SAN FRANCISCO, April 01, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Mexican Museum (Museum), the premier West Coast museum of Mexican, Mexican-American, Chicano, Latin American, and Latino art, culture and heritage, announces that Dr. Andrés Roemer, Consul General of Mexico in San Francisco, has joined Prof. Harley Shaiken, Chair of the Center of Latin American Studies (CLAS), University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), as co-chair of the Museum’s prestigious International Advisory Board. The purpose of the International Advisory Board is to provide strategic planning and direction for the Museum’s leadership.
“We are very grateful for the continuous support and leadership provided by Prof. Harley Shaiken and Dr. Andrés Roemer, especially concerning strategic planning for the ongoing growth and evolution of The Mexican Museum,” said Andy Kluger, Chairman of The Mexican Museum Board of Trustees. “Dr. Roemer is an ideal candidate for co-chair, as his guidance and inspiration over the past two years have been instrumental. We have him to thank for recommendations of integral new Board members, including Salvador Briman and Dr. Sergio Alcocer, the initiation of MEX I AM: LIVE IT TO BELIEVE IT, a one-week multidisciplinary art and cultural festival that runs at different venues across the San Francisco Bay Area, and other notable academic initiatives. The Mexican Museum is deeply honored to have two such esteemed professionals at the helm of our International Advisory Board.”
About the International Advisory Board of The Mexican Museum
The International Advisory Board currently includes an impressive list of professional educators, government officials, business owners, and organization leaders found across the United States and Mexico, all of whom provide guidance and support to the Museum as it moves forward with the construction of its new home at 706 Mission Street in San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Gardens Arts District.
About Co-Chair Prof. Harley Shaiken
Prof. Harley Shaiken has been Chair of the International Advisory Board of The Mexican Museum since 2015. As Board Chair and Director of CLAS at UC Berkeley, Prof. Shaiken played a critical role in establishing a unique partnership between CLAS and the Museum in 2015. The CLAS-Museum collaboration is aimed at creating an exchange of ideas, artists, and scholarship that will bring innovative cultural programming to a wider audience in the Bay Area and California. He is also a Professor of Social and Cultural Studies at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Education and a member of the Department of Geography, where he specializes on issues of work, technology, and global production. Prof. Shaiken serves as an advisor to public and private organizations and leading members of the U.S. Congress. He is a founding member of the advisory board of the Center for American Progress and served on the advisory board of the Latin American Program of the Open Society Institute. Prof. Shaiken is also the author of three books: Work Transformed: Automation and Labor in the Computer Age; Automation and Global Production; and Mexico in the Global Economy, as well as numerous articles and reports in both scholarly and popular journals. Prior to coming to UC Berkeley, Prof. Shaiken was on the faculty of the University of California, San Diego. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and a Research Associate in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society (STS) and the Laboratory for Manufacturing and Productivity.
About Co-Chair Dr. Andrés Roemer
Dr. Andrés Roemer, Consul General of Mexico in San Francisco and Honorary Trustee of the Museum, is a diplomat, anchorperson, writer, playwright, philanthropist, and one of Mexico’s most internationally recognized public intellectuals. As Consul General, he has played a crucial role in enhancing partnerships in education, culture, and innovation between Mexico and the U.S., and is considered a pioneer in developing and implementing innovative ways to promote science, art, and culture in Mexico. Dr. Roemer is the curator and co-founder of the internationally celebrated "La Ciudad de las Ideas” (a Festival of Bright Minds), which is an annual conference in the Mexican state of Puebla. In addition, he is the prolific author of books on such diverse topics as government, cultural mobility, public policy, law, economics, crime, happiness, art, and evolutionary psychology. Dr. Roemer earned a Ph.D. in Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy of UC Berkeley and was later honored with the university’s Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award. This award is bestowed on an alumnus/a who is a native, citizen, and resident of another country and who has a distinguished record of service to that country in the arts, science and engineering, education, business, environmental protection, government, or any other field. He also received a Master in Public Administration at Harvard University, where he earned the Don K. Price Award for Academic Distinction and Commitment within the Public Sector.
About The Mexican Museum
Founded by the well-known San Francisco artist Peter Rodriguez in 1975 in the heart of the Mission District, The Mexican Museum is located at the Fort Mason Center. It is the realization of his vision to present the aesthetic expression of the Mexican and Mexican American people. Today, the museum’s vision has expanded to include the full scope of the Mexican, Chicano, and Latino experience – including the arts, history, and heritage of their respective cultures.
In 2012, The Mexican Museum became an Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum and research complex. The Museum joins over 200 organizations in 45 states, Puerto Rico and Panama that are in association with the Smithsonian. The Mexican Museum currently has a permanent collection of more than 16,500 objects reflecting Pre-Hispanic, Colonial, Popular, Modern and Contemporary Mexican, Mexican-American, Latin American, Latino, and Chicano art.
The Mexican Museum, open Thursday - Sunday from noon to 4 p.m., is located at the Fort Mason Center, Building D, Marina Boulevard and Buchanan Street, in San Francisco. Admission is FREE. The Museum offers a wide variety of programs, including Family Sundays, exhibitions, special events, lectures, and public programming throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information, please visit: http://www.mexicanmuseum.org or call (415) 202-9700.
The Mexican Museum has begun construction of its permanent home in the heart of the Yerba Buena Gardens Art District, which is expected to open in 2019. People are encouraged to support The Mexican Museum by becoming new members, or by joining the Builder’s Society online or by mailing a check to: The Mexican Museum, Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina Boulevard, Building D, San Francisco, CA 94123. For more information on the Builder’s Society, please contact Adriana Lopez at (415) 202-9700.