American LGBTQ+ Museum Announces First Executive Director
American LGBTQ+ Museum announced on Tuesday it had selected the organization’s first executive director, Ben Garcia. The news comes almost five years from the day the museum was first planned.
Garcia has been in the museum industry for more than 20 years. He’s led similar institutions and has advocated for LGBTQ+ rights, according to a press release.
He will lead the institution’s exhibition development, advocacy efforts, communications and community outreach implementation, and fundraising strategy.The American LGBTQ+ Museum will be the first museum dedicated to queer history and culture in the city. “After five years of working to get to this point, after our groundbreaking with the New York Historical Society last fall, the board is delighted to welcome Ben Garcia as our first executive director,” said Richard Burns, chair of the American LGBTQ+ Museum board of directors and interim executive director of the Johnson Family Foundation. “Ben brings the experience, knowledge, and vision we need to lead our museum to our opening in 2024 and beyond.
We’re all excited to begin working closely with him come February!”Garcia most recently served as the deputy executive director and chief learning officer at the Ohio History Connection.
