The Atlanta Historical Society was founded in 1926 to preserve and study Atlanta history. In 1990, after decades of collecting, researching, and publishing information about Atlanta and the surrounding area, the organization officially became Atlanta History Center. What began as a small, archival-focused historical society grew over the decades to encompass 33 acres of curated Goizueta Gardens, four historic houses, varied programming, and a range of signature and temporary exhibitions housed in the Atlanta History Museum (completed 1993).
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Susana Braner
Vice President of Sales & Operations
Susana received her BA in Public Relations from Georgia State University and has worked in the field of event and wedding planning for more than two decades. Prior to joining the Atlanta History Center team, Susana spearheaded the community events team at Emory University’s Crawford Long Hospital. While at Emory, she discovered her passion for working with the public to design events to be remembered for years to come. Susana later lead the event production team at A Divine Event. There, she oversaw the planning and execution of many events hosted at Swan House. She says that, with all that time spent planning weddings at Swan House, joining the History Center’s team felt like a homecoming. She is a past VP of Programs for Les Dames d’Edcoffier.
Email | 404.814.4087
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Paul Carriere
Chief Operating Officer
Executive Vice President of Operations & LegalPaul Carriere has been with Atlanta History Center since 2015. He began his career as a practicing attorney, but found himself more interested in the daily operations of the businesses he represented, rather than the practice. This set him down a path in the nonprofit sector. Prior to joining the team at Atlanta History Center, Paul spent ten years at the American Cancer Society. As the COO, Paul is ultimately responsible for day-to-day operations, as well as the management of the HR, marketing and brand strategy, and private events teams. Among his other responsibilities as COO, Paul lead the strategic planning process back in 2016, as well as the updated process for 2021.
Email | 404.814.4165
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Paul Crater
Vice President of Collections & Research Services
Paul manages the Kenan Research Center. He is the author of three books on the history of Atlanta, including Baseball in Atlanta, World War II in Atlanta, and co-author of Lost Atlanta. He is the curator of Voices Across the Color Line, an award-winning exhibition of the Atlanta Student Movement that appeared at the Atlanta History Center in 2010. In 2014, he was awarded an Emmy for his contribution in the development of 37 Weeks: Sherman on the March, which aired on Georgia Public Broadcasting. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Georgia State University.
Email | 404.814.4049
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Shatavia Elder
Vice President of Education
Shatavia serves as the strategic lead for all of our educational initiatives, reflecting the importance of the Education Department in delivering our mission. Through her role in developing and coordinating AHC’s educational programs, Shatavia seeks to leverage the diverse resources of the institution with innovative education practices to create immersive, meaningful, and relevant experiences for children of all ages. Prior to joining the Atlanta History Center in 2019, Shatavia accrued over 15 years of experience in the public school system serving in multiple capacities. Most notably, Shatavia facilitated trainings locally, nationally and internationally to include: National Youth at Risk, First Generation at Yale University, International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), Georgia Educational Technology Conference (GaETC), and Haiti Educational Council. Shatavia received her B.A. in Political Science from the University of West Georgia and her Master of Education from Nova Southeastern University. She was named Outstanding Georgia Citizen & District Wide Teacher of the Year (Dekalb County).
Email | 404.814.4146
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Ryan Nix Glenn
Vice President of Marketing & Brand Experience
Ryan is responsible for the strategic development and implementation of Atlanta History Center’s design and marketing initiatives. Prior to joining the team, Ryan worked as a designer for Son&Sons, the agency that executed the Atlanta History Center rebrand in 2016, creating brand identities, marketing campaigns, and strategic communications for nonprofit organizations and for-profit companies alike. Ryan holds a Master of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from Savannah College of Art and Design and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Rhetoric Studies from Oglethorpe University.
Email | 404.814.4094
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Sheffield Hale
President & Chief Executive Officer
F. Sheffield Hale is President and CEO of the Atlanta History Center. Prior to joining the Atlanta History Center in 2012 he served as Chief Counsel of the American Cancer Society, Inc. and was a Partner practicing corporate law in the firm of Kilpatrick Townsend LLP. Mr. Hale serves as a Trustee of the Partners for Sacred Places, Midtown Alliance, the Buckhead Coalition, and the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau. He is a member of the Advisory Board of both the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts and the Center for the Study of the American South. He is Trustee Emeritus of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and a Past Chair of the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, the Atlanta History Center, St. Jude’s Recovery Center, Inc., and the State of Georgia’s Judicial Nominating Commission. He was the Chair of the City of Atlanta Cyclorama Task Force and the Co-Chair of the Advisory Committee on City of Atlanta Street Names and Monuments Associated with the Confederacy. Mr. Hale received his B.A. in History from the University of Georgia summa cum laude in 1982 and his J.D. in 1985 from the University of Virginia School of Law. He is a member of the American Law Institute.
Email | 404.814.4020
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Claire Haley
Vice President of Public Relations and Programs
As Vice President of Public Relations and Programs, Claire leads the development and coordination of strategic communications and a variety of public events and programs at Atlanta History Center, including community days, author talks, dialogue series, and more. She joined Atlanta History Center in 2017 as a research and writing assistant. She then pursued opportunities to expand her expertise in communications and special projects, taking an active role in developing the institution’s new Strategic Plan and leading involvement in the national history and civics initiative Made By Us, among other projects. Claire graduated from the honors program at the University of Georgia with a B.A. in History and a B.A. in International Affairs, summa cum laude.
Email | 404.814.4129
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Jackson McQuigg
Vice President of Properties
Jackson handles capital projects, construction management, leases, and building-related contracts at the Atlanta History Center. A graduate of Wake Forest University, he most recently managed the move of the Battle of Atlanta Cyclorama painting to AHC. An avid transportation historian, he has authored or co-authored three books on railroad history, as well as numerous articles for Trains, Lines South, Canadian Rail and other railroad history publications. He has been with the Atlanta History Center since 1996. He maintains active memberships in the International Association of Museum Facility Administrators and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Email | 404.814.4064
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Erin O’Leary
Vice President of Development
Erin leads all aspects of fundraising at Atlanta History Center. Joining Atlanta History Center in 2021, Erin brings over 18 years of experience. Spending the majority of her career with organizations in New York City, Erin has worked with organizations in NY, FL and GA such as Carnegie Hall, The New York Public Library, Teach for America, the Foundation for Excellence in Education and Points of Light. She brings a vast range of fundraising experience including leading Capital Campaigns and other major fundraising initiatives. Erin received a BA from Southern Methodist University and a Master in Public Administration from NYU.
Emaill | 404.814.4056
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Sarah Roberts
Olga C. de Goizueta Vice President
Goizueta Gardens & Living CollectionsSarah provides the vision for Goizueta Gardens, serves as curator and garden designer, and leads the horticulture and agriculture staff. Together, this team creates immersive, meaningful, and ecologically beneficial gardens that represent Atlanta’s unique landscape history. Sarah’s 20+ year career in public gardens began with an internship in curation at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, where the importance of rich botanical diversity shared publicly in a beautiful way took root. She went on to become Curator of Herbaceous Plants and Outdoor Gardens at the New York Botanical Garden. Sarah holds a Bachelor of Science honors degree in Horticulture from Berry College, and a Postgraduate diploma with distinction from Garden Design School in England. Sarah has written for numerous publications, been featured on Martha Stewart Radio, the Canadian Broadcast Corporation, GardenSmart TV series, and the podcast Stuff You Missed in History Class.
Email | 404.814.4073
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Michael Rose
Chief Mission Officer
Executive Vice PresidentMichael has dedicated nearly four decades to the management and administration of historical collections and their preservation, interpretation, and presentation, as well as curatorial work in the fine and decorative arts. He is responsible for Atlanta History Center’s artifact and research content, including the Kenan Research Center, historic houses and gardens, exhibitions, as well as the library, archives, museum, and living collections. He is a Fellow of the Winterthur Museum Winter Institute and has served as a consultant to the American Alliance of Museums’ Museum Assessment Program. In 2015, he was a member of the History Center’s team that received an Emmy Award in Writing from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Southeast. He is the curator of nearly 20 exhibitions and the author of nine publications, including Atlanta Scenes; Atlanta: A Portrait of the Civil War; Atlanta: Then and Now; Historic Photos of Atlanta; and Lost Atlanta.
Email | 404.814.4043
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Jeff Rutledge
Vice President of Finance & Information Technology
Jeff has been at Atlanta History Center for more than thirteen years. He began his career at the History Center in accounting, which led him down the path to financial and information technology leadership. Prior to joining the team, Jeff worked for other non-profits across Atlanta. He has his BS in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
Email | 404.814.4156
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Jessica VanLanduyt
Senior Vice President of Guest Experiences
Jessica is Senior Vice President of Guest Experiences, a department that includes educational programming and historic houses, volunteers and interns, guest experience, and the museum shop. She holds a Master of Heritage Preservation (MHP) with a concentration in Public History from Georgia State University. Ms. VanLanduyt is an alumna of the History Leadership Institute class of 2017. She serves as Chair of the Historic House Committee of the American Association for State and Local History and is on the National Council of Women’s History Sites’ Research and Interpretation Committee. Ms. VanLanduyt has served on the Historic Preservation Commission for the City of Decatur since 2016.
Email | 404.814.4145
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Kristian Weatherspoon
Vice President of Digital Storytelling
Kristian Weatherspoon is Vice President of Digital Storytelling. With nearly 10 years of digital journalism experience, she has worked with news, public policy and government organizations to effectively deliver content to a variety of audiences across digital and social media platforms. Her passion for amplifying untold stories has taken her across the Southeast from blueberry farms in South Georgia exploring issues surrounding immigration to coastal Louisiana documenting the devastating impact of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Deep Water Horizon oil spill on local communities. As much of her work has been traditional broadcast journalism, she’s also spent time building digital issue campaigns in efforts to shift policy to improve the lives of the underserved populations in Mississippi. Kristian has received awards from the Georgia Associated Press and the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists (AABJ) for her work. Kristian received her master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from Northwestern University’s renowned Medill School of Journalism and a Bachelor of Science from Jackson State University.
Email | 404.814.4096
Kevin Edmiston
Manager of Education
Email | 404.814.4135
Chris Orchard
Director of Guest Experience
Email | 404.814.4044
Laurie Stevens
Guest Experience Coordinator at The Margaret Mitchell House
Email | 404.814.4054
Mary Wilson Joseph
Manager of Group Sales & Logistics
Email | 404.814.4110
Ariana Yandell
Membership and Donor Services Manager
Email | 404.814.4101
Staci Catron
Cherokee Garden Library Director
Email | 404.814.4046
Kate Daly
Visual Culture Archivist
Email | 404.814.2055
Erica Hague
Collections Manager
Email | 404.814.2068
Jena Jones
Manager of Reprographic Services
Email | 404.814.4067
Leah Lefkowitz
Manuscript Archivist
Email | 404.814.4041
Helen Matthews
Librarian
Email | 404.814.4048
Jennie Oldfield
Cherokee Garden Library Cataloger & Archivist
Email | 404.814.4124
Sue Verhoef
Director of Oral History & Genealogy
Email | 404.814.4042
Brett Bannor
Manager of Animal Collections
Email | 404.814.4148
Rosemary Bathurst
Senior Horticulturist for Native Plant Collections
Email | 404.814.4069
Laurie Carter
Horticulturist
Email | 404.814.4071
Travis Fisher
Senior Horticulturist & Plant Records Manager
Email | 404.814.4072
Tiffanny Jones
Director of Horticulture
Email | 404.814.4097
Emily Roberts
Director of Urban Agriculture
Email | 404.814.4068
Maleah Street
Senior Horticulturist
Email | 404.814.4082
Jayme Firestone
Manager of Volunteer and Intern Services
Email | 404.814.4053
The Atlanta History Center is a non-profit, public-benefit organization. The Board of Trustees of the Atlanta History Center serves in the public interest as it relates to the constituent parts of the Atlanta History Center and considers itself accountable to the public as well as the institution. The Board acts as the ultimate governing authority for the Atlanta History Center and is responsible for the formulation and maintenance of its general policies, standards, conditions, and procedures.
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Howard Palefsky
Chair
Mr. Howard D. Palefsky is a private investor, board member and advisor to healthcare companies.Mr. Palefsky served as the Managing Director, General Partner, and Managing Member from 2002 to 2015 and a Venture Partner from 1999 to 2002 at Montreux Equity Partners. From 1997 to 2002, he served as a Private Investor and Board member of healthcare companies. Over the past 40 years, Mr. Palefsky’s activities have included serving as a CEO, Board Chair and as a Director of numerous public and private companies; providing advice and guidance to companies, entrepreneurs, and managers with regard to industry trends and strategy, and making private investments. Prior to joining Montreux, he served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the NeurogesX Inc. From 1978 -1997 Mr. Palefsky was the Chairman and CEO of Collagen Corporation, a pioneer in the aesthetic medicine area.
Mr. Palefsky holds an M.B.A. from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business in 1971 and a B.S. from the City College of the City University of New York in 1967.Mr. Palefsky serves on the Board of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the 21st Century Foundation of the City College of New York.
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Jill Campbell
Treasurer
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Trudy Kremer
Secretary
Chloe Barzey
Rodney Bullard
Jill Campbell
Beverly M. DuBose III
Allison Dukes
Ernest Greer
Jocelyn Hunter
Abby Irby
Trudy Kremer
Louise Allen Moore
Angie Mosier
Allen Nance
Howard Palefsky
Kathleen Rollins
Teya Ryan
John Shlesinger
Will Skeean
Support for the Atlanta History Center website has been generously provided by the Fraser-Parker Foundation, SunTrust Trusteed Foundations: Florence C. and Harry L. English Memorial Fund, The Imlay Foundation, Victoria and Howard Palefsky, and Mr. and Mrs. James C. Kennedy.
Learn. More.
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Strategic Plan
Atlanta History Center’s 2016 strategic plan.
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Digital Publications
Explore our biannual member publications online.
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Governance
Governance of Atlanta History Center.
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Careers
Explore career opportunities at Atlanta History Center.