Board Member Bios
Althemese Pemberton Barnes (Florida)
Althemese Pemberton Barnes is the executive director of the John G. Riley Museum, which she founded in 1996. In 1997, she established the Florida African American Heritage Preservation Network, a statewide professional museum association. She served in Florida’s Departments of Education and Labor as an employment counselor and program specialist, retiring in 1995. From 1965 to 1970, she was a music instructor in the Leon County Schools in Tallahassee, Florida. She has worked as a consultant on several oral history and cultural development projects, and directed the publication of historical books, heritage trail maps, guides, and documentaries. She is a member of the American Alliance of Museums, the Florida Heritage Foundation, the Florida Association of Museums, the Association of African American Museums, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Ms. Barnes received a B.S. and an M.S. from Florida A&M University. (Term expires December 6, 2015)
Charles Benton (Illinois)
Charles Benton has been the Chairman and Trustee of the Benton Foundation since 1981. He also currently serves on the boards of the Educational Development Center in Boston, and the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where he was named a Lifetime Trustee. In addition to his work on these boards, Mr. Benton previously was president or chairman of the Encyclopedia Britannica Education Corporation; Public Media, Inc.; Films Inc.; Home Vision Entertainment; and the Partnership for a Connected Illinois. In recognition of his work in the media and telecommunications fields, Mr. Benton has previously received presidential appointments to serve as Chairman of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, Chairman of the First White House Conference on Library and Information Services, and Member of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Public Interest Obligations of Digital Television Broadcasters. Mr. Benton received a B.A. from Yale University. (Term expires December 6, 2013)
Julia W. Bland (New Orleans, LA)
Julia W. Bland has been the Executive Director of the Louisiana Children’s Museum since 1997. Nationally, she has presided over the museum collaborative MC2 and is a founding member of Quality Management to a Higher Level (Qm2)’s New Orleans Roundtable. She also serves on the international board of the Association of Children’s Museums as the association’s Secretary. Locally she has chaired the boards of organizations such as Trinity Episcopal School, the Tulane Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health’s Advisory Board, and America’s Promise Alliance New Orleans Kids Partnership. Ms. Bland serves on various state-wide advisory boards promoting child well-being and early childhood development. In 2004 she co-chaired the Association of Children’s Museum annual conference and served on the national program committee for the American Association of Museums annual conference. In 2001 and 2006 she was selected as a City Business Woman of the Year, and was a Young Leadership Council Role Model for 2007. She received her bachelor of arts in art history from Tulane University. (Term expires December 6, 2012)
Christie Pearson Brandau (Iowa)
Christie Pearson Brandau is an adjunct professor at the School of Library and Information Management at Emporia State University. Ms. Brandau served as State Librarian of Kansas from 2005 to 2009 and as State Librarian of Michigan from 2000 to 2005. Prior to that, she worked at the State Library of Iowa, the North Central Iowa Regional Library, and in public libraries in Osage and Riceville, Iowa. She served as President of the Iowa Library Association in 1991. In addition to library affiliations, Ms. Brandau was a member of the state humanities councils in Kansas and Michigan and served as a United States Commissioner for UNESCO from 2005 until 2010. Ms. Brandau earned her B.A. from Iowa State University and M.A. in Library Science from the University of Iowa. (Term expires December 6, 2016)
Bert Castro (Arizona)
Bert Castro is the President and CEO of the Arizona Zoological Society/Phoenix Zoo, a position he has held since February 2008. From 2001 to 2008, Mr. Castro was Executive Director and CEO of the Oklahoma City Zoological Park and Botanical Garden. He began his career as the Children’s Zoo Keeper at the Tulsa Zoo in 1985 and subsequently served as Assistant Curator at the Audubon Zoo (1993 to 1995), Curator of Birds and Mammals at Zoo Atlanta (1995 to 1997), and Living Collections Manager/General Curator at the San Antonio Zoo (1997 to 2001). Mr. Castro has been a Board Member of Zoo Conservation Outreach since 2003. He served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums from 2009 until 2011 and the Board of St. Gregory’s University from 2005 until 2008. Mr. Castro holds an Associate’s Degree in Natural Science from St. Gregory’s University, a B.S. in Zoology from Oklahoma State University, and an M.S. from Friends University. (Term expires December 6, 2016)
Jan Cellucci (Massachusetts)
Since 2005, Jan Cellucci has served as a Commissioner on the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, a federal government agency established in 1970 and consolidated with the Institute of Museum and Library Services in 2008. During a varied professional library career, Cellucci has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the Canadian Association of Research Libraries, a member of the University of British Columbia President’s Advisory Council on the University Library, a member of the Strategic Planning Committee of Friends of Library Archives Canada, an Associate University Librarian for Collection Services at Boston College, and as Preservation Manager for Boston College. Earlier in her career, she directed a K-12 school library, served as Assistant Director of the Hudson Public Library, created two new elementary school media centers, and was an elected public library trustee. Cellucci currently sits on the Board of the Massachusetts Children’s Trust Fund, an umbrella organization that leads statewide efforts to prevent child abuse and neglect, and on the Board of CAST, the Center for Applied Special Technologies dedicated to transforming education through Universal Design for Learning. She earned a master of library science and an honorary doctorate in public service from Simmons College in Boston. (Term expires December 6, 2012)
John Coppola (Miami, Florida)
John Coppola has consulted on strategic planning and professional training for museums throughout Latin America and the Middle East since 1996. Previously, he served as the director of the Office of Exhibits Central at the Smithsonian Institution; as chief of the Bureau of International Expositions and exhibitions program manager for Arts America, at the U.S. Information Agency; and as a foreign service officer. Coppola has organized and managed exhibitions for the Museum of Latin American Art, the Smithsonian Latino Center, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, St. Thomas University, and the Stonewall Library & Archives. (Term expires December 6, 2013)
Vishakha N. Desai (New York)
Dr. Vishakha N. Desai is special advisor for global affairs to President Lee Bollinger of Columbia University and professor of practice at its School of International and Public Affairs. She is senior advisor to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation for global policy and programs, and president emerita of Asia Society, an organization she led for the last eight years. From 1977 to 1990, Dr. Desai worked at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in a variety of roles, ultimately serving as assistant curator of Indian, Southeast Asia, and Islamic collections (1981-1990) and as the head of academic programs (1981-1988). Dr. Desai has been a visiting professor at numerous universities and was an assistant and associate professor at the University of Massachusetts from 1988 to 1990. Dr. Desai is on the board of the Brookings Institution and is an advisor and reviewer for the New York City Advisory Commission for Cultural Affairs. She served as the president of the Association of Art Museum Directors from 1998 to 1999 and was on the boards of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics, Inc., Asian University for Women, and the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities. Dr. Desai received a B.A. from Bombay University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. (Term expires December 6, 2015)
Paula Gangopadhyay (Michigan)
Paula Gangopadhyay is the Chief Learning Officer at The Henry Ford, which includes The Henry Ford museum, Greenfield Village, Benson Ford Research Center, Ford Rouge Factory tour, IMAX, and the Henry Ford Academy. In her role she is responsible for leadership and strategy regarding institutional education and learning initiatives. Ms. Gangopadhyay has held a variety of positions in education and arts policy, including Executive Director of the Plymouth Community Arts Council from 2006 to 2008; Curator of Education, Public Programs, Visitor Services and Volunteers at the Public Museum of Grand Rapids from 2002 to 2006; and Executive Director of the Great Lakes Center for Education, Research and Practice from 2000 to 2001. She was Executive Director of the Commission for Lansing Schools Success from 1998 to 2000 and Executive Director of Meridian Historical Village from 1995 to 1998. Ms. Gangopadhyay has served as a member of many state and national boards, including the Michigan Humanities Council. Ms. Gangopadhyay received her B.A. and M.A. from Indore University, her post-graduate certification in archival, museum, and editing studies from Duquesne University and an education policy fellowship from the Institute of Education Policy (IEI). (Term expires December 6, 2016)
William J. Hagenah, (Chicago, Illinois)
William J. Hagenah has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Chicago Horticultural Society since 1989, and he has served as its Chairman since 2002. He is responsible for the growth and development of the institution, presiding over meetings of the Governing Members and the Board’s Executive Committee. Under his leadership, the Campaign for the Chicago Botanic Garden has raised more than $125 million toward the construction of new gardens, the renovation of existing gardens, infrastructure improvements, and the construction of new administrative, teaching, and research facilities. Throughout his career, Hagenah held many positions at the First National Bank of Chicago, beginning as a security analyst in 1968, vice president of pension management in 1979, and finally, senior vice president of personal investments in 1986. He retired from the company in 1999. Hagenah’s professional memberships include the Investment Analysts of Chicago, the Financial Analysts Federation, and the Institute of Charted Financial Analysts. He is also a Trustee of Rush University Medical Center. He holds a bachelor of arts degree from Stanford University and master of business administration degree from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management. (Term expires December 6, 2012)
Carla Hayden (Baltimore, Maryland)
Dr. Carla Hayden is a past president of the American Library Association and the current chief executive officer of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland. She previously served as deputy commissioner and chief librarian of the Chicago Public Library, assistant professor in the school of library and information science at the University of Pittsburgh, and library services coordinator for the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. Dr. Hayden began her career with the Chicago Public Library in 1973 as a library associate and children's librarian and then as a young adult services coordinator with the Chicago system. (Term expires December 6, 2014)
Luis Herrera (California)
Luis Herrera is the City Librarian of the San Francisco Public Library, where he is responsible for the administration of the city's 28 libraries. Previously, Mr. Herrera served as the Director of Information Services for Pasadena Public Library, the Deputy Director of the San Diego Public Library, and Associate Director of the Long Beach Public Library in California. In January 2012, Mr. Herrera was named the Library Journal's Librarian of the Year. Mr. Herrera serves as Chair of the California Council for Humanities and was appointed to serve on the Steering Committee for the Digital Public Library of America in 2011. He served on the Library Advisory Board of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation from 1998 to 2002. Mr. Herrera earned a B.S. from the University of Texas at El Paso, an M.L.S. from the University of Arizona, and an M.P.A. from California State University. (Term expires December 6, 2014)
Mark Y. Herring (Rock Hill, South Carolina)
Mark Y. Herring has worked in librarianship for nearly three decades. Prior to serving in Rock Hill, Herring was Dean of Library Services at Oklahoma Baptist University, and Library Director at King College in East Tennessee. Herring’s most recent book, Fool’s Gold: Why the Internet Is No Substitute for a Library was released by McFarland in 2007. A poster from this book, "Why the Internet Is No Substitute for a Library" is now in more than 1,500 libraries in the U.S. and abroad. His articles have appeared in American Libraries, Library Journal, The Chronicle of Higher Education, College and Research Library News, The Weekly Standard, Policy Review, The Women’s Quarterly, Society, and many others. His bachelor and master of library science degrees are from George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University and his doctorate degree is from East Tennessee State University. Herring has two grown daughters and lives in Rock Hill with his wife, Carol, a high school English IB teacher. (Term expires December 6, 2012)
Eric J. Jolly, PhD (Minnesota)
Dr. Eric J. Jolly is President of the Science Museum of Minnesota. From 1995 to 2004, he served as Senior Scientist and Vice President at the Education Development Center, a nonprofit research and design organization in Newton, Massachusetts. Dr. Jolly was Assistant to the Chancellor and Director for Affirmative Action and Diversity Programs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln from 1992 to 1995, Assistant Dean of University College at the University of Rhode Island from 1989 to 1992, and Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana State University from 1987 to 1989. He served on the Board of Directors of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and the Association of Science-Technology Centers, and on the Board of Trustees of the National Museum of the American Indian and the Senior Advisory Board of the University of Arizona Science Center. Dr. Jolly received a B.A. from the University of Rhode Island, and an M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma. (Term expires December 6, 2016)
Susana Torruella Leval (New York)
Susana Torruella Leval is Director Emerita of El Museo del Barrio, a Puerto Rican, Latino and Latin American museum in New York. She served as the museum's director from 1994 to 2002, after four years as its Chief Curator. Ms. Torruella Leval is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Aperture Foundation, and Dreamyard. In addition, she is on the Editorial Board of the International Center of the Art of the Americas. She previously served on the Overseers' Committee to Visit the Arts Museums at Harvard College and the Visiting Committee of the Getty Center. Ms. Torruella Leval received a B.A. from Manhattanville College and an M.A. from New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. (Term expires December 6, 2015)
Mary Minow (San Jose, California)
Mary Minow is an attorney, consultant, and a former librarian and library trustee. She has made presentations and consulted for libraries and library associations in over 25 states on free speech, privacy, and copyright issues. She manages the Stanford Copyright and Fair Use website, and founded the LibraryLaw blog. Minow teaches digital copyright as an adjunct at the San Jose State School of Library Science and at the Simmons Graduate School of Library and Information Science. She serves on the board of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and she chairs the Intellectual Freedom Committee of the California Library Association. She is past chair of the Cupertino Library Commission and past president of the California Association of Library Trustees and Commissioners. She is coauthor with Tomas Lipinski of The Library’s Legal Answer Book. Minow earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University, her master of library science degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and her law degree from Stanford University. (Term expires December 6, 2013)
Lawrence J. Pijeaux, Jr., (Birmingham, Alabama)
Dr. Lawrence J. Pijeaux, Jr., is president and CEO of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, a multi-media facility housing exhibitions of historical events from post-World War I racial segregation to present-day racial progress. Dr. Pijeaux is a member of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra Board, the Alabama Tourism Department Advisory Board, the executive committee of the Greater Alabama Council Boy Scouts of America, the Alabama Bureau of Tourism and Travel Advisory Board, and the Rotary Club of Birmingham. He holds a Ed.D. in education from the University of Southern Mississippi, an M.A. in teaching from Tulane University, and a B.A. from Southern University. (Term expires December 6, 2014)
D. Winston Tabb (Baltimore, Maryland)
D. Winston Tabb is the Sheridan Dean of University Libraries and Museums at the Johns Hopkins University where he leads and coordinates the university’s entire system of libraries, directs the Sheridan Libraries, and oversees the Homewood Museum and the Evergreen Museum & Library. Prior to joining Hopkins, Tabb served at the Library of Congress for more 30 years, ultimately holding the position of associate librarian of Congress. He holds an M.A. in library science from Simmons College, an M.A. in American literature from Harvard University, and a B.A. from Oklahoma Baptist University. (Term expires December 6, 2013)
Suzanne E. Thorin (New York)
Suzanne E. Thorin is the Dean of Libraries and University Librarian at Syracuse University, a position she has held since 2005. She is a member of the Chancellor's Cabinet and also oversees the Syracuse University Press. Previously, Ms. Thorin was the Ruth Lilly University Dean of Libraries and Associate Vice President for Digital Libraries at Indiana University. She was formerly Chief of Staff to the Librarian of Congress and the official U.S. representative for the G-7 electronic libraries project, one of eleven G-7 pilot projects for the Global Information Society. Ms. Thorin received a bachelor of music degree from North Park University in Chicago and master’s degrees in music history and literature and in library science from the University of Michigan. (Term expires December 6, 2015)
Robert Wedgeworth (Chicago, Illinois)
Robert Wedgeworth was the founding president of ProLiteracy Worldwide, the largest non-governmental adult literacy training organization in the world, until his retirement in June 2007. He previously served as university librarian, professor of library administration, and professor of library and information science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He also served as the dean of the school of library service at Columbia University, the executive director of the American Library Association, and as president of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. He is a life member of the American Library Association and of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. (Term expires December 6, 2013)