WASHINGTON DC – Denise Robinson Simms was appointed as Associate Director of External Affairs of the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC).
In this role, Simms will lead and coordinate all aspects of the Office of Public Affairs, the Office of Public Programming, the Office of Special Events and the Office of Visitor and Visitor Services. She will also serve as the Museum’s liaison to the Smithsonian’s Office of Government Relations. As a member of the Museum Director’s senior management team, Simms will work closely with senior staff in setting priorities and developing strategies to advance the Museum’s objectives.
Born in Maryland, Denise is a child of immigrants from Trinidad & Tobago and Barbados. Denise joined the NMAAHC staff as the Special Events Manager in February 2016, just seven months before the historic grand opening events of the Smithsonian Institution’s 19th Museum. After managing, coordinating and assisting the NMAAHC Grand Opening Team with the production of all celebrations and the Museum Dedication, Denise began managing the day-to-day operations of the Museum’s first Office of Special Events. The museum has hosted thousands events and public programs each year and has welcomed over 8 million visitors since opening on September 24, 2016.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to support a very hard-working team as we continue to do the work of telling the untold truth of American History through an African-American lens.”
Career Profile
Denise has spent most of her career at the Smithsonian, working for 10 years in the Office of Special Events at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) as Special Events Coordinator and then Special Events Manager.
Prior to her time at NMAI, she worked as the Special Events Coordinator at the National Museum of American History (NMAH) preceded by several internships within the Museum. Prior to the Smithsonian, Denise worked at her hometown Baltimore Museum of Art as a Board Liaison from 2004-2005.
educatIon
In 2004, Denise earned her Master’s degree in Museum Studies from George Washington University and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts and Art History from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland in 2002.
