What is necessary for museums to radically imagine what is possible, not only what has been done? Adjoa Jones de Almeida, Director of Education at the Brooklyn Museum, shares how she decided to "step up" during a moment of transition for the museum. After beginning her career at the Brooklyn Museum in an entry level position, she hadn’t planned for a leadership role of this nature in her career trajectory. She shares how youth organizing and collectives have shaped the values that inform her leadership at a large encyclopedic museum. We also talk about organizational culture, how social movements change institutions, and the tricky nature of passion and work in a capitalist society. 

After graduating from Brown University in 1995, Adjoa received a Fulbright scholarship to research community schools and cultural identity in Bahia, Brazil. In 1996 she moved to Brooklyn, NY where she worked as a high-school teacher at El Puente Academy for Peace & Justice, and helped to create Sista II Sista (SIIS), a women’s collective dedicated to supporting young women of color in developing personal and collective power. In 2005, she earned her Master’s from Teacher's College in International Education Development. From 2006-2013 she lived in Arembepe, Bahia where she co-founded a community based organization, Diáspora Solidária, committed to social & environmental justice, artistic expression and youth development. She began her work at the Brooklyn Museum in 2013.

Reading:

The Art of Social Justice: Behold the beautiful struggle! by Adjoa Jones de Almeida 

The Revolution Will Not Be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex, Adjoa Jones de Almeida contributor