Experience
Chief Experience Officer2019 – 2022
Akron Art Museum · Akron, OH
Transformed the visitor experience organization-wide by creating and implementing a systemic content strategy for both digital and onsite, in a region that is among the most ideologically and economically divided in the country.
- Developed a new editorial voice grounded in accessibility and curiosity rather than institutional authority; authored the brand voice & tone style guide.
- Trained and led a team of nine content producers; ran the editorial calendar across web, video, podcast, and social.
- Project lead for the public website redesign, which subsequently saw usage increase by 200%; contributed to survey design and usability testing.
- Originated the museum's TikTok program with a serious editorial vision — 11M views and 675,000 likes in a single year; named a Top-5 museum account by Hyperallergic.
- Tracked and analyzed all content against plan; explored new approaches to measuring visitor parameters and goals through comparative analysis.
Principal & Creative Director2017 – Present
Brilliant Idea Studio · Cleveland, OH
Help cultural institutions and mission-driven clients plan and implement innovative, successful content and experience strategies.
- Led observatory fieldwork and stakeholder interviews to define needs and pain points; crafted compelling summaries of user findings and potential solutions for stakeholders.
- Created surveys, personas, sitemaps, wireframes, and mockups for stakeholder approval; managed multiple projects and operations simultaneously.
- Crafted copy that considers a user's emotional state while meeting overall business and mission goals.
Director, Intergenerational Learning2007 – 2017
Cleveland Museum of Art · Cleveland, OH
Directed studio classes, interactive media installations, and all-ages and family learning that connected diverse publics to the collection; curated cross-cultural installations and built programs that welcomed audiences who had rarely felt at home in a museum.
Selected Projects
- Website relaunch — balanced institutional goals with audience needs; +200% views in a year with higher reported usability.
- Creativity-based AR game — invited users to “collaborate” with an artist; thousands of users; Webby-nominated.
- Chatbot content strategy — accessible, engaging content for a tour-based museum chatbot; launch announced in the New York Times.
- Multimodal centennial campaign — a branded vehicle, an original game, and a free publication that reached every ZIP code in the county, with broad press.
- Safety communication campaign — clear, on-brand COVID-19 procedures, onsite and online; Visual Communications Silver Award, OMA 2020.
- Social-media heritage game — connected digital users to heritage sites on Instagram and TikTok; hundreds of dedicated players and a +11% lift in engagement.
Funding & Grants
As a museum executive and as principal of Brilliant Idea Studio, authored or contributed to grant proposals, narrative reports, and donor-facing materials securing multi-year operating and program support from the Knight Foundation, IMLS, NEA, NHC, NRF, and the Ohio Arts Council.
Publications
2018Inclusive Interpretation TipsAASLH · Technical Leaflet
2018Change at Work: Not Just Surviving and ThrivingCreateSpace Publishing
2018To Journey in Twitter CanoesMuseums and the Web
Selected Speaking
2024Keynote — Western Museums Association
2020Keynote — Making Museums AccessibleVisitor Experience Conference
2020Keynote — Self-Care in MuseumsCalifornia Museums Association
2018Talk — Hack the MuseumMuseumNEXT, London
2017Keynote — Trust the RevolutionMuseumNEXT, Portland
Education
MA, Art HistoryCase Western Reserve University
BA, Biological Sciences & South Asian StudiesUniversity of Chicago
MLIS, UX DesignKent State University
Recognition
- Webby-nominated AR game
- New York Times—covered chatbot strategy
- Visual Communications Silver, OMA 2020
- Top-5 museum TikTok, Hyperallergic
Areas of Focus
- Content strategy & interpretation
- Inclusive, visitor-centered design
- Intergenerational & family learning
- Digital engagement & social
- Audience research & evaluation
- Institutional & grant writing
Teaching & Lecturing
Two-plus decades of teaching and lecturing on writing, interpretation, and UX communication — from studio classes for all ages to professional workshops and conference keynotes for the museum field.