Dean of Faculty and Provost Douglas Hicks recently announced that he had selected Anja Ch??vez as the new Director of University Museums. With a Ph.D. in art history, Ch??vez has worked in museums in both Europe and the United States, and is coming to Colgate from Syracuse University.

Ch??vez will begin on May 1 as director of the Longyear Museum of Anthropology and Picker Art Gallery.  She will also help with the planning of the Center for Art and Culture, which “could be the model for a 21st-century university art museum and cultural center.”

“University Museums are very special places, and I feel very fortunate to join Colgate and the community of Hamilton,” Ch??vez said. “For me, this is the only job I want to do. My passion and enthusiasm for the arts started as a child … and my love for this field has only increased over the years.”

Ch??vez also plans to keep everyone in the Colgate community involved with the museums.

“As director, I will work with the staff … and all constituencies to make the collections accessible, to create exciting exhibitions and programming,” Chavez said. “I will of course be reaching out to student organizations, and I also hope that students will contact me directly whether in regard to internships or to propose or participate directly in some of the ongoing or upcoming projects that we will launch in the years to come.”

As for other future changes to the museums, Ch??vez says that she wants to wait to make any changes in order to better understand the needs and history of Colgate and the surrounding area.

“I’ll also want to learn what already has been put in place, as well as what the current and future needs of the community will be,” Chavez said. “In time, I have no doubt that we will develop something lasting and central to Colgate University, Hamilton and beyond.”

“We are extremely fortunate to bring Anja Ch??vez to Colgate,” Dean Hicks said in a Colgate News press release. “She not only brings the experience, vision and passion gained from working in highly regarded museums, she also is part of an international network of artists, curators and institutions working across many time periods and cultures.”

“This all is an incredible opportunity, and I look forward to learning more about the community and to shaping the University Museums with the help of our many constituencies,” Ch??vez said.

Contact Rachelle Ehrman at

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