victoria, B.C. since 2013, and presenting over 45 sessions or workshops in the last 20 years for professional meetings including AAM, APGA, ASTC, CAM, NAI, and WMA.