Editor: We’re releasing the news of our new Executive Director: meet Dr. Rhonda Bathurst.

The Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Dr. Rhonda Bathurst has been appointed as the new Executive Director of the Museum of Ontario Archaeology. Her position will commence on September 26, 2016.

Rhonda received her PhD in Anthropology from McMaster University in 2005, and has worked in archaeology around the world, including Belize, Iceland, California, the Pacific Northwest Coast and here at home in Ontario. With seven years of experience managing Sustainable Archaeology: Western, just next door, Rhonda is already well acquainted with the Museum, its core values and its staff.

From Rhonda:

“After over 30 years of experience in archaeology, I couldn’t be more proud or delighted about this opportunity to become a vital conservator of my home province’s cultural heritage. Archaeology is about narrative; it’s about telling informed stories, in multiple voices, from a fragmented and partially preserved record. My experience at Sustainable Archaeology has introduced me to exciting new technologies that archaeologists are using to share these narratives, and my vision involves using these sorts of tools to create interactive and meaningful ways of learning about and engaging with Ontario’s heritage. The Museum is a community space, where the present interacts with the past. It has a rich history of its own, and has touched many lives of researchers and residents, both here in London and across the province. I aim to share this resource broadly, to brand the Museum not only as a facility for historians, descendant communities, and students, but as a destination hub of Ontario archaeological resources, practices, and innovations. I look forward to forging new relationships and to working with the enthusiastic and supportive group of people who make up the Board of Directors, staff, interns, volunteers and students of the MOA team.”

Editor note: The highlighted link for Dr. Bathurst brings you to her Academia.edu page, where you’ll find her published papers. To read her works, you’ll need to register – it’s free to do so.