Board Member Profile Highlights - December 2009
Dr. Cristina Acidini
Dr. Cristina Acidini is one of Italy’s foremost experts of Renaissance art and architecture and has authored nu merous books and essays on this sub ject. She currently serves as Soprintendente Speciale per il Polo Museale Fiorentino. From 1991-1999, Dr. Acidini was Soprintendente Vicario alla Soprintendenza per i Beni Artistici e Storici di Firenze. In 2000, she was appointed director of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, a state institute specializing in research, conservation and restoration of works of art. She received her laurea (B.A.) with honors from the University of Florence in 1977. In 1981, she was a visiting lecturer at SUNY College in Plattsburgh, NY and in 1997, as an Eisenhower Fellow, she visited more than 70 museums in the United States, reporting her experiences in a book. Dr. Acidini joined the MAP Board on May 14, 2009.
Dr. Bruce Cole
Dr. Bruce Cole is the President and CEO of the American Revolution Cen ter. Previously, he served as the Chair man of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Appointed by President George W. Bush, and unanimously confirmed twice by the Senate, Dr. Cole was the longest serving Chairman of the NEH where he launched key initiatives, including We the People, a program designed to encourage the teaching, study and under standing of American history and culture. Prior to his work at the NEH, Dr. Cole was a Distinguished Professor of Art History at Indiana University in Bloomington. Born in Ohio, Dr. Cole at tended Case Western Reserve University and earned his master’s degree from Oberlin College and his doctorate from Bryn Mawr College. He is also the recipient of nine honorary doctorate degrees. Dr. Cole has held fellowships and grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, American Council of Learned Societies, Kress Foundation, American Philosophical Society, and the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a member of the Accademia Senese degli Intronati, the oldest learned society in Europe, and a founder and former co-president of the Association for Art History. In November 2008, President Bush awarded Dr. Cole the Presidential Citizens Medal “for his work to strengthen our national memory and ensure that our country’s heritage is passed on to future generations.” The medal is one of the highest honors the President can confer upon a civilian, second only to the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Earlier in 2008, he was decorated Knight of the Grand Cross. Dr. Cole joins the MAP Board in January 2010.
Joanna Milstein
Joanna Milstein graduated from Columbia University in 2004 with a degree in French with a history concentration. While at Colum bia, Ms Milstein spent two summers interning at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Ms Milstein was the recipient of an award for Outstanding Achievement as a French Major and graduated with departmental honors. After graduating from Columbia, Ms Milstein worked in Washington DC for the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the New America Foundation. In 2007 she received an MLitt in Reforma tion Studies from the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Her dissertation, The Question of French politics at Cateau-Cambresis, was awarded a dis tinction. Ms Milstein is presently a Ph.D. candidate in 16th century French and Italian History at St Andrews University, under the supervision of Professor Andrew Pettegree. She has taught history at the University of St Andrews and Dundee University. An active supporter of arts and culture in New York City, Ms Milstein is a young fellow at the Morgan Library and a member of the Apollo Circle at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is in the process of starting a young members group at the Royal Oak Foundation. Having joined the Board of the MAP in May 2009, Ms Milstein is happy to contribute her perspective as a current student of the Renaissance.
