Dr. Kerry Joels
Chief Creative Officer
Dr. Joels has a background in academia and the museum world. He has been involved in creating multi-media curriculum, instructional online and video content, public exhibitions, and digital media for more than three decades.
As founding Director of the Education Division at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum he created educational programs, exhibits, a media center, a Center for Live Demonstrations, video and media programming, and launched the prototype of Air and Space Magazine. He also headed the museum’s publication program and research program and was responsible for directing multi-million dollar museum visitor research studies including behavioral, demographic, and program effectiveness studies. He also initiated the museum’s outreach to underserved populations including multi-cultural orientation video and materials, docent training, and public outreach.
Dr. Joels designed and scripted the original Oklahoma Air and Space Museum at the Kirkpatrick Center, including the physical master plan, and has created the concept scripting for the American Banjo Museum in Oklahoma City. He is curator for the Kingston Trio Legacy Project creating the concept and label scripts and media for several traveling Trio exhibitions and units in Paris, Liverpool, the Woody Guthrie Center, the American Banjo Museum and the Grammy Museum. He completed a mini-exhibit for the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum in South Carolina about Joe’s legacy and impact on popular culture in Fall, 2014. In 2019 Dr. Joels scripted, designed and supervised creation of the Apollo 50th Anniversary exhibit at the Tulsa Air and Space Museum.