Andrew Stockmann, Class of 2024

Curator of Exhibitions at the Watkins Museum of History in Lawrence

"My experience in the MUSE program was very hands-on, particularly in the Collections and Exhibits courses. My group spent the semester designing and fabricating an exhibition in the Watkins Museum’s second floor gallery. Now I do that for my full-time job! Learning from classmates and faculty with academic and experiential knowledge was very beneficial, plus I enjoyed broadening my horizons through my internship with the Spencer Museum of Art. I learned event planning and communication skills in the education office that I still use today at the Watkins, even though my role is curatorial. We are a small staff and all pitch in with different projects. 

Take advantage of every class project and applied learning experience! Don’t be afraid to seek out internships outside of the Lawrence and KC markets, if you have the ability to do so. Also, the capstone project can be intimidating at first but keep working on it over time and the end result will truly be something you are proud of! My project was designing K-12 field trip curriculum for the Booth Family Hall of Athletics at Allen Fieldhouse. It was a fun challenge to tackle and I truly enjoyed the process of defending my work before my committee."