Christina Shutt was named executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, the premier institution for understanding the history and legacy of Abraham Lincoln, in March 2021 after a national search. She formally assumed the position in June.
Since then, Shutt has overseen the installation of a new exhibit in the ALPLM’s library building, launched community outreach efforts to make the institution more welcoming and inclusive, accepted the donation of an important, handwritten Lincoln letter, and hosted the signing ceremony to make Juneteenth an official state holiday in Illinois.
Previously, Shutt served as executive director for the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, the African American museum of history and culture for the state of Arkansas. Under Shutt’s leadership, the center saw significant increases in visitor audience, fundraising and exhibition development, with her co-curated exhibit “Don’t Touch My Crown” winning the 2019 Arkansas Museums Association Award for Outstanding Exhibition. Additionally, her innovative and collaborative leadership resulted in the center being awarded first-time national museum accreditation, making it only the ninth Black culture museum in the United States to receive this designation.
She has also served as Associate Librarian for Special Collections and Instruction at Hendrix College and an archivist for notable collections ranging from the history of medicine at Harvard University to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. papers at Boston University.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Central Methodist University and holds two master’s degrees in library science/archival management and history from Simmons University.