Staff
Meghan C. Doherty
Director
Meghan C. Doherty became the Director of the Museum of the White Mountains in January 2022. Having grown up in Dummer, NH, where her family continues to reside, the White Mountains have always been an important part of her life, and she is delighted to join the MWM and help others engage with and appreciate the history and beauty of the region.
Her research focuses on the connections between art and science as seen in the visual culture of the early Royal Society of London, and her recent book features studies of primary visual and written materials related to Robert Hooke’s Micrographia, Francis Willughby’s Ornithology and the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. Her book, Engraving Accuracy in Early Modern England: Visual Communication and the Royal Society, was published by Amsterdam University Press in Spring 2022.
Before joining MWM, she was the Director of the Doris Ulmann Galleries, Curator of the College Art Collection, and Associate Professor of Art History at Berea College. She holds a BA in Art History from the University of Chicago, an MA and PhD in Art History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Email: meghan.doherty@plymouth.edu
Kala Brzezinski
Assistant Director
Kala Brzezinski joined the staff as Assistant Director at the Museum of the White Mountains in January 2023. Within this role, she serves as the museum collections manager in addition to assisting on registrar work for ongoing exhibitions. She also serves as a liaison between students, faculty, and community members on education and programming goals.
Kala is originally from the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia and holds a B.A. in History from Auburn University and an M.A. in Museum Education from Tufts University. Passionate about both collections management and public education, she blends her background in museology to serve the needs of diverse museum audiences.
Prior to accepting this position, she served within a variety of roles within museums including the Tufts School of the Museum of Fine Art, the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and the Harvard University Herbaria. She recently completed a Fulbright scholarship in Dublin, Ireland, where she served as a community programming and public arts education research affiliate at Hugh Lane Gallery. With enthusiasm for this position, Kala joins the MWM with an appreciation of the region as well as the importance of regional cultural centers and museums.
Email: kala.brzezinski@plymouth.edu
Heidi Underbakke
Museum Preparator
In August of 2021, Heidi Underbakke joined the staff at MWM as the Museum Preparator. In this role, she coordinates the design and installation of MWM exhibits, arranging and hanging the pieces you see on display.
Heidi worked a handful of years in museum collections across the country after earning her Bachelors in Art History from Drake University. In 2016, she spent a year serving in AmeriCorps as a carpenter and weatherization assistant. She then pursued her AAS in Architectural Engineering at Vermont Technical College and spent a year in residential project management.
Heidi is thrilled to return to her museum roots at MWM to apply both of her degrees. She also consults on renovation and design jobs, and will talk about energy efficiency to anyone who will listen.
When she’s not on the job, you can find her restoring her mid-century home in Littleton, NH, with her dogs Roux and Delta and cat Wingra. In good weather, Heidi and her husband are learning to sail their 12-foot sailboat, Dabbler, with the hopes of eventually graduating to a boat that is less comically small.