FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Lisa A. Batitto, Public Relations Manager, Newark Museum
Phone: 973-596-6638, e-mail: lbatitto@newarkmuseum.org
Jerry Enis, Consultant, Herbert George Associates
Phone: 732-446-5400, e-mail: jerry@herbertgeorge.com
Newark Museum Names Sonnet Takahisa
as Deputy Director of Education
NEWARK – Newark Museum Director and Chief Executive Officer Steven
Kern has announced the appointment of Sonnet Takahisa as Deputy
Director of Education, succeeding Ted Lind who retired in 2013.
“Sonnet brings an impressive record of innovation to the Newark Museum,”
Kern said. “We welcome her passion for the power of museums to excite and
engage that will help take our institution to the next level regionally and
nationally.”
For many years, Takahisa has been a consultant to museums, cultural
institutions and schools, focusing on public engagement, community
building and education reform. She has served on national and local task
forces for museums, arts, pre-K through higher education, government
funding agencies and foundations.
Additionally, she was instrumental in initiating programs at Boston
Children’s Museum, Seattle Art Museum, Brooklyn Museum and the
National September 11 Memorial & Museum. From 1993 – 2003 she was
the founding co-director of The NYC Museum School, a groundbreaking
public school that used the “Museum Learning” model to engage middle and
high school students by providing direct access to the resources of New York
City cultural institutions. She also served as Senior Program Officer at New
Visions for Public Schools, a New York academic management organization,
where she worked with a portfolio of new schools co-created by arts and
cultural organizations, youth leadership groups and the New York City
Department of Education. For six years, Takahisa coordinated the statewide
Museum School Partnership Professional Learning Network for the New
York State Council on the Arts. Recently she consulted on exhibit planning
and design for museums and early childhood education.
She has taught intensive graduate seminars for The Johns Hopkins
University Museum Studies students and later this year will lead a
professional development seminar for students of the State University of
New York/ NY State Historical Association Cooperstown Graduate Program
in museum studies.
“I am a firm believer in the Newark Museum as a community anchor, a place
that serves the needs of our audiences and provides a dynamic environment
for people to make connections with one another and with our collection
and exhibits,” Takahisa said. “I look forward to expanding and creating new
opportunities for engaging our visitors both in the museum and online.”
A resident of Brooklyn, NY, Takahisa holds a bachelor’s degree in East Asian
Studies from Harvard University, Radcliffe College and a master’s degree in
East Asian Studies from the University of Washington, School of
International Studies.
-- end --
ABOUT THE NEWARK MUSEUM
The Newark Museum is located at 49 Washington Street in the Downtown/Arts District of
Newark, New Jersey, just 3 blocks from NJPAC and 10 miles west of New York City. The
Museum is open all year round: Wednesdays through Sundays, from Noon – 5:00 p.m.
Suggested Museum admission: Adults, $12.00; Children, Seniors and Students with valid
I.D., $7.00. Newark Residents and Members are admitted free. The Museum Café is open
for lunches Wednesday through Sunday. Convenient parking is available for a fee. The
Newark Museum campus, including its collections, facilities, and other resources, is
accessible to accommodate the broadest audience possible, including individuals utilizing
wheelchairs, with physical impairments, other disabilities, or special needs. For general
information, call 973-596-6550 or visit our web site, http://www.NewarkMuseum.org.
Newark Museum, a not-for-profit museum of art, science and education, receives operating
support from the City of Newark, the State of New Jersey, the New Jersey Council on the
Arts/Department of State — a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the
New Jersey Cultural Trust, the Prudential Foundation, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation,
the Victoria Foundation, the Wallace Foundation and other corporations, foundations and
individuals.
The Newark Museum is just a few steps from the new NJTransit Light Rail
Washington Park Station. Direct connection with the Light Rail at the Broad
Street Station and through Penn Station makes the Museum a convenient ride
from all points in the region.