IGNITE TOMORROW - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Advisory Board
- Trustee, the Wright Brothers Family Foundation
Ann Caspari Ann Caspari is an early childhood education specialist and works to develop the Museum's learning experiences for young children and their families. Caspari also leads professional development in inquiry science for early childhood teachers. Read more Paul Ceruzzi Dr. Paul E. Ceruzzi, curator emeritus, is an authority in aerospace electronics and computing. Read more Dorothy Cochrane Dorothy Cochrane curates the collections of general aviation aircraft; flight materiel (specifically personal, business, and utility production aircraft); aerial cameras; and the history of general aviation and women in aviation. Read more Malcolm Collum Malcolm Collum is the Engen Conservation Chair and has been the Chief Conservator at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum since 2008. Read more Roger Connor Dr. Roger Connor curates the museum's vertical flight collection (helicopters, gyroplanes, and vertical takeoff and landing aircraft), Army ground force aircraft, remotely piloted and autonomous aircraft systems, ground effect vehicles, along with aircraft instruments and avionics, bombsights and Read more Bob Craddock Dr. Bob Craddock began his career as a geologist at the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 1988. Read more Tom Crouch Tom Crouch joined the Smithsonian in 1974 and has served both the National Air and Space Museum and the National Museum of American History in a variety of curatorial and administrative posts. Read more Beth Crownover With 20 years in informal education, Beth Crownover guides the National Air and Space Museum's Education team in leveraging the Museum's collections and science to engage the next generation of innovators and explorers by tapping into their natural curiosity and fostering their critical thinking Read more James David James David is a curator in the Space History Division and is responsible for national security space programs. The University Press of Florida published his Spies and Shuttles: NASA's Secret Relationships with the DoD and CIA in 2015. His articles on these programs have appeared in Read more Jean DeStefano Jean DeStefano is the Assistant Director of Education and oversees public programs at the Museum. She works with the staff who create and plan family days, lectures, virtual programs, astronomy outreach, and young adult strategies, including efforts like the Museum's podcast, AirSpace. Read more
Beth Knight Beth Knight joined the Museum as a textile conservator in 2020. She was previously the textile conservator for Girlhood (It's Complicated) at the National Museum of American History. Read more Russell Lee Mr. Lee is a curator in the Aeronautics Department of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. He curates two collections: sport and recreation aircraft including homebuilts, hang gliders, ultralights, and sailplanes, and the collection of Japanese World War II aircraft. Read more Jennifer Levasseur Dr. Jennifer Levasseur received her BA in history from the University of Michigan in 1999, an MA in American Studies from George Washington University in 2002, and a PhD in history at George Mason University in 2014. Read more Cathleen Lewis Dr. Cathleen Lewis is curator of International Space Programs and Spacesuits at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, specializing in Soviet and Russian programs. Read more Emily A. Margolis Dr. Emily A. Margolis is a social and cultural historian of spaceflight with expertise in women's and gender studies. Read more Emily Martin Dr. Emily Martin is a research physical scientist in the Museum's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies. Emily's research interests are in planetary surface processes and tectonic deformation across our solar system, especially the icy bodies of the outer solar system. Read more Andrew Meade McGee Dr. Andrew Meade McGee is an historian of science and technology who serves as curator of computing. He oversees the Museum's collection of computers, aerospace electronics, and devices related to guidance, navigation, and control in spaceflight. Read more Christopher Moore Christopher Moore received his BA in European History from the University of California, San Diego, and his MA in American History from George Mason University. Read more Alex Morgan Dr. Alex Morgan is a geologist who uses spacecraft data, computer modeling, and field work to decipher the environmental conditions present during the evolution of planetary landscapes. Read more Teasel Muir-Harmony Dr. Teasel Muir-Harmony is a historian of science and technology and the curator of the Apollo Collection. Before coming to the Smithsonian, she earned a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Read more
Colleen E. Anderson Dr. Colleen Anderson is a historian of technology, with an emphasis on popular perceptions of Cold War space technologies. She is curator of the post-1945 Rockets and Missiles collection. Read more James David James David is a curator in the Space History Division and is responsible for national security space programs. The University Press of Florida published his Spies and Shuttles: NASA's Secret Relationships with the DoD and CIA in 2015. His articles on these programs have appeared in Read more Jennifer Levasseur Dr. Jennifer Levasseur received her BA in history from the University of Michigan in 1999, an MA in American Studies from George Washington University in 2002, and a PhD in history at George Mason University in 2014. Read more Cathleen Lewis Dr. Cathleen Lewis is curator of International Space Programs and Spacesuits at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, specializing in Soviet and Russian programs. Read more Emily A. Margolis Dr. Emily A. Margolis is a social and cultural historian of spaceflight with expertise in women's and gender studies. Read more Andrew Meade McGee Dr. Andrew Meade McGee is an historian of science and technology who serves as curator of computing. He oversees the Museum's collection of computers, aerospace electronics, and devices related to guidance, navigation, and control in spaceflight. Read more Teasel Muir-Harmony Dr. Teasel Muir-Harmony is a historian of science and technology and the curator of the Apollo Collection. Before coming to the Smithsonian, she earned a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Read more Matthew Shindell Dr. Matthew Shindell is a historian of science whose work focuses on the history of the earth and planetary sciences, with an emphasis on the development of research programs in these fields during the Cold War. Read more Samantha Thompson Dr. Samantha M. Thompson is a historian of science and technology whose work focuses on the history of astronomy and space sciences. She is an Edward & Helen Hintz Secretarial Scholar and Curator of Science and Technology at the National Air and Space Museum. Read more Margaret A. Weitekamp In addition to serving as the department chair, Dr. Margaret A. Weitekamp curates the Museum's social and cultural history of spaceflight collection, more than 5,000 artifacts that include space memorabilia and space science fiction objects. Read more
Jim Zimbelman Dr. Jim Zimbelman served as the department chair of the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies from October 2002, to February, 2007, as part of a rotating chair position among the department scientists. Read more
John Anderson Dr. John D. Anderson, Jr. graduated from the University of Florida with High Honors and a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering Degree in 1959, and from The Ohio State University with a PhD in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering in 1966. Read more Dorothy Cochrane Dorothy Cochrane curates the collections of general aviation aircraft; flight materiel (specifically personal, business, and utility production aircraft); aerial cameras; and the history of general aviation and women in aviation. Read more Roger Connor Dr. Roger Connor curates the museum's vertical flight collection (helicopters, gyroplanes, and vertical takeoff and landing aircraft), Army ground force aircraft, remotely piloted and autonomous aircraft systems, ground effect vehicles, along with aircraft instruments and avionics, bombsights and Read more Michael Hankins Dr. Michael Hankins is the Curator of U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps post-World War II Aviation. Read more Russell Lee Mr. Lee is a curator in the Aeronautics Department of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. He curates two collections: sport and recreation aircraft including homebuilts, hang gliders, ultralights, and sailplanes, and the collection of Japanese World War II aircraft. Read more Christopher Moore Christopher Moore received his BA in European History from the University of California, San Diego, and his MA in American History from George Mason University. Read more Thomas Paone Thomas Paone curates the lighter-than-air collection, including balloons, blimps, and airships. The collection consists of over 500 items, from small pieces of fabric from the Hindenburg airship, to the Explorer II gondola Read more Carolyn Russo Carolyn Russo is the curator of the art collection, trophy collection, and temporary curator of the poster collection in her capacity as a museum specialist. She is the lead curator of the art gallery and is planning upcoming art exhibitions for its anticipated reopening in 2026. Read more Alex Spencer Dr. Alex M Spencer curates two collections at the museum: British and European military aircraft and military flight material. Read more Bob van der Linden Dr. F. Robert van der Linden is the Curator of Air Transportation and Special Purpose Aircraft and a supervisory curator in the Aeronautics Department. Read more
Mariah Baker Dr. Mariah Baker joined the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies as a post-doctoral fellow in 2019, after receiving her Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University. Read more Maria Banks Maria Banks received a PhD in geology and planetary science from the University of Arizona. Her graduate studies primarily involved the study of glaciers and ice sheets, climate change, and ice-related erosional and depositional landforms on Earth and Mars. Read more Bruce Campbell Dr. Bruce Campbell received a B.S. in Geophysics in 1986 from Texas A&M University, and a Ph.D. in Geology and Geophysics in 1991 from the University of Hawaii. Read more Bob Craddock Dr. Bob Craddock began his career as a geologist at the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 1988. Read more John Grant Dr. John A. Grant, III joined the Smithsonian in the fall of 2000 as a geologist at the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the National Air and Space Museum. Read more Ross Irwin Dr. Ross Irwin received his bachelor of science in geological sciences from Virginia Tech in 1997 and a PhD in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia in 2005. He completed a post-doctoral appointment at the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 2010. Read more Emily Martin Dr. Emily Martin is a research physical scientist in the Museum's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies. Emily's research interests are in planetary surface processes and tectonic deformation across our solar system, especially the icy bodies of the outer solar system. Read more Alex Morgan Dr. Alex Morgan is a geologist who uses spacecraft data, computer modeling, and field work to decipher the environmental conditions present during the evolution of planetary landscapes. Read more Sharon Purdy Dr. Sharon Wilson Purdy joined the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 2005 to investigate the geology and geomorphology of landforms on Mars that were formed and (or) modified by surface water. Read more Michelle Selvans Michelle Selvans is interested in near-surface structure and deformation processes of solid bodies in the solar system. She is currently studying the history of faulting (tectonics) on Mercury, and climate-controlled structure of the north polar ice cap on Mars. Read more
Job Titles:
- Member of the Advisory Board
- Executive Director, Sally Ride Science
Valerie Neal Dr. Valerie Neal is an emerita curator in the Department of Space History. She joined the Museum as a curator in 1989 and was responsible for human spaceflight artifact collections from the Space Shuttle era and International Space Station, most prominently the orbiter Read more Allan Needell Dr. Allan A. Needell, curator emeritus, earned a BA in physics from Cornell University and a PhD in the history of science from Yale University. Read more Julia Orr Julia Orr is a Museum Program Specialist for the S.H.E. Can program at the National Air and Space Museum. Julia focuses on creating opportunities and expanding access to STEM fields for underrepresented youth populations. Read more Thomas Paone Thomas Paone curates the lighter-than-air collection, including balloons, blimps, and airships. The collection consists of over 500 items, from small pieces of fabric from the Hindenburg airship, to the Explorer II gondola Read more Deborah Duerbeck Parr Deborah Duerbeck Parr holds an M.S. in Art Conservation from the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, where she studied the conservation of wood and paintings. Prior to that, she earned a B.A. Read more Dominick Pisano Dr. Dominick A. Pisano earned a BA from The Pennsylvania State University, an MS from Catholic University, and a PhD in American studies from George Washington University. Read more Sharon Purdy Dr. Sharon Wilson Purdy joined the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 2005 to investigate the geology and geomorphology of landforms on Mars that were formed and (or) modified by surface water. Read more Carolyn Russo Carolyn Russo is the curator of the art collection, trophy collection, and temporary curator of the poster collection in her capacity as a museum specialist. She is the lead curator of the art gallery and is planning upcoming art exhibitions for its anticipated reopening in 2026. Read more Erik Satrum Erik Satrum began work in the position of Chief Registrar at the National Air and Space Museum in 2009. In this role he manages the operations of the Registration team. During his tenure he has modernized procedures for loan management, deaccession transfers, and data management. Read more Michelle Selvans Michelle Selvans is interested in near-surface structure and deformation processes of solid bodies in the solar system. She is currently studying the history of faulting (tectonics) on Mercury, and climate-controlled structure of the north polar ice cap on Mars. Read more
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director for Exhibits
Francisco J Torres is the Assistant Director for Exhibits. He leads the Exhibits Production, Design, and Project Management Department. He is also the Museum Transformation Program Manager responsible for the execution of the new 23 new exhibits and spaces planned for the National Mall Building.
Francisco comes to the museum from the US Army Corps of Engineers in Europe where he served as Section Chief of a multi-national team that coordinated multiple programs for Military Construction, Operations and Maintenance projects, Morale Welfare and Recreation projects, and the design, planning and construction of over $1.5B of educational projects for The Department of Defense Education Activity. He is a retired Army Reserve Engineer Officer with 20 years of service. He deployed in 2006 to Iraq where he was awarded The Iraq Campaign Medal (ICM) and The Combat Action Badge (CAB). Additionally he volunteered for two civilian deployments to support the USACE and the 82nd AD in Afghanistan in 2008 and 2012.
He has a BA in Communications and a Masters of Architecture from New Jersey Institute of Technology with a Project Management Professional certification.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director for Research
- Contributor
Jeremy R. Kinney is the Associate Director for Research and Curatorial Affairs at the National Air and Space Museum. He leads the Museum's three research and curatorial departments (Aeronautics, CEPS, and Space History) and provides counsel and advice on curatorial and museum affairs to the Director and Senior Leadership Team.
As a curator, Dr. Kinney oversees three collections at the Museum: interwar and World War II American military aviation, air racing, and aircraft propulsion. They number approximately 4,000 artifacts and range in size from a small puddle carburetor from 1911 to military fighter and bomber aircraft from World War II. All three collections document how communities developed high performance aircraft and technology to express their visions of what flight could achieve for humankind in times of peace and war. In addition to collecting, interpreting, and documenting those artifacts, Kinney has been involved in several preservation and restoration projects, including the Curtiss R3C-2 racer, the Curtiss SB2C-5 Helldiver dive-bomber, and the Martin B-26B Marauder Flak-Bait medium bomber.
Dr. Kinney's research focuses on technology in the United States and Europe over the course of the twentieth century. He is the author of Reinventing the Propeller: Aeronautical Specialty and the Triumph of the Modern Airplane (Cambridge University Press, 2017), which received a 2018 Secretary's Research Prize at the Smithsonian and the 2020 Gardner-Lasser Aerospace History Literature Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. His other publications include The Power for Flight: NASA's Contributions to Aircraft Propulsion (NASA, 2017), Airplanes: The Life Story of a Technology (Greenwood Press, 2006; Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008), essays in various anthologies, and articles in ICON and Journal of Aircraft. He is co-author of Alaska and the Airplane: A Century of Flight (Braun, 2013). His current research interests include international air racing in the 1920s and 1930s and the history of the European sports car in the United States after 1945.
Dr. Kinney is a contributor to the multi-volume The Wind and Beyond: A Documentary Journey into the History of Aerodynamics in America, published by NASA. For his work on Volume One of The Wind and Beyond, he is a co-recipient of the inaugural Eugene Ferguson Prize given by the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT). The Ferguson Prize is named in honor of one of SHOT's pioneering members and recognizes an outstanding and original reference work that will support future scholarship in the history of technology.
At the Museum, Dr. Kinney was co-curator for the Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight Gallery at the Museum in Washington, DC. He also curated exhibits and displays on aircraft propulsion systems, military aviation, and jet aircraft. Outside the National Air and Space Museum, Dr. Kinney has served as guest curator for aviation and technology-themed exhibitions at the Anchorage Museum in Alaska, the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal, and the Coventry Transport Museum in England.
Dr. Kinney earned a BA from Greensboro College and a PhD in history from Auburn University. During his graduate work, he was a University Presidential Graduate Fellow and was awarded both the American Historical Association/NASA Aerospace History Fellowship and the National Air and Space Museum's Guggenheim Fellowship. He has also taught courses in aerospace history at the University of Maryland at College Park, George Mason University, and New York University.
Jerrad Alexander Jerrad Alexander is an objects conservator specializing in aerospace objects and other large technology. He served in the U.S. Air Force as an Aircraft Armament Systems Specialist and Flight Engineer. Read more Colleen E. Anderson Dr. Colleen Anderson is a historian of technology, with an emphasis on popular perceptions of Cold War space technologies. She is curator of the post-1945 Rockets and Missiles collection. Read more John Anderson Dr. John D. Anderson, Jr. graduated from the University of Florida with High Honors and a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering Degree in 1959, and from The Ohio State University with a PhD in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering in 1966. Read more Mariah Baker Dr. Mariah Baker joined the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies as a post-doctoral fellow in 2019, after receiving her Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University. Read more Shannon Baldioli Shannon Baldioli coordinates the Education Department's teacher professional development efforts, including both local and national programs. She also spent nearly four years working with the Museum's Explainers Program at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Read more Maria Banks Maria Banks received a PhD in geology and planetary science from the University of Arizona. Her graduate studies primarily involved the study of glaciers and ice sheets, climate change, and ice-related erosional and depositional landforms on Earth and Mars. Read more Elizabeth Beesley Elizabeth Beesley is an objects conservator and began working at the Museum in 2017. She holds an MEng in Materials Science from the University of Oxford, an MA in Principles of Conservation, and an MSc in Conservation for Archaeology and Museums, both from University College London. Read more Laura Blanton Laura Blanton serves as the Holt Scholars Coordinator at the National Air & Space Museum Mall Building. In this capacity, she develops and implements educational programming for middle school students and teachers in the Washington D.C. area. Read more Marcy Borger Marcy Borger began working at the National Air and Space Museum in 2008 and has worked on a variety of projects including collections rehousing and surveying, artifact storage planning and upgrades, photography, inventory, and emergency preparation. Read more Bruce Campbell Dr. Bruce Campbell received a B.S. in Geophysics in 1986 from Texas A&M University, and a Ph.D. in Geology and Geophysics in 1991 from the University of Hawaii. Read more
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director for Logistics at the Smithsonian
Jim Evans is the Assistant Director for Logistics at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. He is responsible for the overall planning, development, and oversight of the Museum's programs and activities related to facilities management, health and safety, and emergency operations. Evans has helped lead a multi-year effort to revitalize the Museum's National Mall Building in Washington, DC, including the building envelope and major systems.
Evans joined the Smithsonian in June 2016 after his retirement from the U.S. Navy. He served as an enlisted Seabee and Civil Engineer Corps officer, responsible for executing and managing the planning, design, acquisition, construction, operation, and maintenance of the Navy's shore facilities. Additionally, he made numerous worldwide deployments, providing construction support for critical infrastructure and disaster/humanitarian relief efforts during 23 years of active service.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Oregon State University and a Master of Engineering in Project Management from the University of Maryland, and he is a licensed Professional Engineer.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Advisory Board
- Director, National Air and Space Museum
Christopher Browne is the John and Adrienne Mars Director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. Browne joined the museum as deputy director in 2017 and served as acting director from 2021 to 2022, when he was named director. He has helped lead the museum's multi-year renovation of its flagship building in Washington, D.C.
Browne served as a naval flight officer in the U.S. Navy, flying F-14 Tomcats off the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, making numerous deployments to the Mediterranean, North Atlantic and Caribbean during seven years of active service. Browne amassed over 1,400 flight hours and more than 300 carrier landings, and he is a graduate of the U.S. Navy's "Top Gun" Fighter Weapon School.
In 1988, Browne joined the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority where he served in Operations at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport until selected as the airport manager in 1998. He managed National Airport for seven years; a period that included significant construction and the events of Y2K and 9/11. In 2005, Browne accepted the airport manager position at Washington Dulles International Airport where he led the airport through a pronounced phase of significant growth and development. In addition to managing a staff of over 500 employees, Browne was responsible for an aviation revenue stream exceeding $400 million, as well as the revenues generated on the Dulles Toll Road used to construct the WMATA Metrorail line to Dulles.
Browne was awarded the Virginia "Airport Manager of the Year" in 2002 and served as the president of the Southeast Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in history from Dartmouth College and a Master of Science in aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and he serves on the Space Foundation and Aero Club of Washington Boards.
Paul Griffith Paul Griffith is the Education Department's Audio-Visual Specialist. He serves as the resident expert on AV technologies and wares, and supports a wide range of programming offered by the museum, including STEM in 30, What's New In Aerospace, and Flights of Fancy Storytime. Read more Barbara Gruber Barbara Gruber, PhD CETL, is the Assistant Director of Education, School Programs at the National Air and Space Museum. Her programs focus on student and educator experiences with the Museum. Read more Michael Hankins Dr. Michael Hankins is the Curator of U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps post-World War II Aviation. Read more Kelly Harro Kelly Harro is a Coordinator for the Museum's celebrated Explainers Program. She is one of a trio of staff that oversee nearly 100 high school and college students who bring the Museum's STEM concepts to life through hands-on activities and interactive demonstrations. Read more Christine Haynes Christine Haynes started at National Air and Space Museum as Objects Conservator in 2022 as part of the Transformation Project. Read more Lauren Anne Horelick Lauren Anne Horelick has been an objects conservator at NASM since 2012. Read more Mike Hulslander Mike Hulslander has worked in museums and zoos for more than 28 years-researching, writing, presenting, and evaluating science programs for school groups, families, and the general public. Read more Ross Irwin Dr. Ross Irwin received his bachelor of science in geological sciences from Virginia Tech in 1997 and a PhD in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia in 2005. He completed a post-doctoral appointment at the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies in 2010. Read more Marty Kelsey Marty Kelsey is one of the Museum's hosts of STEM in 30, a fast-paced show for middle school students. Before coming to the Museum, Kelsey taught elementary school and middle school science and broadcasting in Liberty, Missouri. Read more Diane Kidd Diane Kidd is a museum educator who is focused on the Museum's Barron Hilton Early Childhood program. In addition to the Flights of Fancy Storytime program, Kidd also works in partnership with local theatre companies to present aviation and space themed, child-friendly puppet plays. Read more