Ashley Meadows Email and Phone Number

Lead the creation and execution of education and visitor experience plan for upcoming exhibition, including development of programs and resources centering exhibition content, staffing plans and budgets, and education components of public programs. Manage ongoing national education initiatives, in collaboration with the APAC team, contractors, and partner organizations, by overseeing timelines, budgets, and deliverables. Serve as APAC's liaison with firm evaluating education programs, exhibition experience, and public programs.

Strategize forward-looking programming plan for a new, but growing museum. Conceptualizing, planning, and executing a slate of public programs. Partner with local and national community partners to promote the museum's mission. Collaborate across teams to bring engaging, fun, rigorous, and audience-centered programs to fruition in person and virtually.

Served as the inaugural Director of Education and Visitor Engagement to build education programs and the visitor experience for FUTURES, the Smithsonian’s first museum-wide exploration of the future. Created an inclusive visitor experience strategy and goals that are reflective and responsive to audience, exhibition, and institutional needs. Developed a thorough accessibility plan. Advocated for visitors in exhibition design, interpretive tools, and curatorial decisions. Mentored and managed the Guide team, from position design to training to mentorship in museum education and professional best practices. Shaped programming framework. Developed education resources for on-site and virtual visitors. Created “everyday magic” programming including family-friendly hands-on activities, accessible tours, and evening program series. Managed staffing and program budgets. Works with museum- and institution-wide stakeholders to establish and execute health and safety plans and practices.

Developed and implemented creative gallery programs such as Hirshhorn/DRAW and How to Look At Art in response to a fast-paced exhibition schedule. Managed, trained, and mentored Gallery Guides to facilitate gallery experiences that prioritize inclusion, close looking, and critical thinking. Diversified and grew the Gallery Guide Program through increased flexibility and expanded qualifying experience allowing greater participation of student interns and pre-professionals. Created and supervised Lead Guide role. Managed program budget. Developed accessible programming. Created approachable interpretive content for innovative tech projects including Pepper the Robot and our mobile guide, Hirshhorn Eye. During COVID-19, pivoted in-person programming to creating digital resources including Maker Morning and Hirshhorn/DRAW videos.

Recruit, coordinate, and mentor guides who engage visitors in informal conversations and lead public and private tours

Create and lead ART-TECH workshop series to foster STEAM interest in Korean audiences through informal maker and digital media learning using mobile technology

Mentor teens in radically inclusive digital art studio, contribute to curriculum development and formative evaluation, coordinate daily programming, manage social media

Design, write, and lead individualized arts-integrated lessons in the galleries and in DC public schools. Work with teachers to create personalized museum visits for PreK-12 students

• Assisted the planning and implementation of online meetings for arts integration stakeholders as part of the Prism of Arts Integration Initiative• Researched stakeholders, organized stakeholder availability, researched and troubleshot online meeting software, assisted in meeting content development

Develop, coordinate, market, and lead STEAM workshops that introduce teens to science experts and use science content to inspire art making, conduct formative and summative evaluation, create a model for cross unit collaboration across the Smithsonian Institution

• Developed and teach the Embroidery Basics course in which students learn several embroidery stitches and the skills to complete an embroidery project from start to finish

• Plan and teach student-centered conversational and academic lessons to adults from over 40 countries • Created and taught an English for career development curriculum for a Korean student group• Presented a professional development workshop for colleagues on using art in ESL lessons

• Lead focus group, analyzing qualitative data, and preparing report for an evaluation of the North Carolina Museum of Art’s Big Picture, an arts-integration resource for educators• Pilot tested and collected data for an evaluation of the Scientist Is In program at the National Museum of Natural History through focused observations and visitor interviews• Analyzed time tracking maps for an evaluation of the San Antonio Museum of Art

• Worked on a collaborative team to create an exhibition of student artwork from 15 museums across the country with the Association of Art Museum Directors at the U.S. Department of Education to showcase art museums' important role in K-12 education • Coordinated across organizations and departments, developed the website, created interpretive materials, installed the exhibition, and planned the opening event

• Implemented social media to enable adult English Language Learners to practice language skills through visual and informal learning• Presented practice at the EdLab Forum at the National Postal Museum in May 2012

• Planned and lead a museum trip for kindergarten students connecting their math curriculum with art, including pre- and post-visit lessons• Assisted in classroom three days per week with reading, math and free-choice activities

Developed curriculum and taught English to employees of Cat Ba National Park to enhance international collaboration between the Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project and Cat Ba Island National Park

• Planned and taught curriculum-based lessons to elementary and middle school students• Collaborated with both Korean and other native English speaking co-teachers