Eileen Goldspiel
Director, President’s Office

Eileen cultivates and stewards individual donors and foundations and develops strategic corporate sponsorships that support activities and strategic initiatives that benefit the museum field. Eileen started her career on Capitol Hill, worked at the Kennedy Center and came to the Alliance in 2001. Her favorite activity outside of work is reading books.

Grace Stewart
Associate Vice President of Coalition Building and Practice Management

Grace is responsible for leading the Alliance’s diversity, equity, accessibility, inclusion, and anti-racism initiatives. She is also an Adjunct Instructor at Heinz College | Carnegie Mellon University. She has previously held positions as the Director of Collections & Exhibitions at the Metal Museum, Strategic Development Director for Tone, Registrar for the National Civil Rights Museum, and Exhibitions & Programming Associate at the August Wilson Center. She has served in leadership roles on numerous professional committees and currently serves as a member of the Executive Committee for the Metal Museum Board of Directors. Grace is a 2021 participant in the McKinsey Black Leadership Academy Management Accelerator and a Qualified Administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory. She holds an MA in Arts Management from Heinz College | Carnegie Mellon University and a BFA in Ceramics from NYSCC | Alfred University. In her free time, Grace enjoys reading, creating art, baking, and spending time with her family.

Megan Lantz
Director of Social Impact

Megan is responsible for leading the Alliance’s social impact initiative, which explores and advocates for museums’ power to change the world and their essential roles in sustaining resilient communities by enriching education systems, bolstering economies, improving peoples’ wellbeing, and beyond. Since joining the Alliance in 2015, she also has directed key global, community engagement, and education-related initiatives. Her professional experience pre-AAM spanned the federal government and non-profit sectors and has included (and at times blended) projects related to international development, public diplomacy, arts education, youth leadership, and story-telling through public radio and video. She is an avid traveler and enjoys playing in a quartet in her spare time. Megan holds a master’s degree in education from Harvard University and a B.A. in international relations from the University of Virginia.

Susan Zwerling
Associate Director, Strategic Partnerships

Susan oversees a five-year AAM cooperative agreement with the National Park Service (NPS) that supports Community Engagement at multiple NPS urban sites across the country. She first joined AAM in 2016 as a Museum Assessment Program (MAP) Officer in the Excellence Department. She began her museum career in the Education Department of an Art and Science Museum and has a background in healthcare, and staff training and development. She holds an M.A. in Museum Studies from John Hopkins University, and enjoys traveling, food, fiber arts, and visiting museums everywhere. 

Julie Hart
Senior Director of Standards & Excellence

Julie provides leadership and oversight of AAM’s Continuum of Excellence including the Accreditation and Museum Assessment Programs, and other standards and ethics initiatives of the Alliance. She has been involved with accreditation and efforts to nurture institutional excellence throughout her 20 + year tenure at AAM, providing her with insight into the practices, issues, and challenges faced by museums and non-profits of many types and sizes.

Diya Nagaraj
Museum Assessment Program Officer

As MAP Program Officer, Diya helps museums and Peer Reviewers through the MAP process and works with institutions in the Core Documents Verification Program. Prior to joining AAM in 2023, she worked as the Albert Ravenholt Curator of Danish-American Culture at the Museum of Danish America, where she was responsible for their on-site and traveling exhibits. She has her M.Litt. in Technical Art History from the University of Glasgow and her B.A. in Environmental Policy and Art History & Archaeology from Washington University in St. Louis. Outside of the office, you can find her watching hockey, testing out new recipes, or at a local farmers’ market.

Danyelle Rickard
Assistant Director, Accreditation

Danyelle joined AAM in 2014, first as a Program Officer MAP and then for Accreditation. She manages AAM’s volunteer team of Peer Reviewers and supports many other programs at AAM. Danyelle manages the day-to-day administration of the Accreditation program, alongside fellow Assistant Director Martha Sharma. Danyelle consults and supports the Accreditation Commission, guiding the work and informing the decision-making of this group of senior museum professionals.  Prior to coming to AAM, Danyelle worked in registration/collections management at Winterthur Museum, the Delaware Historical Society, the Jewish Museum of Maryland, the Baltimore Museum of Industry, and as the Director at the Susquehanna Museum at the Lock House. She has a B.A. in History from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and an M.A. in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University. Danyelle is a past Vice-Chair for the Registrar’s Committee for MAAM and supports museum collections work through other various volunteer opportunities. When not working you will find Danyelle spending time with her family and friends, reading and visiting museums!

Brianne Roth
Museum Assessment Program Officer

Brianne joined AAM in 2018 as Member Services Manager, working directly with AAM’s members to ensure seamless customer service. She now works with museums and peer reviewers participating in the Museum Assessment Program (MAP) and with museums participating in the Core Document Verification Program. Prior to joining AAM, Brianne worked in public programming and museum education with the Nantucket Historical Association. She has a B.A. in History from Randolph College and an M.A. in History with a concentration in Public History from American University. She enjoys sharing her passion for museums and spending time outdoors.

Martha Sharma
Assistant Director, Accreditation

Martha manages the day-to-day administration of the Accreditation Program, alongside fellow Assistant Director Danyelle Rickard. She guides museums and peer reviewers through all stages of the accreditation process. Martha also consults and supports the Accreditation Commission, guiding the work and informing the decision-making of this group of senior museum professionals. Martha is a former registrar and collections manager, having held positions at the National Building Museum, The Art Institute of Chicago, and the David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago. She got her start in the museum field at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and has a B.A. in Art History from the University of California, Irvine.

Stanneke Pijpers
Grant Programs Coordinator

Stanneke is AAM’s Grant Programs Coordinator, managing grants for the departments of Excellence and Social Impact. Stanneke is a return AAM employee: she previously worked for AAM’s Accreditation program and Information Center. Prior to first joining AAM in 2005, Stanneke worked in various DC area museums. She has an M.A. in American Studies from the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands and a certificate in Museum Studies from George Washington University. She loves cooking, spending time outdoors, and visiting museums (of course) all over the world.

Barry Szczesny
Director, Government Relations and Public Policy

Barry Szczesny is director of government relations and public policy where he develops, implements, executes and evaluates the Alliance’s current and long-range public policy goals and legislative objectives. Barry has more than 20 years of federal government relations and advocacy experience representing non-profit organizations, including museums, most recently as principal of Potomac Federal Consulting. As an attorney, he served as outside general counsel to The Art Institute of Chicago. Barry is a return AAMer: from 1996 to 2001, he was AAM’s government affairs counsel and assistant director of the Government and Public Affairs Department and looks forward to once again helping advance its mission to champion museums. He lives in Alexandria with his wife and four-year-old son.

Brandy Dillingham
Director, Advocacy

Brandy joined AAM as Director of Advocacy in 2024, managing AAM’s overall grassroots and advocate-mobilization strategy and campaigns. Brandy is a policy and advocacy professional with over 17 years of experience. During her seven years working for a member of Congress, she handled policy areas of relevance to AAM including arts, humanities, historic preservation, among others. She most recently spent over ten years working for a scientific professional membership society organizing grassroots advocacy efforts such as Congressional Visits Days, providing advocacy trainings, and program management. Outside of the office, she is an avid hiker and camper, who volunteers her time to maintaining and repairing hiking trails on public lands.

Elizabeth Merritt
Vice President, Strategic Foresight & Founding Director, Center for the Future of Museums

Elizabeth is AAM’s vice president for strategic foresight, and founding director of the Center for the Future of Museums—a think-tank and research & development lab for the museum field. She is the author of the Alliance’s annual TrendsWatch report, and writes and speaks prolifically on the trends shaping the future of nonprofit organizations. (M.A. Duke University, B.S. Yale University, Museum Management Institute).

Natanya Khashan
Associate Vice President, Marketing & Digital Experience

Natanya oversees AAM’s audience strategy and initiatives, including external communications and content publications, and serves as AAM’s press contact. Before joining AAM in 2019, Natanya led marketing and communications for a global diversity and inclusion consulting firm after having served in various roles in the arts and culture sector including as a museum educator for teen programs in Boston. Natanya holds a BFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and an MA in arts management from American University with a focus on the intersection of technology and the arts and DEAI in the museum field.

Cecelia Walls
Assistant Director, Member Resources

Cecelia oversees digital content strategy on the Alliance blogs and website. She started her career as a registrar in museums and came to the Alliance as an accreditation coordinator in 2008. Cecelia holds a BA in historic preservation from Mary Washington University and an MA in museum studies from the University of Leicester, England. Her favorite animal is a Giant Panda and she enjoys hearing or reading a good ghost story.

Joseph O’Neill
Content Manager and Editor II

Joseph is responsible for editing and publishing online content. He has a professional background in communications and digital publishing, both in and out of the museum field, and an academic background in art history and communication studies.

Rachel Lee
Assistant Director, Marketing & Communications

Rachel joined AAM’s Marketing & Communications team in 2019, bringing with her a range of experience in publication production, business marketing, project coordination, and work for small museums in the Washington, D.C. area. She maintains a deepening interest in public history and digital humanities. She lives in Alexandria and, outside of work hours, is frequenting local bookstores, libraries, or searching for her next new mini-weekend excursion. She holds a master’s degree in Global, International, and Comparative History from Georgetown University and a B.A. in History from George Washington University, and has completed training in marketing and digital media.

Carys Kunze
Research & Data Manager

As Research & Data Specialist, Carys Kunze supports the development and execution of research projects and data collection for the Alliance. Before joining AAM in 2022, Carys served in various roles in the museum field at Glenstone, the Saint Louis Zoo, and the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill. Outside of her work at AAM, Carys enjoys choral singing and hiking.

Anthony Hovington
IT and Digital Media Specialist

Anthony is the IT and Digital Media Specialist at AAM. He has over 25 years of experience as an IT professional. Anthony assists the Director of IT and is responsible for the day to day IT and A/V support at the office. In addition, he is the technical lead for the Content Team and for digital media projects. Anthony is a graduate of Duke University with a B.A. in Afro-American Studies with a Concentration in Computer Science. Originally from Delaware, he is known outside of the office as “The Hip Hop Historian” and you may bump into him at events related to Hip Hop Culture in the DC Area.

Carlos Arroyo
Senior Web Developer

Jennifer Calvert Hall
Vice President of Advancement

Jennifer oversees AAM’s advancement, meetings, and professional development initiatives, strategically supporting partnerships and the museum community. Prior, Jennifer held positions as executive director for the Fund for Education Abroad, major gifts officer for the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and associate director for Ford’s Theatre. Jennifer earned her BA from F.I.T., SUNY, and an MA in curatorial studies from the New School program at Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.

Jena Gilbert-Merrill
Director of Institutional Relations

Jena is responsible for shaping AAM’s relationships with foundations, year-over-year corporate partners, and other organizations. Most recently, she worked in fundraising and impact assessment at the Center for Craft, transforming their foundation giving, and has also supported AAM with grant writing and copy editing. Based in Asheville, NC, Jena is a ceramic artist, an avid reader and lover of stories, and a frequent museum-goer. 

Michelle Lacey
Member Database Administration Manager

Michelle reads every didactic panel when visiting museum exhibitions and gives equal attention to AAM donors in her role as Development Coordinator. Previously, she served as Registration Coordinator for D. Stafford and Associates and the National Association of Clery Compliance Officers & Professionals (NACCOP), responsible for all national and private-institution class management, monitoring registration levels of 90+ national events, and database administration. Michelle holds a B.A. from Syracuse University in marketing. She enjoys cooking, traveling and enthusiastically cheering on her three sons at their various sporting events.

Shelon Atwater, CEM
Director, Industry Partnerships

Shelon Atwater, director, exhibits & revenue programs is responsible for the planning, management and execution of the exhibit hall at the AAM Annual Meeting and MuseumExpo.  She also assists with the management of non-dues revenue generating operations.  Shelon started off in member services at the Alliance in 1992.

Kyle Johnson
Membership Coordinator

Kyle is a Membership Coordinator, fielding membership inquiries about AAM membership benefits, services, and programs. Kyle earned his B.A. degree in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay. On the weekends, you can find him browsing the antique stores.

Ren Dryzer
Membership Coordinator

Ren is a Membership Coordinator, providing members with information about AAM products, services, and programs and assisting with many aspects of membership operations. Ren holds a B.A. in Arts Management from the College of Charleston. Outside of the office, you can usually spot Ren at any farmers market or local arts festival.

Amy Kampf
Associate Vice President of Finance & Administration

Amy Kampf is Director of Accounting at the American Alliance of Museums and uses her eye for detail and ability to analyze various situations and scenarios to help effectively manage AAM’s financials. Prior to joining AAM in 2019, Amy held positions in Development and Accounting at nonprofits such as the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and the Bay Area Discovery Museum in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has a striking passion for innovative work which addresses today’s most pressing needs within a community, a nation, and worldwide, and believes an organization’s operations, along with their internal and external communication, are key to what keeps society evolving and moving forward. Amy graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, and is preparing for the CPA exam.

Vanessa Garcilazo
Accounting Manager

Vanessa Garcilazo is Staff Accountant at the American Alliance of Museums and is responsible for the daily AR and AP duties, as well as month-end close. She works closely with all departments at AAM and enjoys being the foundational support that her team needs. While AAM is the first non-profit organization Vanessa has worked for, she has 7+ years of experience in her field and is currently working towards her B.S in Accounting at George Mason University. Vanessa strives to keep learning and developing her skills in accounting.

Alana Gibson
Human Resources Manager

Alana has a broad background in human resources management, coming to AAM from the National Association of Manufacturers, where she was a Human Resources Generalist. She is certified by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM), and earned degrees in Organizational Communications, and Theatre Arts Administration.

Grace Belizario
Assistant Director, Community Engagement

Grace comes to AAM from the Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP), where she led the nonprofits nation-wide programs, volunteers, instructors, partnerships, capacity-building initiatives, and supported the ongoing development of evidence-based research. She has 20 years of project, program, and event management experience, along with a rich communications background. Away from the office she actively volunteers in her community, engages in the performing and visual arts, hikes regularly, and is an avid runner. She has a BFA from the Corcoran College of Art + Design.

Tiffany Gilbert, DES
Director, Meetings & Learning Programs

Tiffany Gilbert, DES, Director, Meetings & Learning Programs is responsible for programming, and logistical management of virtual and in-person meetings and the creation of year-round learning programs for the museum community. Tiffany oversees the volunteer-led Content Advisory Committee (CAC) to drive content sourcing and program development, and works in collaboration with the Local Host Committee to highlight the host city museums during the annual meeting.

Tieyara Jones
Senior Manager, Meetings & Events

Tieyara Jones, Manager, Meetings & Events focuses on the many logistics for AAM Annual Meeting and MuseumExpo, Museums Advocacy Day, and future virtual events. Tieyara previously worked as a Sr. Program Coordinator at the National Medical Fellowships, where she managed various stakeholders for event logistics, recruitment strategies, and created digital content.

Dean Phelus
Editor in Chief, Museum & Senior Director, Special Projects

Dean has oversight for editorial content for Museum magazine, book publishing, leadership programs, and the Conference of the Americas. He has been at the Alliance for over two decades where he previously provided supervision for the meetings and professional development department and international programs. He enjoys travel, documentary films, and great stories.