The Springfield Museums have announced two appointments, Kris Ludwig as curator of art and Elizabeth Kapp as curator of history.
Ludwig began working at the museums in 2005, first as an intern, then as preparator, and finally as manager of exhibit services before taking on his role as curator in late 2023. Between 2009 and 2013, he was teacher of record at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, then adjunct faculty at Springfield College, teaching painting, drawing and the fundamentals of design. He maintains a home studio, exhibiting his work regionally. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in studio art from Springfield College and a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Ludwig is enrolled in the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Dartmouth and expects to complete a Master of Business Administration degree in 2024.
With an undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a master’s from the Cooperstown Graduate Program, Kapp has worked at the Arizona Historical Society, the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians & Western Art, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Colonial Williamsburg and Old Sturbridge Village. In 2023, her exhibit, “Rebuilding Home Plate: Baseball in Arizona’s Japanese American Incarceration Camps,” was honored by the Western Museums Association with the Charles Redd Award for Exhibition Excellence.
**************************************************
Forbes Library Board of Trustees welcome Ann Michele “Shelly” Ruocco and Rebekah Anderson, who were recently appointed to fill two vacancies that were created when a change in the board’s bylaws was made to increase the number of seats from five to seven.
Anderson is relatively new to Northampton and is already actively involved with Northampton Neighbors, an organization supporting aging in place. She is a retired librarian with experience in public and business libraries.
Ruocco is a human resources professional in higher education and the corporate world, and also served as the director of a nonprofit school for adult literacy in Jamaica Plain. She has worked in the Valley since 2008 and lived in Northampton for over 10 years.
**************************************************
Mike Rust, director of experiential and entrepreneurial learning and professor of biomedical engineering at Western New England University’s College of Engineering, has been elected to the KEEN Leadership Council.
Since 2011, the College of Engineering at WNE has partnered with KEEN/Engineering Unleashed, a program funded by the Kern Family Foundation. The mission of this endeavor is to empower graduates to generate personal, economic and societal value through a lifetime of impactful work.
In 2024, the leadership council undertook an election process to replenish its ranks, selecting six new members to join its cohort.
Rust is a senior member of the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers and a member of the American Society for Engineering Education. He has served in many positions for the Biomedical Engineering Division of ASEE, including program chair in 2019 and division chair in 2020. His research interests involve the development of point-of-care medical technologies, including bioinstrumentation for use in low-resource settings.
Rust’s work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the American Society for Quality and the Jenzabar Foundation. He has published numerous papers in technical journals and for professional conferences and is a co-inventor on four US patents. He has also been involved with multiple startup ventures, including FloDesign Sonics, New England Breath Technologies and OPAD.
Membership in the KEEN Leadership Council is a voluntary role, requiring a blend of in-person and virtual meetings throughout the year to address topics shaping the network’s future. Each member serves a two-year term, with the opportunity for re-election for up to three terms, totaling a maximum of six years of service.
Rust is a resident of Wilbraham.
***************************************************
Polish National Credit Union announces that Rachel Dionne, assistant vice president and credit risk officer, has joined the Board of Directors of Providence Ministries.
Dionne resides in Southampton. Her volunteer work includes over half a decade on the Board of Trustees for Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School, membership on the school’s Finance Committee, involvement in a Youth Ministry Group, service on the Southampton Finance Committee, and as an eucharistic minister at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Church in Westfield.
Providence Ministries, a nonprofit organization serving the Holyoke area since 1980, offers programs to those in need. It includes McCleary Manor, Broderick House, Loreto House, Kate’s Kitchen, Margaret’s Pantry and St. Jude’s Clothing Store. It is affiliated with and sponsored by the Sisters of Providence.
With nearly 35 years of experience in accounting and finance, Dionne joined PNCU in 2017.
Dionne is a two-time graduate of American International College in Springfield, with degrees in accounting and nonprofit management.
