Museum director leaving to take new position
December 10, 2012
907-474-6941
12/10/12
University of Alaska Museum of the North Director Carol Diebel has accepted a job at the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii as the senior vice president of public programs. Her last day at the UA Museum will be Dec. 31.
“As much as I am disappointed to leave Fairbanks before completing the many and varied projects we've envisioned, I am looking forward to the challenge of designing a new public programs unit within the Bishop Museum,” she said.
Diebel commended the museum staff for creating several innovative exhibits during her tenure. The Butterfly Pavilion brought live butterflies into the museum and the special exhibit Leggy featured spiders, insects, and other arthropods. The museum also continues to support an ambitious education program, hosting thousands of school children each year on docent-led tours, and world-renowned collections-based research housed in the curator’s labs.
A slate of upcoming exhibits, films, and other projects are currently in production. Diebel is looking forward to seeing the special exhibit Hibernation and the Science of Cold, produced in collaboration with the Institute of Arctic Biology, open Dec. 15 in the Special Exhibits Gallery.
“I am proud of the work we've done,” Diebel said.
The museum’s previous director, Aldona Jonaitis, will serve as the interim director until a nationwide search can be completed.
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Emilie Nelson, executive assistant, at 907-474-6443 or via email at emilie.nelson@alaska.edu.