American Alliance Of Museums Chooses 1st Woman As President

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The American Alliance of Museums has selected Laura Lott as the association's next president and CEO, the first woman to lead the organization in its 109-year history.

The Washington-based alliance announced Friday that its board selected Lott after a national search. Lott has been the association's chief operating officer since 2010 and is credited with leading a turnaround plan to reverse years of operating deficits.

Lott previously was the chief financial officer for the nonprofit JASON Project at the National Geographic Society, which focused on motivating students to learn science. She also worked for the MCI Foundation on providing online content for classrooms and for the PricewaterhouseCoopers accounting firm.

The American Alliance of Museums represents 4,000 museums and 21,000 individual members. The association establishes best practices and advocates for museums.

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