CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (October 18, 2018)– The Medal of Honor Heritage Center has hired Keith A. Hardison an Executive Director. Mr. Hardison has extensive expertise in building and operating museums throughout the country.
Before joining the Medal of Honor Heritage Center, he served as Director of the North Carolina’s Division of State Historic Sites where he directed the operation of 23 historic sites and led the effort to fund and construct the CSS Neuse Civil War Interpretive Center. He has served as the Executive Director of the Jefferson Davis Home and Presidential Library, as the Director of Education, Interpretation, and Visitors Services of the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier, and as the Division Director of the Louisiana State Museum.
Board Chairman, General Bill Raines, said, “Keith is a seasoned museum executive with a history of successfully designing, opening, and operating military museums and important historic sites. He is uniquely qualified to lead our organization. We are thrilled he will be leading our team as we build a world class National Medal of Honor Heritage Center and expand to include the National Medal of Honor Foundation’s cornerstone Character Development Program.”
Mr. Hardison graduated from David Lipscomb University with a B.A. degree in History and earned an M.A. degree in Museum Science from Texas Tech University. Following his personal passion, Mr. Hardison co-chaired the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources Civil War Sesquicentennial commemoration and served two terms on the Mississippi Civil War Battlefields Commission. He is a member of the American Alliance of Museums, the American Association for State and Local History, and the American Battlefield Trust.
“I am honored to be selected as the executive director of the Charles H. Coolidge Medal of Honor Heritage Center. The institution has the responsibility of showcasing the extraordinary acts of valor by Medal of Honor recipients and, through the Character Development program, to inspire America’s youth to emulate their virtues,” Mr. Hardison said.
