2021–22 Annual Report: Our Team

Just like the rest of the world, the Hood Museum of Art experienced many resignations during the COVID-19 period. We began fiscal year 2022 with only thirty-four staff members. As we tried to rebuild our staff throughout the year, we accumulated six additional resignations. Fortunately, we successfully hired nineteen new staff members and promoted seven individuals. We employed fifty-two people total during the year, three of whom held temporary staff positions, two part-time positions, and forty-seven full-time positions. We ended the year with forty-six total staff members.

Most remarkable was the addition of the three inaugural Hood Museum Board of Advisors Mutual Learning Fellows. Aiming to encourage, build, and sustain diversity, equity, and inclusion in the arts, we created a three-person, board-funded mutual learning cohort comprising positions in the museum's Education and Public Programming, Registration and Collections Care, and Curatorial and Exhibitions areas. The fellowship is designed for entry-level candidates who wish to work in the arts and culture sector and are interested in museum technology, but who do not have the advanced degrees or professional experience often required for similar job postings at other institutions. Instead, following an apprenticeship model, this program emphasizes intensive on-the-job learning, with each member of the cohort spending all three years of the program within one area. Mutual Learning Fellows will develop literacy in the digital tools used by the museum and will serve as a bridge to the digital realm within their assigned areas. They will also gain a deep understanding of museum operations through observation and hands-on learning. By utilizing digital platforms, the fellows will support and work with their assigned areas and other colleagues on mission-critical projects such as exhibition planning, collections care and growth, and public education and outreach. As individual interests emerge, cohort members will be encouraged to initiate and develop digital projects of their own designs. In preparation for welcoming the fellows, all museum staff took intensive Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion (DEAI) training. Staff serving as advisors and supervisors attended additional, targeted sessions on supporting professional development, coaching, and communications.

Equally impressive, the Hood Museum also welcomed five new curators whose experience and expertise will activate new possibilities in our collection, spaces, and staff by expanding the art and audiences with, about, and from whom we learn. In particular, these five curators will reimagine the collection's influence and potential to forge meaningful connections across disciplines, peoples, and local and global communities. They will pursue critical scholarship, exhibitions, publications, and enhanced access while developing ethical and sustainable practices for owning, cataloging, and utilizing the museum's holdings.  
 
Lastly, the Hood Museum rebuilt its entire exhibitions team, starting with a new head of exhibitions. We hired three new preparators and promoted one preparator to a lead position. This new group participated in team-building exercises and trainings for lighting and mount making from external experts in order to develop a solid foundation and a strong, diverse skillset that will ensure their success as they support the ambitious new curatorial staff. 

The hires for FY22 compromise 41 percent of the total staff with whom we ended the year. While it is a great deal of work to onboard so many new staff members, the rewards and excitement that come with their new perspectives far outweigh any challenges as we turn our sights to FY23.

Staff, Board of Advisors, and Docents

Staff (as of October 2022)

Sue Achenbach, Lead Preparator
Emily Andrews, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Research Assistant
Katherine Armstrong, Visitor Services Guide
Katie Coggins, Museum Educator
Kristie Couser, Registration Assistant
Richel Cuyler, Cultural Heritage Technical Developer to Advancing Pathways for Long-Term Collaboration 
Arieh Fried, Visitor Services Guide
Nichelle Gaumont, Board of Advisors Mutual Learning Fellow
Nicole Gilbert, Head of Exhibitions
Cynthia Gilliland, Associate Registrar
Michael Hartman, Jonathan Little Cohen Associate Curator of American Art
Jessica Havrda, Associate Director of Finance and Administration
Molly Hoisington, Museum Preparator
Laura Howard, Assistant to the Director
Isadora Italia, Campus Engagement Manager
Deborah Jayne, Visitor Services Guide
Amelia Kahl, Barbara C. and Harvey P. Hood 1918 Curator of Academic Programming
Lauri Kobar, Museum Preparator
Randall Kuhlman, Center for Object Study Coordinator
Vivian Ladd, Teaching Specialist
Beatriz Yanes Martinez, Board of Advisors Mutual Learning Fellow
Elizabeth Rice Mattison, Andrew W. Mellon Associate Curator of Academic Programming
Neely McNulty, Hood Foundation Curator of Education
Zachary Miller, Cultural Heritage and Indigenous Knowledges Fellow
Nils Nadeau, Associate Director, External Relations and Operations
Daniel Nassau, Visitor Services Guide
Matthew Oates, Museum Preparator
Ashley Offill, Associate Curator of Collections
Alison Palizzolo, Digital Content Manager
Jami Powell, Curator of Indigenous Art
Sharon Reed, Programs and Events Coordinator
Joseph Richter, Gallery Attendant
Grace Ross, Visitor Services Guide
Anna Kaye Schulte, Public Relations Assistant 
Lauren Silverson, Registrar
Meredith Steinfels, Assistant Director, Digital Platforms, Media, and Archives
John Stomberg, Virginia Rice Kelsey 1961s Director
Alisa Swindell, Associate Curator of Photography
Alexandra Thomas, Curatorial Research Associate
Ashley Todt, Visitor Services Guide
Andrew Turner, Security / Buildings Manager
Christopher Warren, Digitization Technician
Nathalia Whitecar, Business and Digital Infrastructure Assistant
Tala Wilson, Visitor Services Manager
Jayde Xu, Board of Advisors Mutual Learning Fellow

Board of Advisors

Bettina L. Decker '92
Robert J. Grey P'02 GRP'07
Ann M. Huebner '89
Melissa Kaish '83
Sandeep Mathrani P'20
Brooke A. Minto '01
Karen Nearburg
John O. Parker Jr. '89 TU'94 P'21
Megan M. Remmelts '04
Georgina T. Russo '77
Katherine Stone Sonnenborn '00
Steven S. Tseng '95 TU'01
Christopher A. Wailoo '82
Maud Iselin Welles '77
Natalie B. Wilensky '86
T. Merele Williams P'20
Susan DeBevoise Wright '69a H'09

Docents

Mary Chin
Calli Guion
Elisabeth Hammer
Claire Lyon
Linda Oidtmann
Judy Oxman
Nancy Leavitt Reibel
Ellie Ringer
Noelle Vitt
Susan Wright

Interns

Emily Andrews '23, Homma Family Intern
Yliana Beck '22, Conroy Intern
Emily Charland '19, Erbe Intern
Alice Crow '22, Levinson Intern
Malia Chung-Paulson '24, Class of 1954 Intern
Chloe Jung '23, Class of 1954 Intern
Mikalia Ng '22, Levinson Intern
Kylie Romeros '22, Conroy Intern
Abigail Smith '23, Conroy Intern
Amy Zaretsky '23, Conroy Intern

Museum Club

Kaitlyn Anderson '24 
Emily Andrews '22 
Katherine Arrington '24 
Sabrina Barton '24 
Margaret Davidson '23 
Cristal De La Cruz '22 
Cleo De Rocco '24 
Samantha Fried '22 
Maclean Hadden '25 
Chloe Jung '23 
Caitlyn King '24 
Emily Levonas '24 
Justin Lewis '25 
Ellie Mclaughlin '25 
Peter Mikhlin '23 
Sheila Milon '22 
Bridget Parker '23 
Abigail Smith '23 
Nathan Savo '24 
Emma Troost '24 
Carly Walther-Porino '25 
Junying Wang '23 
Sadie Weil '25 
Amy Zaretsky '23 
Brian Zhang '24