MSA Board of Directors

BLUE ANDERSON, PRESIDENT

Blue Anderson is the Director of Visitor Services for the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, OR. Blue has been a member of MSA since 2000 and is a past President of the Pacific Northwest Chapter. She is also a member of the Board Governance Committee and MSA’s Education Advisory Group (EAG). Blue’s passion is education and her outstanding commitment to advancing educational programs and opportunities will help MSA achieve its strategic goals in the future.

KAREN MCNEELY, FIRST VICE PRESIDENT

Karen McNeely is the Director of Retail Operations at the Milwaukee Art Museum in Milwaukee, WI. Karen’s retail career started with Carson Pirie Scott, a Midwest department store. She held positions in both store management and the buying office during her 19 year tenure. In 2008, she started with the Milwaukee Art Museum. Karen credits her MSA membership with helping her make a smooth transition to the nonprofit world.

PATRICIA SAMPSON, SECOND VICE PRESIDENT

Patricia Sampson is the Manager of Retail Shops & Visual Merchandising at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia. Patricia began her career in profit retail in her home state of New York. She wore many different hats in her young career from assistant buyer, to buyer, and even fashion show coordinator. All of these experiences have been instrumental to her success in her current position at The High. Patricia is a dedicated and passionate member of MSA. She has previously served on MSA chapter and national committees, on the regional board of the South Atlantic Chapter, and now serves a second term on the MSA Board of Directors. Lastly, Patricia is an avid sports fan, volleyball being her favorite. She enjoys sewing, cooking and spending quality time with family and friends.

MEG HAUSER, SECRETARY

Meg Hauser is the Visitor Services Manager at The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures in Kansas City, Missouri, where her responsibilities extend beyond Visitor Services and the Museum Store to areas such as operations, administration, bookkeeping, facilities, education, and interpretation. She was also the co-lead of the KC Emerging Museum Professionals from 2014-2018 and collaborated with EMP leaders nationwide to organize and conduct video planning meetings related to the development of the National Emerging Museum Professionals Network. She has been an active member of the MSA since 2013 and served on the Southwest Central Chapter Board from 2015-2018, as well as the Chapter Policy and Procedure Task Force from 2016-2017.

CHACHO HERMAN, TREASURER

Chacho Herman is Associate Director of Earned Income at the San Diego Museum of Art, where he started his museum career. Chacho is responsible for all earned income arms of the museum, which includes two stores, the museum’s restaurant, and admissions. He has over 30 years of cultural commerce experience. His previous board service included Secretary of the board 2010-2011, and Member at Large, 2005-2006. He has been on numerous MSA task forces and committees. Along with helping to ensure the financial stability of MSA he feels his role is to continue to build the MSA brand, increase membership, and expand learning opportunities. When not working, he can be found playing fetch on Coronado Beach with his dog, BB, planning trips around which museum he’ll visit, and exploring the deserts and beaches of Baja.

MELODY CABAN, DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Melody Caban is the Museum Store Manager and Buyer at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas. She has been a member of the Museum Store Association for 5 years and has worked in the museum industry for over a decade. Through her work as Secretary for the Southwest Central Chapter and as a founding member of MSA NEXT, she has gained both regional and national level experience setting up events, conventions, and working with incredible vendors and members. In 2017, Caban partnered with Las Vegas Market and colleagues from AHVRP, MSA, and ZAG, to present a symposium titled Selling to Millennials, which was so popular it sparked a webinar, teaching nonprofits how to work with and sell to a new generation.

MICHAEL GUAJARDO, DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Michael Guajardo is the Interim Senior Director for Enterprise Operations at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, Virginia. He has been an MSA family member for nearly 10 years, enjoying wonderful learning opportunities and meeting remarkable individuals who served as amazing role models. Over the last five years, Guajardo has led sessions at MSA’s conferences and volunteered in different capacities. In 2014, working with Mid-Atlantic Chapter’s leadership, he helped plan and host a chapter meeting at VMFA. Since 2017, he has promoted the Museum Store Sunday initiative, raising funding and serving on its subcommittee.

TINA HARDING, DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Tina Harding was the Director of Merchandising at Historic Deerfield in Deerfield, Massachusetts, where she oversaw all aspects of retail store management while also managing a robust wholesale division. She has been a member of MSA for 2 decades. In that time, she has served twice as Chapter President, served on a multitude of committees, and presented on the both the national and chapter levels. She has also wholesaled on the MSA’s expo floor for many years, knowing firsthand the challenges faced to find and build new revenue streams, and to balance the demands of differing constituents.

AUBREY HERR, DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Aubrey Herr is the Manager of Retail Operations at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. She has worked in nonprofit retail since 2007, proudly assuming multiple responsibilities including buying, merchandising, inventory control, hiring and training staff, and, most recently, overseeing all operations of her museum’s café and online retail sales. She was a speaker at MSA FORWARD Conference in 2018, and served as the President of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter and Co-Chair of MSA NEXT. In 2018, she received the MSA NEXT Award.

GEOFFREY CARROLL, VENDOR MEMBER ADVISOR

Geoffrey Carroll, president of Original Source, has been active in the MSA for 20 years. Geoff’s involvement with museums began when he moved to Asia in 1994 and opened his own office. At a time when most products from Asia were controlled by trading companies, Geoff and his partners pioneered a direct grass-roots approach with artisans in China, Thailand and Vietnam. His permanent presence in Asia has resulted in a business model that provides more benefits for the artisans and better products for museums. Geoff is passionate about teaching and often visits museums to provide education sessions on Asian culture.

MARY LIND MAHMUD, VENDOR MEMBER ADVISOR

Mary Lind Mahmud is the Sales Manager at WorldFinds, a fair-trade wholesaler in the Chicago area of Illinois. Previously she taught art (among other functions) in a Montessori school, and before that worked in advertising and marketing firms in the D/FW area. She has served as CVA with the Midwestern Chapter as well as on the national membership committee. Working remotely from her home in Raleigh, NC these last few years has allowed her to easily expand her face-to-face time with museums in different regions across the US, cementing her wholehearted support of MSA.

ELIZABETH PRICE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Elizabeth Price, MBA, CAE, is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and The Colorado Society of Association Executives (CSAE). Elizabeth has been working in association management since 2000, and has spent over 18 years in Executive Management. She has worked with associations from the ground up, building programs, developing leadership, reorganizing and managing the office and staff, and increasing and rejuvenating membership.

SUSAN TUDOR, IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT AND ADVISOR TO THE BOARD

Susan Tudor is the Director of Retail Operations for the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens in Jacksonville, Florida. She has been a member of the Museum Store Association since her start in non-profit retail in 1998. Susan’s retail training and background prior to museums was with Federated Department Stores (Bloomingdale’s Inc.). Susan has chaired multiple national committees including the MSA Advocacy Committee responsible for the inaugural launch of the global initiative Museum Store Sunday®, winner of the 2018 ICON HONORS for Branding. She has been a member of the Board Finance Committee, the Governance Committee, the Marketing and Communications Committee, the Education Advisory Group, and the Conference Committee. Susan is also past president of the MSA Florida Chapter.

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