Financial History Issue 121 (Spring 2017) | Page 6

THE TICKER

MUSEUM NEWS

Several years ago, our Board hired outside consultants to look at the Museum and offer strategic recommendations. One of their observations was that they were amazed that so small a staff could consistently produce so many first rate programs and exhibits. When looking at other museums in our peer group, they noted we were understaffed by a factor of at least two, if not three, times.

David J. Cowen | President and CEO

With a small staff, when we lose any of the core members it feels like losing part of the family. And one of our family members, Development Director Jeanne Driscoll, has retired after 10 years of service. We couldn’ t be happier for Jeanne. She will be spending the summer on Martha’ s Vineyard, and we wish her much comfort and happiness in her retirement years with her new husband.

One of my favorite historical quotes is:“ Victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is an orphan.” If anyone can take credit for being the parent of our annual Gala, it is Jeanne. Through her leadership, the Gala has grown and prospered over the years and has raised millions of dollars. She has managed it since its inception, and it is a testimony to her hard work that it became the incredible evening it currently is. Thank you, Jeanne.

Another of our prominent programs is our Evening Lecture Series, and we recently had a breakthrough event in that series. On April 12, we live streamed a program in partnership with Bloomberg for

Education( formerly Bloomberg University). The event featured Professor Aswath Damodaran, a popular valuations professor at New York University, and more than 4,500 students globally tuned into the live stream. The video remains up on our YouTube channel( YouTube. com / FinanceMuseum), and you can find it in the“ Popular Uploads” category.

Mark your calendars for our next live stream partnership with Bloomberg, which will occur on September 12 at 5:30 p. m. The speaker will be Harvard Business School Professor Mihir Desai on his latest book, The Wisdom of Finance: Discovering Humanity in the World of Risk and Return.

On May 9, at our evening lecture with New York Times bestselling author William Cohan, we announced the upcoming launch of our CEO video series, which will feature C-Suite executives from financial firms answering several questions under the umbrella question of:“ Why does Wall Street Matter?” So far eight CEOs have signed on to participate, and the first video has been completed. We will release one video per month starting in the fall.

Lastly, on June 20, we will again participate in the popular“ Night at the Museums” program, which is part of the River to River Festival. There will be free admission and tours of our Museum from 4:00 – 8:00 p. m. It is a great way to view the exhibits after hours, and an opportunity to bring friends and colleagues who may never have visited. Current exhibits include“ For the Love of Money: Blacks on US Currency,”“ Alexander Hamilton: Man with a Plan,”“ America in Circulation: A History of US Currency Featuring the Collection of Mark R. Shenkman” and“ Out of the Vault: Highlights from the Museum’ s Collection.” If past years are any indication, this will be a very festive evening. We hope to see you there.

Under Development Director Jeanne Driscoll’ s leadership, the Annual Gala has grown substantially, from raising $ 500,000 in 2008 to $ 1.25 million in 2017 to support the Museum’ s educational mission.

Elsa Ruiz

4 FINANCIAL HISTORY | Spring 2017 | www. MoAF. org