Mary Kershaw. Courtesy photo.
I invite you to join the MNA Board and staff in welcoming Mary Kershaw as the new Executive Director/CEO of the Museum. A seasoned museum professional, Mary comes to MNA from the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, where she has been Director for 9 years. Mary will formally assume her role on June 3rd, and you’re invited to meet her at the Thirsty Thursday on June 6 from 5 to 8 pm.
Her acceptance of the position at MNA is the successful culmination of an exhaustive four-month nationwide search, led by a professional executive recruiter, which reached out to more than 300 qualified potential candidates. Of those, 37 candidates made it through initial interviews and the top nine candidates were referred to the MNA Executive Director Search Committee, made up of a mix of museum trustees, staff and community members. After reviewing the resumes, the Search Committee interviewed six of the candidates in-depth. Three candidates made the final cut, with Mary as the clear first choice.
I had the pleasure of touring Mary and Peter around the MNA campus when they visited Flagstaff in March and, like all who have met her since, found her to be a charismatic and engaging individual. She listens carefully, evaluates completely what she has heard, and responds with well thought out comments and questions. It is easy to be taken by her intelligence, professionalism and calm demeanor. Mary has an amazing technical breadth of expertise, the ability to quickly understand complex issues and communicate about them in sound and meaningful ways. Many who have worked with her say she relates well to everyone, puts her staff quickly at ease, and finds the often-untapped potential in many situations. She has an amazing depth of experience in the museum world, much of it suited to the Museum of Northern Arizona. Her exposure to, and working experience with, tribal communities of the Southwest enhances her suitability for the work at MNA.
During her tenure in Santa Fe, the New Mexico Museum of Art celebrated its Centennial, a landmark MNA is also counting down toward. During this celebration Mary oversaw a party for over 7,600 visitors (in a single day), a year-long program of events and the development of a new contemporary art venue. In partnership with the museum’s Foundation she launched a $12.5 million capital campaign for the new venue, which is on track to meet its goal.
Mary is completely passionate about her chosen field and has an amazing technical breadth of expertise. In her nearly three decades as a museum professional, she has often been at the helm of diverse institutions. She started out as a field archaeologist in Britain, excavating sites for the Museum of London Archaeology Service, then moved into curating collections and developing exhibitions for the Harrogate Borough Council. By 1992, she had advanced into the top leadership position as Head of Museums and Arts for the Harrogate Borough, where she was responsible for four independent museums covering 500 square miles, with diverse collections including archaeology, fine arts, social history, and textiles.
In 2003 Mary became part of the senior management team for York Museums Trust, responsible for 4 museums, a historic observatory, a medieval abbey, 5 collection facilities, 2.5 million objects and a staff of 120+. A supervisor from York said “what she inherited at York was a museum with untapped and unfulfilled potential, a staff that needed the benefit of leadership and direction. All the good stuff was in place, it just needed new visions and ideas. She made it sing.”
With Mary, we are confident we have found the diamond in a sea of pearls. The Board of Trustees, and all who have met with Mary, are confident that she will walk arm-in-arm with each one of us and lead us from 90 to 100 years of age in an amazing and exciting way.
