Executive Director

Position Summary

The Whatcom Museum Executive Director (Executive Director), serving also as the Chief Executive Officer for the Whatcom Museum Foundation’s Board of Trustees, will provide strategic leadership in planning, organizing, and directing all operations and activities of the Whatcom Museum (the Museum). In coordination with other City departments and the Foundation Board, the Executive Director will be responsible for overseeing the Museum’s financial health and sustainability;

managing physical facilities and assets; ensuring effective and secure use of data systems; and developing and maintaining an effective workforce and culture of organizational excellence. The Executive Director will be a member of the City’s leadership team, collaborating with the Mayor of Bellingham and other City departments to align strategy, policy, and shared operations with the City’s critical objectives, vision, and values, ensuring the Museum is a vital cultural and educational resource for the community.

The Executive Director will work independently, with general guidance from the Whatcom Museum Foundation’s Board of Trustees, to ensure proper prioritization of institutional goals to maximize the effectiveness of the museum’s operations for the good of the community, in alignment with broader goals as set forth by the City of Bellingham Mayor and City Council.

The Whatcom Museum Executive Director will be responsible for shaping the Museum’s vision, enhancing its role in the community, and overseeing strategic planning and all day-to-day operations of the multi-facility campus. The Whatcom Museum Executive Director is an employee of the Whatcom Museum Foundation, reporting to the Whatcom Museum Foundation’s Board of Directors, and is the Chief Executive Officer for the Whatcom Museum Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

The Executive Director’s leadership team includes the chief curator and director of exhibitions, the controller, the development director, the director of collections & operations, and the director of marketing & public relations. Additional employees include docents, interns, part-time visitor attendants, story associates, and Family Interactive Gallery associates. Of the team of 25 total employees, four are City employees, while the remainder are employees of the Whatcom Museum Foundation.

The Whatcom Museum Foundation is currently bargaining its first union contract with Teamsters local 231.

• Lead the development and implementation of the Museum’s strategic plan, in cooperation with the Museum Foundation Board, ensuring alignment with the City’s mission and core values.
• Oversee the Museum's financial strategies and fund development to support the needs of exhibitions, programs, facilities, and ongoing operations.
• Maintain accreditation with the American Alliance of Museums, upholding professional standards and best practices.
• Work closely with the chief curator, director of collections, and the Board of Trustees’ Collection Committee to strategically expand the museum’s permanent collection, which the Whatcom Museum Foundation holds in trust for the City of Bellingham and its community.
• Approve all major accessions and deaccessions from the collections while ensuring the security and integrity of the collection and exhibitions.
• Embrace other strategic museum leadership responsibilities as needed.

• Assure the financial well-being of the Museum by establishing successful fundraising strategies and skilled donor development, as well as cost control measures, and monitoring all fiscal operations.
• Prepare and review annual budgets for the Whatcom Museum Foundation, as well as for the City of Bellingham, justifying budget requests and amendments.
• Enforce the efficient and economical use of departmental funds, personnel, assets, equipment, materials, facilities, and time, while managing various funds, trusts, and accounts, and negotiate contracts and agreements.
• Oversee fundraising activities across categories of giving, including individuals, corporations, foundations, government, and fundraising events.
• Manage the…