New hires bring leadership, student talent and fresh perspectives to the museum floor
As the UT San Antonio Institute of Texan Cultures continues to grow, so does its ability to welcome visitors, engage students and create meaningful experiences inside the museum.
The ITC has expanded its visitor services team with a lead Customer Service Assistant and two UT San Antonio student gallery hosts. Together, the new team members bring professional experience, enthusiasm for culture and the perspectives of the university community to the museum floor.
Building Capacity for Visitors
Jennifer Reid-Holland is the institute’s new lead customer service assistant, overseeing a team of six, that serves as the primary point of contact for museum visitors.
Reid-Holland comes to the ITC after working with Catholic Charities of San Antonio, and serving a 12-year career in the U. S. Air Force. Her military experience shaped her approach to leadership, organization and responsibility – skills she now brings to the museum’s visitor services team.
She also brings a personal enthusiasm for art. In her free times she enjoys visiting museums and attending community events, which makes her new role a natural fit for both her professional experience and personal interests.
“Adding a lead Customer Service Assistant builds our capacity at the administrative level,” said Kandice Fambro, the institute’s museum services manager. “This opens up our ability to explore programs and services that may have been dormant or to add new capabilities.”
Since the museum’s reopening, Fambro has overseen day-to-day museum operations, such as coordinating field trips, scheduling public-facing staff, and supporting the visitor experience on the exhibit floor. With Reid-Holland taking on some of those functions, Fambro can devote more time to longer-term visitor services and one of the ITC’s most valued programs: the docent volunteer program.
Learning on the Museum Floor
The ITC has drawn on talents from its own university community, welcoming two UT San Antonio student workers as gallery hosts. The new positions give them the opportunity to build professional skills while helping visitors connect with the stories told throughout the museum. Gallery hosts engage directly with visitors, answer questions, provide additional context about exhibits, and help guests make personal connections to the people, places and traditions represented in the galleries.
For junior geosciences major Jacob Lopez, the experience brings together his academic pursuits and his background growing up in the Rio Grande Valley. He is interested in paleontology and the stories hidden beneath the earth, but his curiosity extends well beyond the sciences. At home, he was deeply involved in the mariachi community as a trumpet player. That experience gives him another avenue for connecting with visitors and sharing perspectives about Texas culture.
Diana Cruz, the second new gallery host, is pursing degrees in arts and education at UT San Antonio. Her work at the museum gives her an opportunity to apply classroom skills in a real-world setting. A Laredo native, Cruz recognizes elements of her home and local culture on the exhibit floor, including the the low-rider tricycle on display. She also brings creative experience in graphite drawing and videography, along with a strong interest in arts and entertainment.
For both students, the museum offers more than a job. It is an opportunity to develop communication, interpretation and professional skills while working directly with the public.
The Institute of Texan Cultures is located at 111 W. Houston St. At the corner of Camaron Street. Hours are 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Thursday through Sunday, with Wednesdays reserved for school field trips. For more information, visit TexanCultures.utsa.edu, or find @TexanCulures or most social media platforms.