Powell Joins CBMM Board of Governors

Earl (Rusty) Alexander Powell III

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum’s Board of Governors recently elected two new member to its Board, Earl (Rusty) Alexander Powell III as a new governor and James P. Harris as a Governor Emeritus.

Rusty Powell graduated from Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., with a bachelor’s degree in art history and European history (with honors) in 1966. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 1966, winning a spot in the Navy Officer Candidate School. His active duty service, which lasted until 1969, included a tour of duty in Vietnam as a navigator during the Vietnam War. He left active duty service and entered the United States Navy Reserve, serving until 1980.

After leaving the Navy, Powell enrolled at Harvard University, where he obtained a Master of Arts from the Fogg Museum in 1970. He entered the doctoral program in art history at Harvard in 1970. The same year he received his Ph.D., Powell took a position as assistant professor of art history at the University of Texas at Austin.

In 1976, Powell left the University of Texas to take a position as a curator at the National Gallery of Art. Powell stayed at the NGA for four years, rising to the position of executive curator in 1979. In January 1980, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art hired Powell to be its director, and he was named director of the National Gallery of Art in 1992. He was only the fourth director in the National Gallery of Art’s history, and is retiring at the end of 2018.

Powell and his wife, Nancy, have a home in Easton, where she sits on the Board of the Academy Art Museum.

Jim Harris served on the Board of Governors of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum from 2011 to 2018 and was its Chair from 2016-2018. Prior to being chair he served as Treasurer for four years, guiding efforts to strengthen the balance sheet and focus on revenue generation. He and his wife, Pam, are passionate about CBMM’s efforts to further strengthen its school education programming for all children.

Harris retired in February 2010 as senior vice president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company, located in Houston, Texas. He had worked for ExxonMobil for almost 40 years. A native of Vinton, Va., Harris earned a degree in chemical engineering with highest honors from the Georgia Institute of Technology and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Georgia Tech named Harris to the Academy of Distinguished Engineering Graduates in 1996 and the Engineering Hall of Fame in 2011.

Jim and Pam Harris have two children, Brooke and Andrew. They split their time between Houston, the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and their South Texas ranch. His hobbies include golf, hunting, boating, and model trains.

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to preserving and exploring the history, environment, and culture of the entire Chesapeake Bay region, and making this resource available to all.

Every aspect of fulfilling this mission is driven by CBMM’s values of relevancy, authenticity, and stewardship, along with a commitment to providing engaging guest experiences and transformative educational programming, all while serving as a vital community partner. For more information, visit cbmm.org or call 410-745-2916.