Christine Miles Kelliher was Director of the Albany Institute of History & Art from 1986–2011 and currently serves on the Board of Trustees. She guided the development of the museum’s first strategic plan, with the goal to make the Albany Institute a more accessible cultural and educational resource. Under her leadership the museum conducted a transformative $17 million capital campaign and renovation project that created the museum as it exists today, including the incorporation of environmental controls, expanded gallery, collections storage, and education spaces, a magnificent three-story glass atrium connecting three previously separate National Register properties, and an outdoor sculpture garden.
Christine’s early museum career in New York City and Washington, DC, included positions at Fraunces Tavern Museum, South Street Seaport Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of the City of New York, and The Octagon. Chris has a BA in Art History from Boston University and an MA in American Culture and Museum Studies from The George Washington University. She studied graduate level Art History at Hunter College, was a fellow at the Winterthur Summer Institute on the Decorative Arts in Early America, and is a graduate of the Getty Foundation’s Museum Leadership.
Christine has been active in the museum and arts community nationally and state-wide and served as president of the Museum Association of New York and Gallery Association of New York State. Over the past four decades she has served on a number of local boards including the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce, Albany Parking Authority, President's Council of The Sage Colleges, University at Albany Foundation, WMHT, Historic Albany Foundation, Washington Park Conservancy, Capitalize Albany and Albany Local Development Authority. She received a Women of Excellence Award from the Albany-Colonie Chamber of Commerce in 1996, and the President’s Award from the Hudson Mohawk Association of Colleges and Universities in 2002.
