Melody Kanschat has been appointed executive director of the Getty Leadership Institute, effective immediately. The Getty Leadership Institute (GLI) has offered professional development courses for museum staffers since 1979.
Kanschat arrives at her new post after devoting 22 years to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, most recently serving as president and chief operating officer since 2005. In her new position, Kanschat will implement a new executive management program. She will work with the faculty of several schools at Claremont Graduate University (CGU), where the Getty Leadership Institute moved in 2010, after operating under the auspices of the Getty Trust since 1984.
Overseeing the daily operations of LACMA, Kanschat managed a $60-million annual budget. Previously she supervised the museum’s $150-million campus renovation project, which added over 100,000 square of exhibition space, and she served as executive vice president for administration and external affairs, running the marketing, membership, and development departments.
Deborah Freund, CGU president, said in a press release, “Kanschat’s management experience, her connections in the museum field, and her stellar reputation as a leader of complex teams will prove invaluable to the GLI as it re-envisions its future at CGU.”
