LaNesha DeBardelaben

“To thine own self be true.” This is the motto that guides LaNesha’s life. She has learned through the ups and downs of life to be true to herself, embracing her strengths to build success. She is dedicated to transforming, strengthening and unifying society through museums and libraries.

For over 20 years, she has supported the growth of Black museums. She serves as president & CEO of the Northwest African American Museum where she leads innovative, transformational growth. Prior, she was senior vice president of education & exhibitions at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit where she led its largest department. LaNesha is immediate past national president of the board of directors of the Association of African American Museums (AAAM) and is a member of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). Additionally, she previously served two terms on the National Executive Council of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the 100+-year-old organization founded in 1915 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson and led by Mary McLeod Bethune from 1936 to 1951. LaNesha’s public history career began at the National Museum of Kenya in Africa in 2001, and she has studied museums and libraries internationally in Ghana, South Africa, England, Germany and Israel.

LaNesha has been a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority for over 20 years. She is also an active member of The Links, Inc., and The Pierians, Inc. Civically, she is a member of the International Women’s Forum and currently serves on the board of directors of Cascade Public Media (CPM), Visit Seattle, and the New Hope Community Development Institute (NHCDI).

An avid writer and lifelong learner, LaNesha earned a B.A. in history and secondary education from Kalamazoo College; an M.A. in history and museum studies from the University of Missouri in St. Louis; an MLS in archives management from Indiana University-Bloomington; and an M.A. in Comparative Black History from Michigan State University. At the University of Washington, she is a Ph.D. candidate in the College of Education and studies the intellectual lives of Black women who attended predominantly white colleges in the early 20th century and their later civil rights activism. Prior to her award-winning career in public history, LaNesha was in K-12 history and language arts education.

In addition to her tireless work as a public historian, LaNesha is an ordained minister and serves as the assistant pastor of one of Seattle’s historic Baptist churches. The other motto that guides her life is “She believes she can, so she does.”