Kristen Nesbitt

Guide/Education Intern

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Berwyn, Illinois, United States

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Timeline
About me
Mission-centered leadership and strategy; creative and capital project management
Education
- Haverford College
  1992 - 1995
  Bachelor of Arts - BA ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE/LETTERS
  Activities and Societies: Magna cum laude Phi Beta Kappa Magna cum Laude, Honors in English, Phi Beta Kappa Society. Coursework in American History, Architecture, and Art HistoryThesis: The Circle of Sympathy Deepens: Letters of Condolence to Jean Kane Foulke, an archival project that examined a collection of letters in the Chester County Historical Society library.
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  2002 - 2004
  Master of Arts - MA Folklore
  Thesis: Angel Babies: Women's Webs of Loss and Transformation.Co-coordinated “Curriculum, Music and Community Project,” a curriculum development project for North Carolina fourth grades, linking music historians and community musicians with students and teachers. Planned and facilitated 2003 Summer Institute for 50 teachers and musicians.
Experience
- Chester County Historical Society
  Oct 1990 - May 1997
  Guide/Education Intern
  Researched and developed exhibits for History Lab, an interactive gallery for families, providing more opportunities for family learning. Collaborated with educators and staff to create award-winning local history curriculum for third graders. Guided tours and greeted visitors.
- Shedd Aquarium
  Jun 1997 - Nov 2001
  Exhibit Developer/Writer
  Collaborated with team of designers, educators, scientists to create Amazon Rising: Seasons of the River, part of a $65 million master plan. Participated in and led an extensive series of front-end, formative, remedial, and summative visitor studies to increase the effectiveness of exhibit elements and the exhibition as a whole.
- Self-Employed
  Sept 2001 - Jan 2018
  Independent Consultant for Museums
  Develop exhibitions and programs to engage diverse audiences of all ages at organizations ranging from zoos and botanic gardens to history and art museums and national parks. Services include interpretive planning, conceptual, program, and content development, label writing, and evaluation. My work has appeared at: Speed Art Museum; Morton Arboretum; Isle a La Cache Museum, Georgia Aquarium; Greensboro Historical Museum; Jacksonville Zoo; Cleveland Metroparks Zoo; Adventure Aquarium; various NPS sites. and other locations throughout the U.S. Show less
- Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi / Middle East Technical University
  Sept 2004 - Jun 2005
  Fulbright Fellow, Academic Writing Center Tutor
  Taught English-language writing skills to graduate and undergraduate students. Developed curriculum for and taught conversational English classes at METU, with focus on developing skills for business and academic English for undergraduate-level students.
- Shedd Aquarium
  May 2007 - Jul 2019
  Provided operational oversight and strategic vision for Shedd’s exhibition planning, library and archive, exhibit maintenance and horticulture departments (annual operational budget of more than $2.1 M and 13 staff). Spearheaded new exhibition projects and capital renovations with budgets up to $1.5 M, coordinating interdisciplinary teams of staff and outside contractors. Incorporate exhibition evaluation to ensure Shedd is effectively serving its nearly 2 million visitors each year. Collaborate interdepartmentally to strategize integration of conservation education across experiences and implement branded communications and campaigns to tell Shedd’s stories. Initiated and led Shedd’s award-winning Accessibility and Inclusion initiative, an organization-wide effort to improve the experience for people with disabilities. Developed proposals to obtain funding from IMLS, foundations and private donors for the initiative. Show less
  - Senior Director, Exhibits and Experience Development
    Jan 2016 - Jul 2019
  - Director of Exhibits
    Oct 2011 - Jan 2016
  - Assistant Director of Exhibits
    Jun 2010 - Oct 2011
  - Senior Exhibit Developer
    May 2007 - Jun 2010
- Johns Hopkins University Advanced Academic Programs
  Aug 2013 - now
  Lecturer, Course Developer
  Teach Exhibition Strategies course for online graduate program. Developed curriculum for online graduate seminar devoted to museums with living collections.
- Chicago History Museum
  Jul 2019 - Feb 2022
  Chief Strategic Initiatives Officer
  Provide organizational senior leadership and guidance to teams and projects, with emphasis on inclusion and mission-based strategy. Manage high level projects up to $10M to ensure efficient implementation. Serve on Anti-Racism task force to develop strategic DEI plan for museum. Lead Covid-19 response efforts around reopening the museum and maintaining safe protocols while supporting staff needs. Develop data-informed content strategies for large scale projects.
- Black Ensemble Theater
  Sept 2022 - now
  - Vice President of Planning and Strategy
    Dec 2024 - now
  - Senior Director of Planning
    Sept 2022 - Nov 2024
Licenses & Certifications
- Certified Interpretive Planner
  National Association for Interpretation
  Jun 2007
- Designing High Impact Learning Experiences
  Johns Hopkins University Advanced Academic Programs
  Dec 2023
Honors & Awards
- Awarded to Kristen Nesbitt
  AAM Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion Institutional Award American Alliance of Museums May 2019 “All Are Welcome: Accessibility and Inclusion at Shedd Aquarium” is honored with the Institutional Award for Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion that celebrates individuals, organizations, or programs advancing the museum field in these areas, either internally through workplace programs and policies or externally with museum audiences and communities. This award is presented by AAM’s board of directors.Shedd’s accessibility initiative is a comprehensive, organization-wide… Show more “All Are Welcome: Accessibility and Inclusion at Shedd Aquarium” is honored with the Institutional Award for Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion that celebrates individuals, organizations, or programs advancing the museum field in these areas, either internally through workplace programs and policies or externally with museum audiences and communities. This award is presented by AAM’s board of directors.Shedd’s accessibility initiative is a comprehensive, organization-wide program to achieve a more accessible and inclusive aquarium for its guests, staff and volunteers, and community. It takes a holistic approach to promoting diversity both in the public experience and throughout the organization’s operations. Kris initiated and led this program in its first years, and accepted the award on behalf of Shedd. Show less
- Awarded to Kristen Nesbitt
  John Cotton Dana Award For Leadership American Alliance of Museums May 2019 John Cotton Dana Award for LeadershipKris Nesbitt, senior director of exhibits and experience development at Shedd Aquarium, was recognized with the John Cotton Dana Award for Leadership for efforts on behalf of public education and community service. The prestigious award recognizes exemplary leadership and is therefore awarded on an occasional basis as extraordinary leadership is brought to the attention of the nominating committee. With a passion for infusing… Show more John Cotton Dana Award for LeadershipKris Nesbitt, senior director of exhibits and experience development at Shedd Aquarium, was recognized with the John Cotton Dana Award for Leadership for efforts on behalf of public education and community service. The prestigious award recognizes exemplary leadership and is therefore awarded on an occasional basis as extraordinary leadership is brought to the attention of the nominating committee. With a passion for infusing visitor-centered learning, Nesbitt furthers Shedd’s organization-wide accessibility and inclusion initiative. Beginning with the development of Shedd’s Polar Play Zone, she recognized an opportunity to incorporate universal design to make the experience inclusive for all learners. Further, Nesbitt went on to involve as many people as possible – from a variety of departments and roles – to commit to improving accessibility and embedding it throughout the planning and processes at the aquarium. This has led to improved learning outcomes for diverse audiences under her leadership. Beyond the aquarium’s walls, Nesbitt has served four years on the steering committee for the Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium and has mentored nearly 100 next generation museum professionals through the Johns Hopkins Museum Studies program. Show less
- Awarded to Kristen Nesbitt
  Overall Excellence, Excellence in Exhibition American Alliance of Museums May 2019 Kris was the project director for Shedd’s newest special exhibit, Underwater Beauty, which was named one of two Overall Excellence winners in the 31st annual AAM competition that cites exhibitions that excite and engage visitors. Judges representing design, education, audience evaluation, and curatorial practices cited Underwater Beauty’s equilibrium in its innovative design, graphics, interpretation, including the effective use of interactives, clear content and easily presented ideas.
- Awarded to Kristen Nesbitt
  Community Asset Award - Shedd Accessibility and Inclusion Initiative Kennedy Center Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Aug 2018 The LEAD® Community Asset Award recognizes the achievements of cultural arts administrators or organizations that continually demonstrate success with access initiatives, improving accessibility in their organization, city, state or region.
- Awarded to Kristen Nesbitt
  Angela Peterson Excellence in Diversity Award - All Are Welcome: Shedd Accessibility and Inclusion initiative Association of Zoos and Aquariums Sep 2017 Through the Angela Peterson Excellence in Diversity Award, AZA recognizes significant achievement in work force and audience diversity by an AZA member institution. Applicants may submit an entry for any diversity program designed to increase diversity through education, training, community service, recruitment and retention, interpretative exhibition, public relations, and marketing.
Volunteer Experience
- Steering Committee Member
  Issued by Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium on Sept 2015
  Associated with Kristen Nesbitt
- Troop Leader
  Issued by Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago & Northwest Indiana on Sept 2017
  Associated with Kristen Nesbitt
- Docent
  Issued by Chicago Architecture Foundation on Sept 1997
  Associated with Kristen Nesbitt