New ALMA director has big plans for museum
By Ericka Crouse/ Correspondent
Friday, February 18, 2005
Watertown TAB & Press, MA
Feb 18 2005
Berj Chekijian, an active member of Boston’s Armenian community
and former fiber optic engineer, was named the new director of the
Armenian Library and Museum of America.
“A museum is a mirror of your culture, of your history,” said
Chekijian, “We as Armenian-Americans are very fortunate to be here
in Watertown, which has been an Armenian hub. The city has given use
an opportunity to prosper, and we’re giving that back to the city by
putting this mirror here.”
Chekijian, whose leadership roles in the Armenian community include
helping to found Boston chapters of Armenian youth and cultural
organizations, believes that his background in engineering will help
him to help ALMA become an accredited museum. To earn accreditation
from the American Association of Museums, an institution must ensure
certain standards of quality and must catalogue its collection.
“It’s a project that methodically has to be done, and as an engineer
I have done those things for my company,” said Chekijian.
Haig Der Manuelian, chairman of ALMA’s board of directors and member
of the selection committee for the position, said of Chekijian, “He’s
deeply rooted in Armenian tradition and history and culture. He’s
conversant in the language. He even teaches the language.
“He has great, mature judgment,” said Der Manuelian, “He brings a
lot of ideas. We look forward to great things from him.”
Long anxious to serve the Armenian community and to protect and teach
his cultural heritage, Chekijian is implementing some new initiatives
at the museum to make the information available to more people. He led
the drive to change ALMA’s hours to include evening and weekend hours
“so that it will be accessible to working people,” he said.
Chekijian is also involved in creating the museum’s new Web site, which
will include a catalogue of all the books available in the library
as well as a rotating exhibit of pieces from the museum’s collection
of over 20,000 cultural artifacts, books, photographs and art.
Chekijian is replacing Robert Parsekian, who left the directorship
to go into the real estate business with his father.