Visitor Experience Group
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Keynote, Signature Session, and Workshop Presenter Bios
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Join us as we welcome Keynote Speaker Mar Dixon to #VEX19.
Mar Dixon is a digital engagement strategist and storyteller. She has launched several global campaigns such as #MuseumSelfie #MusMeme #LoveTheatreDay and #AskACurator that have attracted participation from thousands of museums and theatres and received widespread media attention widespread media coverage including the Guardian and Hyperallergic. Mar has advised international cultural and theatre institutions on creating dynamic new approaches to community engagement and participation such as the Royal Shakespeare Company and Science Museum. She has also consulted with the social media platform Twitter on running campaigns and worked on the global project event Museomix. Mar regularly speaks at global confer ences and is a mentor on international project POEM and Guest Lecturer. Her latest project, 52Museums on Instagram, a unique collaborative storytelling platform shared by museums across the world has been oversubscribed for 2019.
The Keynote Address will be held on Monday, October 14.
Join us as we welcome Signature Session speaker Steve McLaine to #VEX19.
Steve McLaine is the Vice President of Happy Customers for Dogfish Head Companies. Dogfish Head has proudly been focused on brewing beers with culinary ingredients outside the Reinheitsgebot since the day it opened as the smallest American craft brewery 24 years ago. Dogfish Head has grown into a top-20 craft brewery and has won numerous awards throughout the years. McLaine's work at Dogfish includes leadership of all consumer facing businesses including: restaurants, retail, lodging, tour and tasting, ecommerce, and branded partnerships.
A graduate of the Hotel and Restaurant Administration Program at SAIT Polyntechnic in Calgary, Alberta -McLaine has spent over 3 decades leading Restaurants, Hospitality, Retail and Catering and Convention operations in the US and Canada. Steve lives in Milton, Delaware with his wife Carolyn and boxer Lucy.
Steve will be presenting the Signature Session on Monday, October 14.
John Orr is the Executive Director of Art-Reach in Philadelphia. Under his leadership, Art-Reach has experienced unprecedented growth in terms of programmatic impact and revenue. During his tenure, Art-Reach has been recognized with the PNC Arts Alive Award for Arts Innovation in Honor of Peggy Amsterdam; Arts and Culture Award from the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations; Philebrity Nonprofit of the Year Award, the Impact100 Philadelphia Award, and the Designing Leadership Award.
In 2018, Orr was appointed by the Mayor of Philadelphia to serve on the Mayor's Commission on People with Disabilities. Additionally, Orr was one of 100 people in the country identified by TIAA as a Difference Maker 100 in their 2018 national competition. Previously, Orr worked with the Franklin Institute, Academy of Natural Sciences, Masonic Library and Museum of Pennsylvania, Fleisher Art Memorial, and the Science History Institute. Orr is a past-President and former board member of the Museum Council of Greater Philadelphia. A Philadelphia native, Orr is committed to making his city one of the most accessible arts cities in the country.
Andrea Jones is an independent consultant and master educator with 20 years experience as a change agent and professional rabble-rouser. She is a cheerleader for immersive experiences, complex stories, and big questions over trivial facts. She works with museums across the country to reinvent storytelling and interpretive methods. In 2016, her team won the award for "Innovation in Museum Education" from the American Alliance of Museums. Operating under the name Peak Experience Lab, her clients include Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, National Museum of Natural History, Wisconsin Historical Society, and The First Amendment Museum among others. She blogs at PeakExperienceLab.com.
Margaret Middleton is an independent exhibit designer in Providence, Rhode Island, working at the intersection of design and social justice. Middleton has a degree in industrial design from the Rhode Island School of Design and 15 years of experience in the museum field. Middleton de veloped the Family Inclusive Language Chart in 2014 and consults with museums on implementing family inclusive practice. Their writing has been published in the Journal of Museum Education, Exhibition (NAME), Dimensions (ASTC), and Museum magazine (AAM).
Having served nearly 20 years in the public sector, Kerry Sautner prides herself on being a dedicated, energetic and common-sense leader who brings innovative education to people of all ages. In her current role as Chief Learning Officer at the National Constitution Center, she oversees all aspects of the public's on-site experience and leads the Center's National education efforts. Through these varied platforms, she drives the development and distribution of programs and online offerings to make the Center the nation's leading Cons titutional education resource. Kerry obtained her Doctorate in Education Leadership and Management from Drexel University where she researched the efficacy of using storytelling to teach police recruits about individual rights. She remains firmly committed to that topic in both her personal and professional life.
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