ROCHESTER, NY— After 21 years as President and CEO of the Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC), Kate Bennett has announced her retirement intentions to the Board of Trustees. Bennett has agreed to continue at the Museum for an unspecified amount of time to ensure a smooth transition to a new CEO. Thereafter, she has agreed to handle special fundraising projects for the Museum staff and Board of Trustees. The Board has established a search committee to identify and hire Bennett’s successor.
“It has been my pleasure to serve as President and CEO of the Rochester Museum & Science Center,” Bennett said. “This is an amazing place. It is a cultural and educational gem for the greater Rochester community. Twenty years ago, we began to recreate our exhibitions and experiences for the public. We created more than 200 hands-on exhibit experiences in partnership with the community. Over the past five years, we have transformed the museum to further enhance visitors’ engagement, to increase our STEM focus, and to improve our overall learning experiences. We also have engaged in many collaborations on topics that are important to our community, including the RACE: Are We So Different and Take it Down: Organizing Against Racism projects.”
Bennett added, “It’s now time to find the person who can lead RMSC through the next decade, and I will do all that I can to ensure my successor and the RMSC remain very successful and relevant.”
Under Bennett’s leadership, RMSC grew its programming to include new, hybrid exhibitions combining RMSC collections, programs, content, and human interaction; frequent and varied live-animal demonstrations; one of the country’s first music-driven Tesla coil experiences including a Faraday cage; real-time exhibitions such as Science on a Sphere; a robust array of educational camps; adult-centered programming for lifelong learners; unique, creative, and highly educational Planetarium programs; an environmentally focused Nature Center; and sustainable upgrades to collections spaces that will ensure better access to the region’s unique heritage for generations to come.
Anthony J. Adams, Jr., Esq., Chairman of the RMSC Board of Trustees, commented, “Kate has been a huge asset to the Museum and to the community. The board is pleased that Kate’s expertise, knowledge, and talents will continue to benefit the RMSC for the foreseeable future, although in a different capacity than CEO.”
For high-resolution images and additional information, contact Mare Millow, Marketing Communications Manager, RMSC, 585.697.1944, mmillow@rmsc.org, or visit RMSC.org/press-news.
Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) includes the Science Museum, Strasenburgh Planetarium and Cumming Nature Center. Offering experiences at the Museum with more than 200 interactive exhibits, Planetarium with a 65-foot dome and Nature Center on 900 acres, the RMSC stimulates community interest in exploration. In addition, the more than 1.2 million RMSC collection items tell the story of Rochester’s past and present, including its rich history of innovation and invention. RMSC receives major funding from Monroe County, where it is one of the top three most visited attractions serving children and families. For more information about RMSC, visit RMSC.org. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.
