Dr. Haitham Eid is Professor and Director of the Master of Arts in Museum Studies Program, Southern University at New Orleans, USA. He earned his BA in Archaeology, majoring in Conservation from Cairo University, Egypt, his MA in Museum Studies from Southern University at New Orleans, USA, and his Ph.D. in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester, UK.

Dr. Eid’s recent book Museum Innovation: Building More Equitable, Relevant and Impactful Museums is published by Routledge in 2021. His award-winning book Museum Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship: A New Model for a Challenging Era, also published by Routledge, is considered the first and only monograph in the museum studies literature that exclusively deals with the issue of museum innovation. Dr. Eid has published articles and book chapters in major publications such as the International Journal of the Inclusive Museum, Museums and the Web, and The Museum Blog Book. He has received grant funding from local and national organizations, including the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts and Jon Mitchell Foundation.

In addition to teaching and supervising MA theses, Dr. Eid has served on various conference and workshop program committees. He has served on the 2016 and 2017 MCN Conference Planning Committees. He was the Chair of the Museum Innovation Forum (2019), Co-Chair of the Cultural Heritage and Social Change Summit (2016), and a member of the judging panel for the 2018 and 2019 GLAMi Awards, which recognize and celebrate the most innovative projects in the cultural heritage sector annually. He has also served as a reviewer for the National Endowment for the Arts, Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, The Curator, Routledge and many other national and international publications. Dr. Eid is a member of the National Board for the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, and the New Orleans Preservation Coalition, among other cultural heritage organizations.

Alexa Griffith is a design historian and educator. She is Manager of Content and Curriculum at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, where she develops curricular materials bridging design objects and ideas and classroom learning. She also works with teams across Cooper Hewitt to develop engaging and accessible exhibition and related materials for all audiences.