A Stirling history expert is to join the Board of Trustees of National Museums Scotland.
Professor Richard Oram, of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, will take up the new role after his appointment was announced by Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development, Christina McKelvie.
The appointment, which begins on 1 October 2023, will run for four years.
Professor, Faculty of Arts and Humanities
As someone who believes passionately in always improving and extending public access to knowledge of our nation's past and increasing every opportunity for engagement with Scotland's rich historic environment and culture, I am especially delighted to be joining the Board of Trustees at a time of exciting new development in the museums' public and professional work.
Professor Oram said: “I am honoured by this appointment, which gives me the opportunity to contribute to the continuing development of Scotland's national museums and to use my knowledge and experience to support the outstanding work of their specialist curatorial and conservation teams at the four National Museums Scotland sites.
“As someone who believes passionately in always improving and extending public access to knowledge of our nation's past and increasing every opportunity for engagement with Scotland's rich historic environment and culture, I am especially delighted to be joining the Board of Trustees at a time of exciting new development in the museums' public and professional work.”
National Museums Scotland is one of the leading museums groups in Europe. The organisation has approximately 460 staff and its four museums – the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street in Edinburgh, the National War Museum in Edinburgh Castle, the National Museum of Flight in East Lothian and the National Museum of Rural Life near East Kilbride – are enjoyed by millions of local and international visitors each year. It cares for a multi-disciplinary collection of over 12 million objects, bringing together the arts and sciences, and the cultures of Scotland and the world, alongside the diversity of the natural world.
National Museums Scotland is a Scottish Charity and a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) sponsored and supported through Grant-in-Aid by the Scottish Government, and governed by an independent Board of Trustees. It receives around £25 million of Scottish Government funding annually.
About Professor Oram
Richard Oram is Chair of Scottish Medieval and Environmental History at the University of Stirling and formerly Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities there. He brings broad experience in senior academic management, coupled with a rich and successful track record of public history and partnership working with local communities in exploring and interpreting their histories and heritage. With an interdisciplinary background in medieval history, archaeology and architectural history, he has researched and published extensively on Scotland’s medieval culture and society within the broader context of the North Atlantic World, and especially on the interaction between humans and their wider environment.