Join the Henry Sheldon Museum for its Annual Meeting, presented digitally on Monday, December 5 beginning at 7:00 p.m. The Annual Meeting will feature a presentation by Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup, Executive Director of Vermont Humanities, entitled “Humanities in the Heart of Community.”

Henry Sheldon Museum’s 2022 Annual Meeting Agenda

• Welcome by Lucinda Cockrell, President of the HSM Board of Trustees

• Approval of the Minutes of the 2021 Annual Meeting (David Stameshkin, Secretary)

• Finance Review (Diane Palmeri, Treasurer) [See the 2022 Balance Sheet]

• Vote for New Trustee Slate (Ellery Foutch, Vice President)

• "HSM 2022 Year in Review" Presentation (Stephanie Skenyon, Executive Director)

The Henry Sheldon Museum’s business meeting will be followed by Christopher Ilstrup’s talk, “Humanities in the Heart of Community.” For too long, our cultural institutions have been thought of as nice but limited tourist attractions, or places for kids to go on field trips, or, worse, as a drag on economic development strategies that should focus only on supporting private sector business, tech, or manufacturing.  We would do well to reconsider the contributions that the creative and cultural sectors make in building strong and resilient communities – communities that attract and retain young people and entrepreneurs, support excellent schools, protect our environment, and build understanding across difference in a polarized world.  This conversation will build on the Sheldon’s prior work reinterpreting their collections and outreach strategies for the current moment and will help contextualize our understanding of the role of the arts and humanities in community development and social justice.  

Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup currently serves as Executive Director of Vermont Humanities. Christopher is a native of Addison County and became Vermont Humanities’ third executive director in August 2018. He previously served as a Senior Philanthropic Advisor at the Vermont Community Foundation for 10 years. He has held leadership roles at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Outright Vermont, and Rural Vermont, and was the first Executive Director of the Pride Center of Vermont.  He holds an undergraduate degree in Dance and Drama from Kenyon College and an MSc in Development Studies from the London School of Economics.  He is a member of the steering committee for the Vermont Creative Network, winner of the 2022 Plan of the Year awarded by the Vermont Planners Association